Thinking about picking up the Banjo, looking for some input

[HHP]

Banjo advice is similar to what you tell kids who find a gun. " Stop!, Don't touch!, Call an adult!"

[rcoolz]

Yes the banjo bug can bite hard......really gets in your blood....Ive been playing since 1985 after going to a bluegrass festival....One word of caution..You can drive your other household members NUTS !! while learning the right hand rolls.... My wife HATES !! the banjo for that reason...also to some people all banjo tunes sound the same ( wife says why do you play same song over and over) I said I didnt !!.......You should go for it cause its calling YOUR NAME....

[wcap]

Two things you can do to facilitate more banjo practice time than your family (and/or their sleep schedules) might otherwise tolerate:

- You can stuff a t-shirt or small towel or something inside the resonator.

- You can use a violin mute (or I guess you can get mutes designed for banjos). Quiets the instrument down. Also gives really long sustain, which can be a really cool sound in its own right.

OK, 3 things....

- If you are working on fingerpicking styles (e.g. Scruggs style, melodic style) that normally involve fingerpicks, you can practice without picks, and play as softly as you can. It is amazing how much you can improve your right hand control this way, especially if you are trying really hard to not have any loud obnoxious sounding plunks happen that would bother others. Seriously, I used to find this to be a really powerful practice technique, initially born out of necessity, but with surprising results.

- well, 4 things...

Also, I used to practice picking patterns on my knee. I can play a lovely air-banjo rendition of Foggy Mountain Breakdown on my knee, or on my daughter's head, or on the arm of a chair or sofa, or wherever, even to this day!

- OK, 5 things....

I have heard of people setting up Telecasters (or other electrics) as 5-string banjos (using various forms of single string capos for the 5th string). This would allow for a normal playing feel (not muted with towels or mutes) but it could be really quiet for others (e.g. if you play unplugged, or if you play with headphones). The Banjo Hangout forum has multiple threads about this (and I initially thought I had come up with the idea!... I never got around to doing this though).

[rcoolz]

Hey wcap.... I used to practice my rolls on my knee also ..Your mentioning that brought back memories ! I did it so much my family thought I had a nervous TIC .... Hey whatever it takes....A little more info to the OP They used to sell a practice board that had 5 strings strung up on it that you could hold and do rolls on ...magazine called banjo newsletter had these ...but the air knee method works ok.. Hey the banjo IS CALLING YOU I can hear it !!

[Riperoo]

Thank you all for some really great advise, took the first step last night and ordered Pete Segers how to play the 5 string and Banjo Primer by Geoff Hohwald off of amazon. I have seen them recomended so figured I would start there. Looking at Deering goodtime banjo, but open to other recomendations. I found the Deering recomended around here on several threads, like that it is made in the USA as well. Getting pretty excited. Just thinking about it, and realized I bought my first guitar when I turned 40, my midlife crisis, here I am almost exactly 10 years later buying a banjo, I know I am going to catch some cr*p from the wife!!!!

[matonman]

Originally Posted by Riperoo

Thank you all for some really great advise, took the first step last night and ordered Pete Segers how to play the 5 string and Banjo Primer by Geoff Hohwald off of amazon. I have seen them recomended so figured I would start there. Looking at Deering goodtime banjo, but open to other recomendations. I found the Deering recomended around here on several threads, like that it is made in the USA as well. Getting pretty excited. Just thinking about it, and realized I bought my first guitar when I turned 40, my midlife crisis, here I am almost exactly 10 years later buying a banjo, I know I am going to catch some cr*p from the wife!!!!

dont worry about the missus,just go for it,as someone here once said "its easier to get the wifes forgivness than to get her permission".

[wcap]

matonman,

How popular are 5-string banjos in Australia? And are there certain 5-string banjo playing styles that tend to be most popular there?

[Scriptor]

I can't add much to what has already been said except to put my vote in for the 5-stringer ...

I was introduced to the banjo when I was 15, playing guitar in a Bluegrass band. Because we would switch instruments for a song or 2 in our show, I was "forced" to learn banjo. Being a guitar finger picker to begin with, my learning curve for the banjo was smaller ...

Flash forward to 30 years later ... I decided to buy my first banjo ... some of the form came back to me right away but I was very rusty and had to dig in for a few months to get back to a respectable level ...

Then about 2 years ago, I decided I wanted a certain guitar that required me to sell some instruments which included my banjo. I felt OK with the decision at the time, but realized how much I missed playing it. So a few months ago, I purchased a simple open back 5-string. A very enjoyable banjo.

I am not a very fast player; more melodic and medium speed. But I really enjoy the banjo (and pretty much anything with strings).

Happy hunting, learning and playing!

[matonman]

Originally Posted by wcap

matonman,

How popular are 5-string banjos in Australia? And are there certain 5-string banjo playing styles that tend to be most popular there?

i would say there's 1000 guitar players to 1 banjo player ,so pretty rare i'd say
.the best players down here play mostly bluegrass style 3 finger stuff .
hamish davidson is worth a look.
these days banjo is all over modern country music but for some reason people just dont really "hear" them, you obviously have an ear for it ,but remember, the rest of the family may not

[zabdart]

"It's impossible to play the banjo for any length of time and stay depressed." -- Steve Martin