r/banjo

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Just putting together a list of clawhammer practice skills.

So if you were to practice your skills only, not songs or tunes.. just skills!!!!

Give me the few you would practice a few times a week.. for say 3-5 minutes each...

......example these are the basics or the givens.... Any level

Posture banjo position

Basic Bum Dirty

Single strings

Chord positioning

Chord switch

extra credit 👍

Adding a drill for each is welcome also...😁

Hey, gang.
I'm a clawhammer player and I play in Bsus2 tuning. Some songs I play are easer in a standard major tuning and some are easier in sawmill. Is it practical to get railroad spikes for the second string to quickly change the second string so I don't have to leave a finger on the fret all the time or is that going to make it very difficult to fret when playing in Sus2? Is there another solution that anyone has found to this problem or am I alone and need to just deal with it

I’m a 24-year-old Swiss lad and I’m looking for someone from the US who can teach me to play the banjo. I’ve always been passionate about Appalachian folk and bluegrass music. (You can imagine how hard it is to find someone with my musical tastes where I live, haha.) I really think the time has come to get stuck in and start learning! Does anyone know of a teacher for complete beginners? And in your opinion, how much should I spend on my first instrument? What type of banjo is best to buy? Can you give me some advice? I hope someone can help me, and thank you in advance!

( PS: Happy 4th of July everyone! )

Hi all, for context I’m new to banjo and have essentially no knowledge on music theory. I’m learning Tom Collins’ version of Cluck Old Hen in which he says the banjo is tuned to A Modal with a capo on the second fret.

My issue is that when I tune into A Modal and play the numbered frets it sounds good but when I slap a capo on the second fret and play counting from the capo’d fret it sounds really wrong.

Do I have to tune it to A Modal with the capo already on the second fret? I don’t want to run the risk of snapping my strings so I wanted some confirmation first.

Thanks y’all.

Hi Banjo folks!

I’m hoping for some help/guidance/insight around a banjo I’ve recently inherited from a relative. I am a guitarist and know very very little about banjos, and am curious to know whether I’m looking at a certain style/type of instrument here.

Here is what I know:

- There are six tuning pegs on the headstock
- There are four notches on the nut
- There are five notches on the bridge
- There is one hole and a single nut on the fifth fret, but no tuning peg on the neck, as I typically see on five-strings. It looks like this belongs to a string that runs through the neck and up into a tuning peg on the headstock
- The instrument is likely 90+ years old

Google yields few results for “five-string banjo no tuning peg on neck” and I’m struggling to figure out what is happening here. It’s possible that the bridge/nut have been replaced, but what is going on with the sixth tuning peg on the headstock/five-notch bridge, and what is with the string through the neck?

Is this typical of a particular style of instrument I don’t know about?

Grateful for any insight for this complete newb!

with me

Hi all! I'm based in New York and I want to buy a banjo to start learning.
Is there a better website that you guys recommend? I've had a quick look at Reverb and Amazon, are those the two best places? Would be great to know you guy's opinions.

Im trying to avoid places like facebook or craigslist as they feel too risky.

I've been using Elixir Polyweb strings for the longest time on my 5-string banjos. They're the best strings, I've tried so far, but my stockpile is running dangerously low, they've stopped manufacturing them and my banjo is in dire need of a fresh set of strings. Meaning that after this upcoming string change I have to find another brand.

Any recommendations?

I usually keep them on for a while, because I like the sound of the strings after they get "worn in", so preferably something durable - I have no issue with paying a premium, as long as it makes sense.

I've been using Light Gauge 09's and plan to keep doing so. I've previously played with John Pearse, Rotosound and Aquilla strings. I''ll be playing mostly Scruggs/Three Finger stuff on said strings.

Thanks in advance :)!