Mandolin other examples of songs with mandolin. Modern day musicians include Antony Surendra, V. Hemapala Perera, Ananda Perera, Dinesh Subasinghe, Susantha Kariyakarawana, Sarath Fernando, Nalaka Sajee, Haasriza Imran and Buddhika Perera The mandolin has a history on Tobago and Trinidad as the bandolin, dating back before World War I. It was a small instrument, approximately 20 x 40 centimeters, strung with 8 strings in four courses of two each. Before the war, it was commonly a round-backed instrument, made of strips of wood. The flat-backed version appeared after the war. Occasionally a turtle shell would be used for the back of
Octave mandolin also varies widely, from as few as 17 to as many as 24 frets: 18 or 19 frets is typical. From the mid-20th century on, a number of makers have produced octave mandolins with guitar-shaped (e.g., the "hourglass" or "figure-8") bodies. These instruments are typically constructed essentially like acoustic guitars, with similar woods and internal bracing. the neck, however, is much narrower, and supports the mandolin string layout, rather than the traditional 6-strings of the guitar. As with the mandolin and mandola, the octave mandolin has four courses of two strings each. The two strings in each course are tuned