Comments on: What song should I learn first on my banjo? http://banjosrule.com/blog/what-song-should-i-learn-first-on-my-banjo/ Banjo Blog Fri, 27 Jan 2012 02:34:27 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: admin http://banjosrule.com/blog/what-song-should-i-learn-first-on-my-banjo/comment-page-1/#comment-542 admin Mon, 14 Dec 2009 18:55:12 +0000 http://banjosrule.com/blog/?p=885#comment-542 Hey Steve, that depends on how well you know the song! I've lost and can't recall many leads I used to do, like to fiddle tunes, because I didn't practice them regularly. Yet, there are others that I'll be able to do in a coma and on my death bed (i.e. Cripple Creek, Foggy Mt. Breakdown) and it won't matter if 10 years goes by without me having played them...I'll never forget some of these standards. Hey Steve, that depends on how well you know the song! I’ve lost and can’t recall many leads I used to do, like to fiddle tunes, because I didn’t practice them regularly. Yet, there are others that I’ll be able to do in a coma and on my death bed (i.e. Cripple Creek, Foggy Mt. Breakdown) and it won’t matter if 10 years goes by without me having played them…I’ll never forget some of these standards.

]]> By: admin http://banjosrule.com/blog/what-song-should-i-learn-first-on-my-banjo/comment-page-1/#comment-541 admin Mon, 14 Dec 2009 18:52:33 +0000 http://banjosrule.com/blog/?p=885#comment-541 Hey Tim, great reply and thanks for sharing your internal struggles. I've often said that the day job and household obligations are standing in the way of my banjo playing! If only we had the 5 hours a night thing... *sigh*... You've given beginners like yourself food for thought for sure. The good or bad thing is that there are no "cookie cutter" answers. You'll figure out what works best for you in time. Just the process of "figuring it out" will elevate you to that next level. When we try, we usually find a way; it's when you give it up that you become a failure at it. So keep trying and searching. Hey Tim, great reply and thanks for sharing your internal struggles. I’ve often said that the day job and household obligations are standing in the way of my banjo playing! If only we had the 5 hours a night thing… *sigh*…

You’ve given beginners like yourself food for thought for sure. The good or bad thing is that there are no “cookie cutter” answers. You’ll figure out what works best for you in time. Just the process of “figuring it out” will elevate you to that next level. When we try, we usually find a way; it’s when you give it up that you become a failure at it. So keep trying and searching.

]]> By: Robes http://banjosrule.com/blog/what-song-should-i-learn-first-on-my-banjo/comment-page-1/#comment-540 Robes Sat, 12 Dec 2009 23:59:01 +0000 http://banjosrule.com/blog/?p=885#comment-540 I'll throw my 2 cents in,... I guess I am old enough to remember banjo played by ...the Kingston Trio (yeah,... I saw the smirk) and the Dubliners ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=au30c9ZMIPg) and I always "heard the banjo" in the music. When you learn a song,... and then don't play it for a few years,... can you find again?....or is it gone? I’ll throw my 2 cents in,… I guess I am old enough to remember banjo played by …the Kingston Trio (yeah,… I saw the smirk) and the Dubliners ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=au30c9ZMIPg) and I always “heard the banjo” in the music. When you learn a song,… and then don’t play it for a few years,… can you find again?….or is it gone?

]]> By: TimS http://banjosrule.com/blog/what-song-should-i-learn-first-on-my-banjo/comment-page-1/#comment-539 TimS Fri, 11 Dec 2009 03:13:59 +0000 http://banjosrule.com/blog/?p=885#comment-539 Good post. I have to agree with Jesse on this topic. For me, the initial phase of learning a song causes the notes to be dragged out at an excruciatingly slow tempo. If I'm not familiar with the tune, then the song becomes just a bunch of notes with no obvious timing signature. If I do know the song, and can hear it in my head above the usual din of voices...LOL, then even during the sloooooow memorization phase, I can still hear the melody, and begin to get a handle on the timing. The big question for me as a beginner is where to spend my valuable resource dollars (ie time spent practicing). Do I learn songs I'm very familiar with to polish my technical skills, while limiting my ability to play with others because I don't know many jam session favorites? Or do I work on the "standards" at the expense of technical skills to become more competent playing with others? If I could spend 5 hours a day playing my banjo, this would be a non-issue. Because I can only devote about 1 hour a night to practice, it becomes more difficult to know what is the right thing to do. Good post. I have to agree with Jesse on this topic. For me, the initial phase of learning a song causes the notes to be dragged out at an excruciatingly slow tempo. If I’m not familiar with the tune, then the song becomes just a bunch of notes with no obvious timing signature. If I do know the song, and can hear it in my head above the usual din of voices…LOL, then even during the sloooooow memorization phase, I can still hear the melody, and begin to get a handle on the timing.

The big question for me as a beginner is where to spend my valuable resource dollars (ie time spent practicing). Do I learn songs I’m very familiar with to polish my technical skills, while limiting my ability to play with others because I don’t know many jam session favorites? Or do I work on the “standards” at the expense of technical skills to become more competent playing with others? If I could spend 5 hours a day playing my banjo, this would be a non-issue. Because I can only devote about 1 hour a night to practice, it becomes more difficult to know what is the right thing to do.

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