Banjo for beginner

taffy lulu

Hi. Hubby has often said that he'd love to play the banjo - trad. Although he loves listening to music, he hasn't played an awful lot of it. Neither have I (except for glenroe tune on tin whistle, and of course - twinkle twinkle). I would like to get him a nice Christmas gift and am considering the banjo idea. As I have no clue where to begin - can anyone with banjo oriented wisdom please give me a tips on buying and learning to play banjo.

Dublin Guitar

Hi Taffy

If it's traditional music that hubby wants to play, then the 4 string (tenor) banjo is the way to go. This is the most commonly used banjo among traditional Irish musicians, and is tuned like a mandolin or bouzouki. This means that if he picks up a few things on it he can transfer that knowledge to the other instruments :cool: Cool eh?

The other option is a 5 string (G) banjo. These are more widely used in all other types of music, though they are also used in Irish music. Barney McKenna is a tenor player, while Luke Kelly favoured the 5 string. It is higher pitched than the tenor and is, in my opinion, closer to the guitar than the tenor banjo is.

There are equal merits to both types of banjo, and once you decide which one, it is a case of deciding which banjo to go for. After the entry level banjos (usually with just a mahogany resonator) you get into the subject of tone rings. Rule of thumb, the heavier the banjo, the better it sounds. The tone ring is a metal ring inside the rim and can be made of rolled brass, zinc, brass etc. The higher quality the ring, the more clarity and brightness you get from the instrument.

If you have any more questions, please feel free to PM me, call into the store for a demo, or visit any of the excellent music stores around and see the instruments for yourself.

Dave - Dublin Guitar Centre

Alanstrainor

It just so happens that i'm going to be purchasing a Banjo in the next few days i guess for an early chrimbo present. I'm looking at a tenor banjo, and although i'm the worlds biggest blues guitar fan, I want to break into something different.

I have a limited budget of about 250ish, are there any brands i should be looking for in particular? Or any models you can point me towards? I might pop into town to have a gander around the shop.

Cranky Mc Funhouse

Hi all,

Just a quick 'off-topic' question, how long would it take for someone to learn how to play a banjo/bouzouki? I ask as I'm thinking of buying it as a christmas present for a friend who currently plays classical guitar at a fairly high level.

Alanstrainor

Dublin Guitar wrote: »

Dublin Guitar Centre

Hey guys, bought myself a banjo today, nice doin business with you and best of luck with everything.

taffy lulu

Cool. Happy banjo playing to u and thanks Dublin Guitar for all your help

Alanstrainor

taffy lulu wrote: »

Cool. Happy banjo playing to u

Who says a beginner needs to start at the beginning! Haha:)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7fimO1IAh0

I'll see yee in a couple of weeks...