The electric mandolin is an instrument tuned and played as the mandolin

Mandolin

A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...

  and amplified in similar fashion to an electric guitar

Electric guitar

An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...

.
As with electric guitars, electric mandolins take many forms:

• Most common is a carved-top eight-string instrument fitted with an electric pickup in similar fashion to many arch top guitars.

• Solid body
  Solid body
  A solid-body instrument is a string instrument such as a guitar, bass or violin built without its normal sound box and relying on an electric pickup system to directly receive the vibrations of the strings....
  
   mandolins are common in 4-, 5-, and 8-string forms.

• Acoustic electric and semi-acoustic mandolins also exist in many forms.

History

Electric mandolins were built in the United States as early as the late 1920s. Among the first companies to produce them were Stromberg-Voisinet, Electro (which later became Rickenbacker

Rickenbacker

Rickenbacker International Corporation, also known as Rickenbacker, is an electric and bass guitar manufacturer based in Santa Ana, California...

), ViViTone, and National Reso-Phonic. Gibson and Vega introduced their electric mandolins in 1936.

In the United States, influential luthier/inventor Paul Bigsby began building solidbody electric mandolins (technically, they consisted of a solid wood core housing the electronics, with hollow wings forming the body) in 1950. His first one had 10 strings and was built for multi-instrumentalist Paul Buskirk. Other Bigsby electric mandolin players were Al Giddings and Eschol Cosby. Bigsby's most famous mandolin, built in 1952, was owned and played by Western swing musician Tiny Moore. This instrument had 5 single courses rather than the more common four double courses, and was patterned after a similar instrument built by Jim Harvey of La Jolla, California, for a player named Scotty Broyles. Gibson and Rickenbacker introduced solidbody 8-string mandolins in the 1950s, while Fender followed the single-course idea with its 4-string version.

Solid Body Electric Mandolins

Both four string single course and eight string double course solid body

Solid body

A solid-body instrument is a string instrument such as a guitar, bass or violin built without its normal sound box and relying on an electric pickup system to directly receive the vibrations of the strings....

 mandolins have been produced by several makers, as well as five string single course models.

From 1956 to 1976, Fender produced a four string version which they simply called the Fender Electric Mandolin. Its body shape was based on a smaller version of the Stratocaster body. They currently produce an eight string semi-acoustic electric mandolin with a very similar body shape.

Gibson

Gibson Guitar Corporation

The Gibson Guitar Corporation, formerly of Kalamazoo, Michigan and currently of Nashville, Tennessee, manufactures guitars and other instruments which sell under a variety of brand names...

 manufactured the EM-200 solid body electric mandolin from 1954 to 1971. They currently produce a solid body mandolin known as the Mandobird, based on a smaller version of the Gibson Firebird

Gibson Firebird

The Gibson Firebird is a solid-body electric guitar manufactured by Gibson from 1963 to the present.-History:The Gibson Guitar Corporation released several new styles during the 1950s to compete with Fender's instruments, such as the Telecaster and Stratocaster. After success with the Les Paul in...

 body and sold under the Epiphone

Epiphone

The Epiphone Company is a musical instrument manufacturer founded in 1873 by Anastasios Stathopoulos. Epiphone was bought by Chicago Musical Instrument Company, which also owned Gibson Guitar Corporation, in 1957. Epiphone was Gibson's main rival in the archtop market...

label. Both four and eight string versions are available.

The Mid-Missouri Mandolin Company produced two models, the EM-4 and EM-8, with carved top bodies and four and eight strings respectively. Blue Star

Blue star

A blue star is a type of star.Blue star or bluestar may also refer to:The Blue Star Is Kind Of Shiny It Is All Of Stars To Protect The Moon-Music:* Bluestar Entertainment, record label* "Blue Star" , first recorded 1955...

 produces four and five string models under the name Mandoblaster. Jbovier

JBovier Stringed Instruments

JBovier is an American manufacturer of mandolins and other stringed instruments.-Company history:JBovier Stringed Instruments was founded in 2005, when founder and designer Jeff Cowherd first began selling JBovier instruments out of his own small shop, Mandolins & More, in Walton, KY...

 produces four and five string "EMC" electric mandolins, which resemble the Fender electric mandolins, and a four string "ELS" electric mandolin. EMC stands for Electric Mandocaster and ELS stands for Electric Leo Smith.

Players

While the electric mandolin has increased in popularity along with its acoustic cousin, there are still relatively few recordings featuring it as a lead instrument on more than a song or two. The following artists have issued full-length recordings prominently featuring an electric mandolin throughout:

• Maestro Alex Gregory (rock/heavy metal)
• Rich DelGrosso (blues)
• Gerry Hundt (blues)
• Billy Flynn (blues)
• Yank Rachell (blues)
• John Kruth (ecletic instrumental folk/rock/jazz)
• Michael Lampert (instrumental jazz)
• Ben Trout (instrumental rock)
• Mark Heard (singer-songwriter/Americana)
• Armandinho Macedo (Brazilian trio eletrico/frevo)
• Michael Kang/String Cheese Incident (jam band)
• Drew Emmitt/Leftover Salmon (jam band)
• Tiny Moore (Western swing)
• Uppalapu Srinivas
  U. Srinivas
  Uppalapu Shrinivas , is an Indian mandolin player of the Carnatic musical tradition of Southern India. Shrinivas plays an electric mandolin and has collaborated with John McLaughlin, Michael Nyman, and Michael Brook...
  
   (South Indian Classical)

External links

• emando.com. The most authoritative, comprehensive information source on electric mandolins.
• Mandobird 4 at the Epiphone
  Epiphone
  The Epiphone Company is a musical instrument manufacturer founded in 1873 by Anastasios Stathopoulos. Epiphone was bought by Chicago Musical Instrument Company, which also owned Gibson Guitar Corporation, in 1957. Epiphone was Gibson's main rival in the archtop market...
  
   website.
• Electric mandolins both 4 and 8 string at the Mid-Missouri Mandolin Company.
• Mandoblaster 5 at Elderly Instruments
  Elderly Instruments
  Elderly Instruments is a musical instrument retailer in Lansing, Michigan, United States, with a reputation as a "megastore", a repair shop and a locus for folk music including bluegrass and "twang". Specializing in fretted instruments, including acoustic and electric guitars, banjos, mandolins,...
  
  .
• Fender Electric Mandolin collector's site.
• Ah yes, the mandocaster, the Taco Bell dog of the electric guitar family....