Hey crohnieks,
Congratulations on finding players to sit, pick, and jam with!
It can be daunting to pick up the tab for a song that you like and see what appears to be an overwhelming number of notes to memorize. It can be downright intimidating to join a jam, they call out a song you know, you get your hopes up, and they kick it off at 240 BPM, or worse yet, they pick a different key than how you know to play it.
There are some great suggestions posted. Everyone has an approach that works for them, but the basics remain the same… start slow, recognize the chord changes, learn the chord progressions, work on timing, and break the song down into manageable pieces.
What works for me is a process similar to what Ben presents in his “build a break” lessons.
Learning the song
Before I even pick up the mandolin, I listen to the song several times, focusing on the melody.
Then I open the tab, or by ear if no tab is available, find and learn the basic melody on the mandolin. If you print the tab out, you can highlight the melody notes.
Use a metronome, Tabledit, or backing track to keep everything in time. If learning by ear or no tab is available, try the application called “BestPractice” (http://bestpractice.sourceforge.net/ ) if you have the mp3 for the song, enabling you to slow the song down without altering the pitch. Best Practice also enables you to change the key of the song by adjusting the semitones. I typically start very slow… 80 - 90 BPM and add 5 BPM as I am comfortable doing so without introducing too many errors
When comfortable with the melody, I dial the BPM back to a slower setting and begin adding the filler notes and embellishments one or two measures at a time. When I can get through the entire song, I begin adding 5 BPM as I am comfortable doing so without introducing too many errors. Rinse and repeat.
For memorization
I break the song down into bite size and easy to manage pieces, typically 2 - 4 measures at a time
Again, I use a metronome, Tabledit, or backing track to keep everything in time. I typically start at a slow BPM and add 5 BPM as I am comfortable doing so without introducing too many errors
After I believe I have the song memorized, I play the song in its entirety at least twice by memory to help identify any measures that are giving me trouble, then zero in on them for additional work
Lastly, make the song “yours”. Don’t be afraid to experiment, but keep the song recognizable.
To expand your horizons …
Once you have the song memorized and you are comfortable playing it… play it in a different key, or two, or three!