Bluegrass Banjo for the Complete Ignoramus (Book + Online Audio)

I had been picking banjo for about three months using several other resources (the Scruggs book, the Janet Davis book, Banjo Ben Clark's website, plus a teacher) and doing pretty well at learning the motions. I could play Cripple Creek, Old Joe Clark, Blackberry Blossom, etc, from muscle memory but I could tell something was missing - I was learning to pick a lot of arbitrary notes without really understanding how they were put together. I finally realized that what I was missing was the melody - it was buried under all those mysterious notes. Then I remembered evaluating Erbsen's book when I first started. I skipped it because I didn't think I would like the approach - the tablature is just a bare melody! But it turns out this is exactly what was missing from my banjo education. He gives you the melody for each song, then step by step shows you how to build all the other notes and rolls around it to make it sound like a banjo. You start out improvising right away, but there's plenty of structure so it doesn't seem scary (stuff like "try an alternating thumb roll instead of a pinch"). It turns out this is exactly how professional musicians create banjo solos! (google "Melodies and Rolls: Creating a Bluegrass Banjo Solo" by Bruce Stockwell). I've been working through Erbsen's book page-by-page, and it's like someone suddenly flipped on a light switch. Banjo music makes sense now! I wish I had started with this book; it would have saved me a lot of wandering in mental fog. The other books seem to be built inside-out; they start with all the fluff and assume you'll somehow find melody inside. Bluegrass Banjo For the Complete Ignoramus teaches you how banjo songs are constructed. Aside from the methodology, the book has a few other characteristics to recommend it: * Unlike other books (which typically just have one demonstration of each song), the CD includes several different versions of each song (99 tracks in total), played slowly so it's not too hard to play along at each level of difficulty (ie, Cold Licks -> Warm Licks -> Hot Licks). Put a track on repeat and play along with it over and over until you match the timing. But don't always play the same rolls as the recording - by using different roll patterns you get neat harmonies. * The pieces in the book are actually fun songs with good melodies. They're all classic tunes you will find at bluegrass and old-time jams; if you're at all familiar with the genre, you will recognize most of them immediately. But before trying to play each song, I highly recommend looking it up on youtube and hearing what it's supposed to sound like at speed in a "full band" setting, especially with a real singer. Listen to different versions until you find one you really like, and then listen to it over and over until you're humming the melody in your sleep. * It's entertaining to read. Erbsen provides a short historical note for each song so it feels like you're taking a little tour of living history rather than playing a bunch of notes on the page. For me, this is part of the appeal of folk music. That said, Bluegrass Banjo for the Complete Ignoramus is not the only book you need - just the first. It's designed to bootstrap both your motor skills and your understanding of banjo music in a short 63 pages. There's no discussion of vamping or playing backup or alternate keys or any of a million other things you will want to know next; it's not supposed to be a comprehensive guide of everything banjo. If you want to play like Earl (and who doesn't?), you will eventually need the Scruggs book - but it's not really for beginners. For learning songs, I really love Banjo Ben's combination of tab and video lesson (and price!). Of course, you can find tab for almost any tune on The Banjo Hangout. And I'm really, really looking forward to Erbsen's Bluegrass Jamming for Banjo... but if you're looking for a place to begin, this is THE book to start with.

I picked up my first banjo and started playing a couple years ago after discovering a Carter-family style jam circle in my town. I began going every week and just strummed along with chords only. Another banjo player came alongside me then and encouraged me to try Clawhammer banjo, and he even gave me a beginner instruction booklet to help me learn. Well I continued playing at the jam circles every week for about 6 months and practiced Clawhammer a little non-committally since I wasn’t using Clawhammer for my jam-session songs. And then I had to move for work and put the banjo down for a couple years. Fast forward to a couple months ago, I had an inspiration to continue learning the banjo and have really committed to it this time. I decided I would try Scruggs-style, or Bluegrass, banjo on this go. I picked up this instruction booklet after realizing that the one given me a few years ago was by the same author, only for Clawhammer banjo. I’ve studiously worked through all the tabs (what banjo song sheets are called) in this version and am really enjoying the simplicity that this author has written his book. Everything is dumbed down to the very basic tabalature (for us ignoramuses no doubt) where the melody notes are the only notes listed. This basic tabalature is in contrast to tabs that have the filler rolls, or static note patterns played after a melody note, that help keep rhythm for the rest of the band, fully on each tab, it’s a sight for sore eyes especially when you’re just starting out because there are so many notes listed! The author then includes an accompanying page to each tab that lets the banjoist up his skills gradually by adding in extras to the song when ready. Extras could include drone notes, pinches, slides, hammer-on’s, and basic and more advanced roll patterns. Let me stress again the point that the tabs are *simple* and that you can progress at your own pace to different difficulty levels without feelings pressured to play at those levels because of the basic song structure. To me, this made the difference between giving up or going forward because before I bought this book, the only tabs on the web I could find was for skilled banjoists. Lastly, another great thing about this booklet is that a free CD is given, or free access to an online midi file page, to listen to the basic song and all of its increased difficulty levels as well. Great instruction booklet, highly recommend!

ok so while stuck at home during the pandemic, I finally committed to dedicate some time to learning the banjo. I have books and had a few kicks at the can over the last couple of years. I got this book as a means of new inspiration and right away I liked the approach. Well written, almost apologizes for having to do cover the basics. Light hearted approach takes nothing away from the excellent explanations and has more than enough to get you going and understanding how to play. excellent instructional book !

A very reassuring book. I'm not a master musician or anything but I can play a bit on some stringed instruments but I found the idea of picking up a banjo very daunting. Mr Erbsen has done a wonderful job in this manual.He starts off by explaining the banjo and how to read banjo music and then presents a number of old folk songs with just enough history to spark your interest and at least five levels of difficulty for each song. The idea is that you start with the first song at a basic level and then play through the book and then come back and add levels of difficulty to your playing. At the end of the book he explains the rolls and other augmentation necessary for expert banjo playing. You also get a CD and access to online audio - downloadable or streamed - with multiple recordings for each song that covers each level of complexity described in the book. This book gives the beginner a place to start with banjo playing and makes it less daunting. Highly recommended.

Mit diesem Buch habe ich mir selbst das Banjo spielen beigebracht, alle Lieder sind in mehreren Schwierigkeitsstufen, so das man Anfangs alle Problemlos durchspielen kann. Das Buch hat Witz und Charakter. Nur zu empfehlen!

Es un excelente libro para aprender a tocar el banjo, yo no sabía tocar ni la guitarra y con este libro se me está facilitando mucho

Quello che il titolo dice il libro lo dimostra, ottimo per iniziare a capire il bluegrass, consigliato ai principianti. Buon divertimento