Can you recommend me tuning?
Oh my God! My banjo will most likely arrive tomorrow! I am about to split in half from excitment! I know this is completely individual, but I need banjo-stimulus and I appreciate reading your opinions...
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TOTW (OT) 10/10/14- Pearl Blake's Tune
Today's Tune of the Week is Pearl Blake's Tune, which comes to us from the fiddling of Melvin Wine. I came across it a short time ago, while putting together a list of Melvin Wine tunes after...
View ArticleHow to spice up ye olde classics
Friends,We all have our own ways of playing a tune. It might be incorporating a certain lick at a certain place or altering some melody notes here and there to create a more interesting soundscape when...
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Art Rosenbaum's Old-Time Banjo Book (BOOK/2-DVD Set)
Does anyone have this? This looks awesome! There is a 16 minute teaser video on the Mel May website: http://www.melbay.com/Products/30494DP/art-rosenbaums-oldtime-banjo-book.aspx Art Rosenbaum's...
View ArticleAnyone Use This Tuning?
Does anyone use this tuning---- f C F Bb D ? I devised it for playing my version of "Still House" and it works well for my vocal range and sounds good, particularly because all strings, except for...
View ArticleNeed help figuring chord progression: F7 to Bb7
Hello, everyone... I've just picked up my banjo after about a year since I bought it (and not playing it); going to join a Dixieland band playing rhythm for a few old-time Dixieland/swing brass band...
View ArticleLooking for Skype/Facetime Clawhammer Teacher
Hi my name is Matt and I am looking for a good clawhammer instructor. I can't find one in my local area, so I think I'm going to have to go with online lessons. I'm looking for a really good...
View Articlefiddling at an "amusement swing"
While researching this week's Tune of the Week, I came across the following passage in Drew Beisswenger's book "Fiddling Way Out Yonder: Community and Style in the Fiddle Music of Melvin Wine":Melvin...
View ArticleAdvice sought on neck scale length
Am looking for a new banjo. Currenlty have the Deering Goodtime openback with a scooped neck, which I actually like quite a bit, but am looking to buy an oldtime banjo with more depth and substance....
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"Bonaparte's Retreat" - Clawhammer Tunetorial for 10/12/14
Watch a preview video >Original fiddler version from Wm. H. SteppKey of D – aDADE In this, Tunetorial number 21, Dan "Clawdan" Levenson teaches the tune Wm. H. Stepp’s Bonaparte’s Retreat. Many...
View Articlehammer on question
This is a very basic question. I many tabs in the books i am using to learn claw hammer, the tab shows a hammer on from an open string to a different string. This is not something i have not run...
View ArticleTunes to learn in Open D
Hi! I'm loving the life as a new born banjo player! I like the open D tuning a lot and I will stay with it for a while :) Can anyone recommend me a few tunes that I could learn in this tuning?
View ArticleTOTW (OT) 10/17/14 Cornstalk Fiddle and Shoestring Bow
I’ve chosen Kentuckian Clyde Davenport’s Cornstalk Fiddle and Shoestring Bow for this installment of TOTW. It’s a simple tune with a short write up but great fun to play.Here’s the excerpt from the...
View ArticlePlaying Notes VS. Playing Chords
To begin with....I hope this is the right Category for this question, if not I apologize...I am still just a Humble Novice Player and hesitate to even post on this subject due to my lack of experience,...
View ArticleCan anyone ID this tune?
It plays for the first 40 or so seconds of this clip. Realyy fun feel to it.
View ArticleAnyone from Oregon wanna jam?
Just checking, I'm fairly new to the site but not new to playing. I sing and pick a little geetar, clawhammer banjo and can even break out my elec bass if everything else is covered. Looking for a jam...
View ArticleWille Chapman- Jawbone Revisited ( from mountain music of KY)
See original archive: http://www.banjohangout.org/archive/201007I took another crack at this tune after setting it aside in 2011. It could use some polishing but I believe the basics are right....
View ArticleHow hard is it for a Clawhammer picker to learn Minstrel style?
For Civil War reenactment purposes, Clawhammer style isn't "Old Time" enough to be authentic. If you're a decent clawhammereur, how monumental a task do folks think it would be to learn minstrel...
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"Step Around Johnny" - Clawhammer Tunetorial for 10/19/14
Watch a preview video >Key of D – aDADE In this, Tunetorial number 22, Dan "Clawdan" Levenson teaches the tune Step Around Johnny. Though historical info seems to be lacking, it is known to be an...
View ArticleDrop Thumb
Hi AllWhen drop thumbing how is it best to position your right hand when picking? Is it best to use the "pinkie" as in "Scruggs Style." If I rest my thumb on the banjo head, as I usually do when...
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