Two Finger Banjo for the Complete Beginner 

Try this: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-HwoPcG6dQjA.html

Hi Erin, there’s a great claw hammer that was on RU-vid but has moved to Patreon. His name is Patrick Costello and i learned claw hammer from his videos a little over two years ago. I highly recommend it!

What is the name of the tuning you are in? Is it Fcfac?

@@SusanPenaMusic yes. it's the same as open G, but all strings a whole-tone down

Man, Clifton I have listened and listened to your clawhammer brush and have tried to figure how you get the sound you get. It's taken me going to the complete beginner lesson here and I think I see it. When you brush, do you (kinda) upbrush as you come off your 5th string? Not a full on upbrush, but just a tiny bit? There is a different element to your clawhammer compared to everyone else's, even when you slow way down its still there. I love the way that sounds, and want to try and emulate it.

Yeah, it's become pretty common revisionist history that clawhammer was the only way anyone ever played the banjo. In reality, loads of these people were self-taught living in rural Appalachia and as a result came up with all kinds of different, interesting ways to pick. Very neat stuff

I have an easier time with clawhammer than this as well. I'm glad someone else posted this cause I was starting to feel dumb. But I will master this. I must.

GlennFiddles h

Most of the old timers used both an up-picking (2 finger) and a down-picking (overhand) style. In some areas, like east Tennessee and central NC, the vast majority were fingerpickers with few who played overhand. I find that 2 finger works best in a loud band, while overhand is best for a solo banjoist accompanying dancers. Do you remember anything about your grandfather's style or repertoire?

@@CliftonHicksbanjo unfortunately, no. He passed when I was 5. However my father said he only played with his thumb and index and he typically used a thumb pick and steel finger pick. My father has heard some of your 2-finger picking and said it sounds very similar to the way he played.

Sounds about right! I tried fingerpicks off and on for a few years.

I was playing Scotty Moore style guitar before the banjo. 2-Finger is the best way to go, if Merle Travis style was your way.

Here's how I play O Susanna: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-tZtWajvf7Iw.html

gDGBD, relative. I am tuned much lower where all my Gs are actually Fs or even Es. Look out for a video response to your tuning question soon.

Happy to be a Patreon but not able to log on without a lot of looking at stupid pictures and still having an email sent to me. The Patreon system can lock me out of looking at the video but not letting me log on without a five step process. Thanks Clifton. You are a treasure 🎶🏗〰

The best I can offer at the moment is the $2 membership at patreon.com/cliftonhicks where you'll be able to see close-up videos and lessons that are not posted publicly.

I just got a banjo for Xmas and I've got 2 finger down pretty good for just a week, but the times I tried clawhammer were abysmal lol. Wayyyy harder

Hi do you have videos up of your way of playing this way?

@@Womble1252 not yet, but when i do I'll put a link in a reply for you.

@@nvdawahyaify awesome thanks, that is good of you 😊

@@Womble1252 ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-NZPYWl90Up8.html heres a link. i apologize every time i record myself i end up messing up some how. i hope you like it. i recomend using headphones as i dont have great recording equiptment.

As a general rule, yes. But not strictly.

@@CliftonHicksbanjo just rewatched beginning banjo... Bump Ditty is actually brush-5, 1-5, brush-5, 3-5, brush-5, 1-5, brush-5, 3-5 and so on. Is that right?

But yes, i see now that with two finger, it can go 1-5, 1-5, 1-4, 1-5...so yes, 5 doesn't strictly need to be played after each note or brush. Thanks for all of this CH. I'm going to stick with the bump Ditty and two figure videos until proficient then move on to songs. TTYL. Thanks

@@CliftonHicksbanjo hey Mr Hicks,, Do you use any finger picks and play blue grass style using thumb, & two fingers ? Just wondering is all.. No particular reason . Looking for more lessons.

Whatever works. I would suggest, however, trying to pick that bottom string with your middle finger since it acts like it wants to participate.

@@CliftonHicksbanjo Thanks Clifton. I really appreciate you responding, and I need a clarification. I do Clawhammer but want to sprinkle in 2 finger in some songs. Like I said, I wear a pick on the nail side of my middle finger. When you suggest picking with my middle finger when doing 2 finger (with a downward thumb stroke and an upward index finger stroke) what action are you suggesting for my middle finger. Are you suggesting a downstroke or an upstroke? I can easily do a downstroke while wearing my metal pick, but an upstroke with my middle finger would be a problem because of the pick I wear.

@@bodurango Downstroke or upstroke with the spare finger.

Beepa, I'm not sure what exactly you're doing but if you are consistently fumbling something it's probably best to switch up your picking to something that's more natural for you. Throughout my entire career as a banjoist I have always strove for the "less is more" approach and, if you watch my hands, you'll note that everything I do is the easiest, simplest way I could come up with. I encourage you to move away from tablature and any other forms of restriction or regulation when it comes to music and just play your songs the easiest, simplest and most fluid way you can.

Harry, I was not familiar with the "3,2,5,1 roll" and had to look it up. All I could find was examples demonstrating three finger Scruggs picking. I must admit that the terminology around "rolls" has never concerned me. It sounds like what you are describing is possible but not something I generally do. My advice is always to play things the simplest way possible with the least movements--if this is hanging you up somehow I'd suggest finding a simpler technique that will keep your picking easier.

Do what comes natural to you.

YES! Many of us actually think bare fingers work and sound better. I haven't used picks seriously since I was a kid.

Yes you can!

gDGBD tuned one full step down from G to F.

Sounds like you're doing just fine. Whether you use two, three, or more fingers doesn't really matter. Find a method that's comfortable for you and run with it.

@@CliftonHicksbanjo Thank you Clifton.

If you're really hard up use fishing line, should work fine especially for a thumb string. It sounds like you have developed your own three-finger picking style? Cool, keep at it! 👍👍

@@CliftonHicksbanjo well it's not really three finger-picking Style, I just sometimes use my middle finger and sometimes use my index finger so I'm still using two fingers. I can't get a string because my music store is closed and I don't shop online. But I'm going to check today I ordered a tailpiece a bridge and a couple sets of strings before this Corona thing happened. But thanks for the tip on the fishing line I might try that!

Yes. I do encourage beginners to pick with their index if they can, as I am convinced it allows for more variation in your style down the road. Ultimately it's up to you.

@@CliftonHicksbanjo thanks for your reply.

@@CliftonHicksbanjo hello Clifton, always listening to another banjo teacher and watching them for several weeks going over and over and over his first second third video on lessons one two and three, seem to be doing really well no problem there. But I was looking at your video one and two, and I noticed for me, which maybe for a lot of other people they're having a little bit of issue too with this, and that is, when you speak there's words coming out on my screen and it's covering your hand and the strings were your picking, and so you really can't see anything with words covering everything up all you have is you speaking and me listening but I can't see what's going on, and it would help if it was more close up in detail so that people could actually see a little closer and better and clearer and more upfront and personal so to speak, anyway I'm trying to work my way through that and the only thing I can think of is just keep watching and listening over and over and over again maybe I can get past that, and maybe they'll just be another video or something else along the way or another position or you'll move and in front of the camera differently and I'll be able to see your fingers or something of that nature, not sure how it's all supposed to work out. If I can figure out how to shut these words off that are coming on my screen as you talk I'm going to shut them things off. I'm new to this computerized phone thing, I'm real old school and I hate this phone. You're doing a great job keep up the good work I'll keep watching see what I can get out of it all right thank you

It doesn't matter. Resonator banjo is louder; openback is quieter. I like them both.

@@CliftonHicksbanjo Isn’t there also a difference in tone? Wouldn’t open back be more mellow vs the crisper resonator, or is that simply due to the style with which the banjo is played?

There are a lot of different factors involved. For example, my 1888 Luscomb banjo (open back) with nylon strings is louder and crisper-sounding than some resonator banjos with steel strings.

Downtuned from gDGBD.

Karl, did you see this one? ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-HwoPcG6dQjA.html

If a dumb Cracker like me can figger it out, so too can you.

You are absolutely right. I found a video where they actually explained what they were doing. Starting to make sense now.😜@@CliftonHicksbanjo

I do it for stability/accuracy. If you prefer not to, then by all means don't! Do what works for you.

@@CliftonHicksbanjo Thanks! I'm getting used to it now, so I'll stick at it. Coming to the banjo from guitar it just felt kind of odd.

Sounds like standard gDGBD but down tuned.

...heyhey...yeahhhh , think I'll stick w/ guitar here

IT's up to you. Many old banjoists played with three or even four fingers, leaving only the pinky anchored.

Drop-thumb just means dropping the thumb to a string below the thumb string. It makes more sense when discussing clawhammer style, but also works for two-finger style. When the trigger finger plucks the 1st or 2nd string to produce a leading note, and the thumb plucks the 2nd, 3rd or 4th string immediately afterward, that's a drop-thumb.

he tunes his banjo lower to help his voice cause he can't sing high enough for normal tuning

gDGBD relative.

@@CliftonHicksbanjo Thanks, I think about this style more than clawhammer now, hope to create music sooner than with the more difficult clawhammerstyle.

@@CliftonHicksbanjo Your video's are attractive!

gDGBD relative means not the same as gDGBD open G ? Your banjo sounds different then my open G tuned one.

@@CliftonHicksbanjo I understand the RELATIVE tuning now, I do that all the time. So in what tune is your fifth string on this first lesson?