Hello, music enthusiasts!  My name is Jeff Belding, player of various stringed instruments.  Creating and making music as well as sharing it with audiences and students, has been my life’s work and passion.  In keeping with that sentiment, welcome to my website “Music Along the Way.”

I welcome any of your questions or comments about my books or blog.  I would like to think of this website as a sharing of ideas rather than a one-way street.  

If you purchased any of my books I would GREATLY appreciate it if you could post a helpful, relevant review on Amazon based on your honest opinion and experience.

You can contact me at Jeff.belding@yahoo.com.

Follow me on Facebook and X.

And – visit my Youtube channel for a variety of videos including performances, tutorials and just plain good-picking fun.

My newest book is MORE Octave Mandolin Repertoire Builder – Book 2: More Tunes for the Intermediate Player and is now available on Amazon in both paperback and Kindle format!

Finding a Need and Filling It!

The octave mandolin is catching fire all around the globe! Players of the standard mandolin are adding it to their instrument arsenal. Guitarists are also making a smooth transition to this big daddy of the mandolin family, due to the ease of fingering that is similar spacing to the guitar.

The only thing that is lacking for the octave mandolin is a repertoire of tunes arranged specifically for the instrument. 

The first book, “Octave Mandolin Repertoire Builder,” was written to help alleviate this lack of literature available for it. Apparently, the need was out there for yet another set of new tunes in a variety of genres. And so this second book brings forth more bluegrass, more waltzes, more jigs and even more Christmas! 

New to this second book are scale exercises to build your chops, as well as a section on classical-style melodies. 

All the pieces in the book are played at a moderate tempo on the free YouTube companion videos. The playlist for these videos is here:

Something for everyone and every taste in music… enjoy the ride! Here’s a video to tell you more!

Happy Picking to ALL!

Here are my other books for sale on Amazon

My first Octave Mandolin book, Octave Mandolin Repertoire Builder – A Variety of Tunes for the Intermediate Player was published in late 2025. You can read more about it here. It’s available for sale on Amazon.

This book comes with a video companion to enhance your playing experience. I play through every tune at 160 BPM (beats-per-minute) so you can hear what it sounds like at a speed typical of an intermediate-level bluegrass jam. The link below will take you to the Youtube playlist of all the songs in the book.

Duets for 5 String Banjo and Guitar – 12 Songs of Christmas – available here on Amazon – this has become one of my more popular books. It’s never too early to start preparing for Christmas 2025!

and here’s a soundtrack for your listening pleasure –

All of the books shown below come with YouTube companion videos to enhance the learning process for you. There are links following each book or series to take you to the playlists on YouTube.

Bluegrass Mandolin – Solos, Licks and Tricks – Volume 1: Concepts and Tunes

Bluegrass Mandolin Solos, Licks and Tricks – Volume 2: More Tunes and Neck Expansion

Bluegrass Flatpick Guitar – Solos, Licks and Tricks – Volume 1 – Concepts and Tunes

Bluegrass Flatpick Guitar – Solos, Licks and Tricks Volume 2 – More Tunes and Neck Expansion

I’ve found a few mistakes in my first banjo book published 6 years ago. This video walks you through the corrections.

More information about the audio is available here.

If you prefer not to use YouTube for the audio access, I also have MP-3s of the audio companion for all 3 Volumes on Google Drive. Just email me (jeff.belding@yahoo.com) and let me know if you would like to use this access instead.

and why not order a handy sketchbook while you’re at it?

Thanks for visiting, and let’s start talking!