Music Lessons Derby

4. Playing through a common chord sequence using the two rolls and scale runs

3. Adding scale runs to the Thumb In/Out Roll

2. Alternate between the Forward/Backward roll and the Thumb In/Out roll

Please remember, this is not an instruction manual but the notes you'll need to accompany the lessons.

Feel free to download them and work through them but be aware, they're written to enhance the lessons, not replace them.

1. The G major Scale

Yes, I know that scales are boring but learn these few notes and then how to fill the gaps by playing the first-string drone notes and you'll soon be able to play tunes that sound like a banjo should.

I've neglected this page for too long.
So to start with, I'm going to use it to share the pages from the banjo lesson notes.

Enjoy.

Have I really been playing that long? Picture taken in 1979. That's me on the left with the Strat.

I love ‘em.Banjo’s are great.

They’re loud, brash and versatile.

There are many types available to suit the different music styles in which they are used.

The two that I use (and teach) are:

5-string: used for Bluegrass and American old time.
Tenor: four strings and tuned like a fiddle (but lower) Used for any UK folk style that is based around fiddle tunes. English, Irish and Scottish.

The 5-String Banjo
If you want to play Bluegrass or old-time you need a 5-sting banjo. No other type will do. The fifth sting is essential to the sound and the way those styles are played.

If it’s Bluegrass you want to play, here’s some good news. All of those notes you hear are based on just a few repeated finger patterns. Once you learn them, and how and when to use them, you’ll be well on the way to sounding like you’re married to your cousin.

Tenor Banjo
Yes, it’s tuned like a big fiddle but it has two advantages over its smaller rival. It has a neck with frets on it so it can be played in tune. And it can be heard over an accordion.

If you’re going to play in pub music sessions you find that the accordion doesn’t have a volume control. Most instruments can be played soft or loud depending on the tune. Accordions on the other hand seem always to be played loud enough to drown out everybody else.

There’s only one legal answer to the accordion menace – get yourself a banjo.

Teaching yourself bad habits.

We’ve all heard stories about musicians who’ve taught themselves to play just be listening to tracks of their favourite artists.

But if you need some help, there are countless books and videos that will show you any technique you care to mention. But they don’t tell you if you’re doing it right, wrong or somewhere in-between.

Everything you learn builds on what you have previously learnt. So it you get something wrong at the start, you’ll be holding back your playing style for years to come.

However you choose to learn, get someone who plays well, to check you progress regularly. It’s much easier to learn correct technique to start with rather than trying to re-learn it later.

Do you have a thick skin?

Your practising will sound terrible at first. When you hear a good musician play it sounds wonderful and looks effortless. Well for them it probably is now. But when they started, chances are they sounded like cats fighting on a tin roof.

They will have been teased by their friends and family (especially brothers and sisters, they’re the worst.) They’ll have heard all the jokes, over and over again.

But they carried on practicing and getting better.

I just thought I’d better warn you – music lessons will be character forming. But stick with it. You’ll soon realise they’re only jealous because they can’t do it.

But you can.