In this video, Ethan shows you how to put all your new skills in the key of E to good use on Bill Monroe’s “Brown County Breakdown.” Monroe first released this three-part tune on his Bluegrass Instrumentals album, which featured three fiddlers: Vassar Clements, Bobby Hicks, and Gordon Terry. Probably the most famous recorded rendition is on Kenny Baker Plays Bill Monroe, but check out this mandolin-centric version by Tristan Scroggins. As in earlier key-based lessons, Ethan doesn’t break down the tune phrase-by-phrase, but he plays it slowly enough for you to catch the essentials, perhaps with a little help from the notation/tab. Then he shows you how to embellish the basic melody of the first part with some ascending double stops.
