banjoblogger.com

In an previous post, I introduced some banjo rolls that used the middle finger more.  This post puts the middle finger in the spotlight, and will force you to pay closer attention to the notes played by that finger. To get started, check out this post - http://banjoblogger.com/right-hand-middle-finger-exercises/

My first post used rolls that started with the thumb; as you know by now, it is easier to get a strong note using your thumb. This time we’ll start the roll with our middle finger and and end with the thumb. In a typical bluegrass song the strong notes are the 1st, 3rd, 5th and 7th eighth notes, and it just so happens that these are the notes played by your middle finger in this roll. A lot of people refer to this roll as the Osborne Roll, named after the man who popularized it. This technique is a tricky one to master, but with a little concentration and close attention to each and every note, you will be using these rolls with confidence in no time.

One of the first people to use this particular banjo roll was Sonny Osborne, of Osborne Brothers Fame. As the story goes, Sonny developed this roll to accommodate the picking pattern in the song “Old Joe Clark” which allowed him to play a pattern closer to the fiddle’s part. Enough talk - let’s get started. The first exercise uses open strings to give you an easier start - try to get all of the notes as even as you can. Once you are comfortable with the middle finger’s new role, try to accent the middle finger notes. Keep working at this one and you will be surprised how much of a difference it can make to your playing. Press PLAY to listen to it: SONNY OSBORNE

This next exercise gets your left hand a little more involved.  Listen :

Here’s a measure of “Old Joe Clark”, using the Osborne roll. Now your left hand is right in the middle of it - practice this exercise until you can play it smoothly. Give it a listen:

If you put in the time to learn this versatile banjo roll well, it will open the door to a whole new banjo world. One final note - be sure to practice carefully, pay attention to the details.

Subscribe to the Banjoblogger.com Feed

Popularity: 30% [?]

Have you ever heard the term drive used to describe someone’s banjo playing? When people talk about J.D. Crowe or Earl Scruggs they often mention that they drive the banjo, or give it drive, or are driving the music. Last time I checked, a banjo didn’t have a steering wheel, so what does drive mean?

Drive is achieved by accenting certain notes in your banjo rolls. If your are playing in 4/4 time (4 beats per measure), the accented beats are the 1st and 3rd beats. If we translate this to a measure of eighth notes we are accenting the 1st and 5th notes. I know this sounds awfully simple, but there is a bit more to it, the 1st note is accented a bit stronger than the 5th, and the rest of the notes should be played at an even volume. In order to play a roll with drive, you have to be able to play your rolls very consistently and comfortably, so don’t try to drive a song before you are ready.

Here is an example to get you on the right track:

In the example above the 1st beat and the 3rd beat are accented.

Listen to some of your favorite banjo players and try to figure out which notes they are accenting, it is often the 1st and 3rd beats. Banjo isn’t that simple though, accents can fall on any beat, depending on the feel you are trying to get.

Popularity: 28% [?]

There are many different banjo rolls to learn; a difficult, but important one is the inside roll. This roll is played on the 2nd, 3rd and 4th strings, which are the three inside strings, hence the name. Scruggs style and melodic style both use these rolls and I have included a couple of exercises to get you started.

The middle finger usually plays the 1st string, but in these exercises your middle finger picks the 2nd string. Picking the 2nd string with your middle finger is a little bit tricky, as you don’t have much room. So, take your time, practice, and you’ll get it. The thumb plays the 4th string on both exercises, except the last note of the second exercise.

Here is a forward roll on the middle strings.

Have a listen:

This next example is a pretty common lick, you’ve probably heard in a song or two.

Press play to listen:

This type of roll needs a lot of practice time to sound good, so add it to your routine and work at it.

Popularity: 31% [?]

One middle finger exercise you might be familiar with is commonly used to indicate displeasure with a person. Giving somebody the finger is easy to master - make a fist, stick up your middle finger, done. The middle finger exercises I am talking about are more to do with the five string banjo and are also more difficult to master. The middle finger is usually played after your index finger, but when you have to play your middle finger in different places it gets a little tricky. The goal of a good banjo player should be to have complete control over his picking hand and be able to pick almost any pattern with ease. Although this is a pretty lofty goal, you can at least try to be a better banjo player and use your middle finger to create some new rolls.

The first exercise will put your middle finger right to work. The middle finger plays half of the notes in each measure and has to be strong to make this roll sound good, so take it slow.

Have a listen to this roll:

Our next exercise takes the same pattern and puts it to use with an F shape chord. Just form a G chord and start picking, being careful to keep your tempo nice and steady.

Press play to hear the example above:

Practice this roll until it is sounding smooth and you can play it without too much effort. This roll can be used when you are playing backup - try to replace a measure of backup rolls with this new one. But, as always when you are playing backup - don’t compete with the lead instrument.

Popularity: 33% [?]

Most banjo players learn how to play their first few songs in the Scruggs style, this style sounds great - lots of slides, hammer-ons, and pull-offs. What if you need to play backup, then what do you do? One solution is to use a technique that Earl Scruggs calls vamping. Vamping is characterized by a percussive sound and chords that are muted. To get started we’ll learn a couple of vamps using F position and D position chords.

Let’s try a vamp with a G chord, form a G chord (F position) and were all set up for this exercise. If you need a reference, the chord diagram is included below. First pick the 4th string with your thumb - next pick the 1st, 2nd and 3rd strings at the same time - with your thumb, index and middle fingers. To give our vamping a percussive sound, just lift your fingers off of the fretboard while keeping your fingertips on the strings.

To get a nice full sound play with your right hand up close to the neck of the banjo, if you want a sharper sound you can play more towards the bridge. Repeat this exercise over and over until you can play it smoothly. That’s all there is to it, you just play this pattern over and over.

Listen to the G vamp here:

Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 38% [?]

I bet every musician has been asked to play some Christmas music, but how many songs do you actually know? I realized that I knew almost one verse of ten different Christmas songs and that’s about it. My friend Dave asked me if I would join him and play a small Christmas Concert at a group home. The residents of this group home have developmental disabilities and look forward to this day every year, so how could I say no. This concert was a yearly tradition for a very good friend who recently passed away, he always had time for music and the people who appreciated it. Ken Hartt, I hope we made you proud - We miss you.

Dave and I got together and tried a few songs, after an hour or so, we felt we were as ready as we were going to be. We chose a few standards like “Silent Night”, “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” and “Jingle Bells” and gave them a bit of bluegrass flair. Dave plays mandolin and of course I’ve got the banjo covered, also joining us were guitarists, Brian and Robyne. Our band gave them about a half an hour of music and it felt good to be able to make people so happy. Brian, Dave and I play together in a bluegrass band, so we thought that it was only fitting to play a couple of bluegrass tunes as well.

The opening banjo lick of “Foggy Mountain Breakdown” grabbed everyone’s attention and soon the kitchen became a dance floor and the sound of hands clapping filled the air. A few more songs and a room full of smiles and our job was done - This one is for you Ken.

Please take some time out and play for people who can’t get out to see live music - in group homes, seniors homes, hospitals or wherever you can make a difference. Well I’d better get ready for Christmas myself - Merry Christmas from the Banjoblogger.

Popularity: 34% [?]

The G major scale is: G A B C D E F# G. You can figure out the G major scale by first writing out the the G chromatic scale and then using the pattern; whole step, whole step, half step, whole step, whole step, whole step and half step. To help remember the pattern for major scales let’s shorten it to: W W H W W W H. The following diagram starts with the chromatic scale and picks the major scale out using the -W- W- -H- -W- -W- -W- -H- pattern.

Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 73% [?]