The banjo

[Os Cangaceiros]

Does anyone here know how to play or have an interest in this instrument?

The banjo is one of those instruments that, when I hear it, it just elevates my mood for some reason lol. It kind of reminds me of that "dueling banjo" scene in the film "Deliverance" but at the same time I like it "unironically"...people who can play the banjo really well impress me. I worked with another fisherman who played the banjo, he had a nice one and could play it well. I also knew a girl who could play reasonably well. It always seemed like kind of an intimidating instrument to learn though.

ptch-hnUpRQ

[Lily Briscoe]

I have a (pretty shitty) one that I've had for about 10 years and am fairly decent with it, but I almost never play anymore and have actually thought about getting rid of it recently. I love the way they sound (when they're not used in country music!), but it's by far the most awkward instrument I've ever played. It's ridiculously heavy (mine has a resonator; bad decision), and the neck is absurdly long, and there's just no way to hold it that feels natural. If you're a guy and average size, it's probably not as big of a deal, but as far as playing goes, I definitely prefer small, lightweight instruments (mandolin in particular).

[Lily Briscoe]

Btw, Im not sure what aspect of it you think is intimidating, but if you ignore the physical awkwardness of the thing, it's actually not a difficult instrument to learn at all. I would say it's considerably easier (and more 'intuitive') than the guitar, actually. 5-string banjos are typically tuned to open G, meaning if you're just strumming the open strings, you're playing a G major chord, which obviously sounds good. Idk if you've ever just messed around on somebody's banjo or watched somebody messing around with one, but it's really easy to play something that sounds halfway decent without having any idea what you're doing, and that definitely cannot be said of the guitar.

[Creative Destruction]

I used to have one but had to pawn it (which was better than pawning my dobro.) I wasn't great at it, but I was getting close to getting good at the clawhammer technique.

[Creative Destruction]

Btw, Im not sure what aspect of it you think is intimidating, but if you ignore the physical awkwardness of the thing, it's actually not a difficult instrument to learn at all. I would say it's considerably easier (and more 'intuitive') than the guitar, actually. 5-string banjos are typically tuned to open G, meaning if you're just strumming the open strings, you're playing a G major chord, which obviously sounds good. Idk if you've ever just messed around on somebody's banjo or watched somebody messing around with one, but it's really easy to play something that sounds halfway decent without having any idea what you're doing, and that definitely cannot be said of the guitar.

That depends on what tuning your guitar in. Open D (major and minor) is a pretty forgiving tuning on guitar and it's mostly what I played in because I played a lot of Delta style stuff and it was a common tuning for folks like Skip James. It's also great -- as it turns out -- for metal. It's low enough to give you a nice, good low crunch without sounding like a mess. Lots of newer metal bands love the really low down tunes, but probably do this to compensate for the fact that they can't play that well -- Drop D is boring as fuck. Open D is easy, nice low notes without sacrificing the higher notes, but if you're better than just messing around on the guitar, you can get some really cool and interesting chords.

If you keep it regular, or any variation thereof (1/2 or full step down, etc.) then you would need to know what you're doing without sounding like ass.

[Os Cangaceiros]

I don't know why I had the impression that it was hard to sound good with a banjo, but I did...I want to throw something at most people who "play" guitar, so maybe I was just applying the same principle to the banjo? :lol:

It'd be cool to play, might warrant further research on my part into it. The problem I always have is that my interests in everything are so transient. sigh. I used to play bass guitar which turned out to be a completely pointless activity, as I never really played with anyone else except my buddy sometimes and I haven't picked up any kind of instrument since I was 18. It'd be nice to have a project to work on over the summer while I'm off at work, though. Well, besides growing weed*.

*within the legal limits of my state, of course ;)

[The Garbage Disposal Unit]

I wish the petit-bourgeois hipsters taking over Halifax's North End hadn't ruined banjo for me. Unfortunately, it's basically in the same category as craft beer and gourmet food trucks in my world.
At least the motherfuckers haven't taken spoons yet. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_pcEES3EWs4)

[Ele'ill]

At least the motherfuckers haven't taken spoons yet. [/URL]

they certainly have here just wait

[Ele'ill]

Does anyone here know how to play or have an interest in this instrument?

The banjo is one of those instruments that, when I hear it, it just elevates my mood for some reason lol. It kind of reminds me of that "dueling banjo" scene in the film "Deliverance" but at the same time I like it "unironically"...people who can play the banjo really well impress me. I worked with another fisherman who played the banjo, he had a nice one and could play it well. I also knew a girl who could play reasonably well. It always seemed like kind of an intimidating instrument to learn though.




I spent quite a bit of time in rural VA and enjoy a lot of that music but the stuff I used to hear didn't sound anything like most of the bluegrass and country music that I'd hear on some radio special.

[Lily Briscoe]

It'd be cool to play, might warrant further research on my part into it. The problem I always have is that my interests in everything are so transient. sigh. I used to play bass guitar which turned out to be a completely pointless activity, as I never really played with anyone else except my buddy sometimes and I haven't picked up any kind of instrument since I was 18.

Yeah, i know what you mean wrt the transient interests thing. I'm sure it's different for different people, but I find playing music to be really, really therapeutic, like a way to express things you're feeling/experiencing that you can't necessarily put into words (I can definitely see how bass guitar might not work in this way tho). So idk but maybe it could be useful to try to approach it that way, as sort of a means for emotional release rather than some sort of chore that you need to motivate yourself to accomplish or w/e (or maybe that won't work at all, I have no idea; just throwing it out there)

[Ro Laren]

I have one and I pick it up to learn it a couple of times a year. Never get very far, but it's fun while it lasts.