Hi all. New member here from Scotland but I have been lurking for a few months soaking up the wealth of info. Purchased my first banjo 2 weeks ago. It is an Ozark 2109G. I know there are many better banjos out there but I thought I’d play it conservative at the moment and have heard that this banjo, when setup properly, is a decent starter. I had no real interest in bluegrass at all, clawhammer was an easy choice. I’m a bit of a bedroom songwriter and clawhammer seems more suited for that. There’s just something about it, it has a lot of soul.
I’ve been playing acoustic guitar for some time but I’m in no way an accomplished guitarist. I’ve learned enough to write some tunes and accompany myself or family with some chord strumming etc. I feel though that banjo is going to demand more from me and I’m enjoying the journey so far. I feel lucky to live in an age with so much information and teachings at my fingertips but also feel a little overwhelmed and confused at times. Everyone seems to have their own way of playing. Sometimes the differences can be small but to a beginner it can get confusing. I thought I had a decent grasp on the frailing stroke quite quickly but I’m not so sure. What I do know is there are no clawhammer teachers anywhere near me at all. Skype lessons will likely be the way for me at least initially until I get the basics down. I’m being very careful not to fall into any bad habits. I recorded my right hand in slow motion a few days ago and I’m trying to ensure it’s doing as I’m telling it to! I seem to play a little better the faster I play if that makes sense.
I received the banjo the day before my partner and I went away for a few days to a lodge for a break. She soon tired of the bum dittys and the variants of it quite quickly! This actually helped me as I started adding hammer ons and slides to break up the pattern and give her ears a change of pace. By the end of the second night I could competently play through a few 3 chord songs that I know. Like everyone says here, everything lies with the right hand. I find every time I pick up the banjo it takes me 5 minutes to get in the swing of it. I’ve been using Rocket Science Banjo and a few online tutorials. My thumb naturally started double thumbing not long after I started. I checked on here to see if what I was doing was a common mistake but it seems it’s ok. I can stop when I need to. As for drop thumbing……I’m not finding the action itself hard but find it breaks up my rhythm and just feels a little unnatural. It will take time. I’m also still battling with an after-buzz kind of thing when I hit a string. I pluck the string and come to rest on the string below but my nail or the finger tip makes subtle contact with the plucked string ad either mutes it or buzzes it. My nail is fine, I suppose it’s just my technique. This happens less the faster I play. Do most people , when they’re first starting at least, strike the string and come to rest on the string below? I hope I’m making sense. Sometimes I’m not even sure which part of my nail I should strike the string with! For the record, I use my middle finger for frailing. I started with my index as it felt natural. I thought there was no way I could get clawhammer with my middle then all of a sudden I’m using middle and struggle with my index. Strange.
Anyway, sorry for being so long winded, I just thought I’d share my experience so far. I also want to thank all the people here that take the time to share their knowledge. If I didn’t know how to use the search function, I’d have loads more questions! Thanks again :)
Richard