Album Notes

About the Takoma Mandoleers
The Mandoleers have been playing and performing continually since 1923, when seven members of the Nordica Club (founded in 1907) decided to start their own ensemble. The group originally met and practiced at the home of Judge Harry I. Houston in Takoma Park, Maryland; hence the name.
One of the founding members, Herman von Bernewitz, was elected conductor in 1926. His dedication and energy, and that of his wife, Francine, kept the group alive. After the Nordica Club folded, the Mandoleers expanded into an orchestra. When Herman moved to Arlington, Virginia, the orchestra came with him. Herman relinquished the ba- ton to his daughter, Karen, in 1993. Since 2000, the orchestra has been headed by David A. Ruppert, a native of Little Falls, New York and a graduate of the University at Albany, where he studied conducting with William Hudson. David plays all the mandolin family of instruments and is active in the Classical Mandolin Society of America.
The orchestra’s repertoire comes mostly from the golden age of mandolin orchestras, roughly 1880-1930. This music has been preserved by the von Bernewitzes and orga- nizations that support mandolin orchestras, such as the Classical Mandolin Society of America, the Fretted Instruments Guild of America, and the Nagano Mandolin Orchestra archive. Two of the works on this recording were found in the Library of Congress collection.