Outstanding Cathy, I started out trying to be Pete Seeger way back in high school then on to Irish music for years. Decades passed with guitars, dobros and bluegrass filling my life. Catching your videos has renewed my first love, old time banjo. My old Wildwood tuba phone now travels with me everywhere. Thank you for helping me back to my personal roots. Bill Maxwell Greater Madawaska Ontario
Thank you for exposing the diverse tunings for the 5string so well. I been banging old time, blues, rags, rockabilly, and even tried surfer sounding rhythms since 1970. Got Pete Seeger's banjo book and learned to get that bumba ditty working, and later other plucks and brushes. I've seen Pete's info on the mountain minor, and never tried it. You did good to show how it works. Tunings I use: you showed dropC, openG, and i like D-A-F-D-a or g for G tunes like 'tennessee stud' which is very myxolodian or that 'a' on the ring string for some real moody minor sounds. Adapted nylon guitar strings to an old Harmony banjo to mellow it out; the bakelite body and plastic head were brash, but the neck and action deserved that string change. Also, I wanted more bass, so I've taken the 1st string over to the other side on a 6string banjo and some guitars; the other strings move one position...: A,1st; F#, 2nd, D, 3rd; A, 4th; D, 5th; d, 6th string like a 5.5 string banjo where one can ring the bass, treble, or both. 'Ring strings, are full neck length. So D tuning, with the same chord positions as G on a 5 string. Works well for slide guitar and allows old time picking styles Everyone Please keep on pickin'
A huge secret to the banjo is it's played most often at 5 hertz. - 5Hz makes the brain Synchronize the Beta and Theda Waves, thus putting you into a trance state. You notice those songs right away make you want to dance or at least tap your feet. Welcome to Appalachia.
Hey Cathy, that was really interesting. I play guitar and mostly dig Hendrix, Allman Brothers, Pink Floyd, ZZ Topp, etc., there is just something special about the banjo that gets your whole body moving, puts a smile on your face, makes you feel happy and good all over. Thanks for the educational and very moving lesson.
WOW Cathy, you 've just saved my Day and certainly the next few years !!! Was ,,normal'' was for me on my guitars and cigarboxes., (open cords),...did not sound nice at all on my old tennessy 5string banjo...But after 3times watching your gently and gifted made Video.,....it tuck me just a few moment's to understand what's the secret are...;) Tank you nice Lady and Hallo from Lake Constance (germany ;)!!!
Thanks, Cathy very informative, I am mainly a guitarist but always have had a secret yearning for a banjo over years so decided some months ago to buy one a 2nd hand Fender FB-58, fate was saying buy it now or you will never get round to getting one. So I did. Thanks for posting your clip it will help expand my horizons as I learn and become more adept at playing this great but damn heavy weighing instrument.
A fine teacher you areI promised my son I'd learn He Plays Guitar well and knows many music folk as his company does Licensing for the music scene.following your videos will help me get there.Keep up the fine creative work,and thank's,creative people are the best
AH "The Coo coo"! I remember that from the Smothers Brothers' 45rmp record my folks had in the 70's... on the other side was a quick song "Oh slitheree-dee, he crawled out of the sea.... you might catch the others but you caaan't catch >SNORTSNUFFLECRUCH< Whoan I just noticed that Dobson's neck or fretboard extends down onto the head! Now that's contact.
Hi I am a 80 year old clawhammer trier ,in your opinion would putting top Quality nylon strings on my Deering scooped 5 string be beneficial to my playing Bob Millar ps you are a very clever lady ,the way you play the banjo .
I am new to Banjo (but old in age, 69) and I am trying to learn Crawhammer banjo. I thought that if you put the capo on the second string, you would have to use the spike on the 7th string. I am not sure if Cathy did that. This is something different and new for me. I am still trying to figure it out. I am also trying to learn three finger (Earl) banjo. And none of my banjos have spikes because where I live and with the pandemic caotic situation here in Brazil I have no way to install spikes in the banjo. I do not want to take the risk of installing them myself. Thanks for any help. Be safe!
Not a guitarist but try both . I started with clawhammer but now I'm trying to get into finger style as well. I chose clawhammer because I found that every time I put the picks on my hand the phone would go off and I would have to take the picks off again, not a good excuse I know. People will say you can't do both but why not have a go?
I play guitar and both styles of banjo. I think for someone used to fingerpicking a guitar, the three finger bluegrass style will be easier to start with. It was for me anyway.
I'm just a beginner but thought I was the only one who put cloth behind the banjo pot. I like how it makes the banjo sound. Why do you do it? Is there a professional reason?
At about 7:50 she just tunes standard G and drops the 4th string to a C?? she confused me when she said about taking the second string back to G . By the way the courses on trump fire are great !!!! recommend!
she dropped the second string back down to b from c (I think she was saying she dropped the tuning back down to g, not the string) and dropped the fourth string to c
A large part old oldtime and bluegrass banjo is that 5th string acting as a drone. Techniques like Clawhammer are specifically built around it. 4 string tenor banjos are generally used for chords in Dixieland jazz, or in Irish music. If you want to play old-time or bluegrass, I would suggest getting a 5 string. Basic ones generally aren’t too expensive as far as instruments go. I got mine at a pawn shop for like $150
Nail glue - apply half hour before bed, should do the trick, will likely wear off after an intense session, but will save your nails from wearing down and causing pain. It creates a layer of buffer between your nail and the metal strings, and I find it helps a lot (but I never get to anymore because I work in the food industry and it's possible for chunks to flake off into someone's food). *Edit: also, I find that moisturizing helps a lot too - gotta take care of those hands! Hope all this helps, best of luck~
Plenty of old-time banjo players don’t play with finger picks, since they generally don’t play 3 finger, but it seems to me that you aren’t particularly familiar with old-time music. Bluegrass is generally more popular, since it is is more performative in nature, so old-time does fly under the radar.
If one can play piano, you can get multiple drones by holding down the sustain pedal! Nothing more musical than hearing the same notes incessantly. Of course, a bagpipe will give you four drones at once too. You should be aware that Appalacia is losing favor because of coal use so one might have to use makeup on their face to emulate the hard-working poverty flavor by playing a synthesizer set to "banjo."
