George Brabazon is a beautiful tune by Turlough O’Carolan. In the key of G for the 5-string banjo, we’re in standard G tuning. The techniques used in the arrangement include single-string, melodic & the brush stroke, played with the thumb. I would suggest this piece is for the intermediate picker and is typically played at a moderate tempo. Go to lesson...
Estudio is a piece composed by Dionisio Aguado (1784-1849), who was a Spanish guitarist & composer during the late Classical & early Romantic periods. It is a popular beginner classical guitar piece, that sounds quite intriguing & haunting when picked on the banjo.
Typically played in Am, this arrangement is in key of Gm for the banjo, played up the neck to allow for the note range required. Go to lesson...
The Rights of Man is a traditional Celtic hornpipe in the key of Em. We’re in standard G tuning for this arrangement and the tune features the melodic technique, with a little single-string technique. Being a hornpipe, we’ll be swinging the 8th notes, with a feature triplet run that will get your finger’s moving! Go to lesson...
The Merry Blacksmith is a traditional Celtic reel in the key of D. We’re in standard G tuning for this arrangement and the tune features the melodic technique, with a little single-string technique and a grace note pull off which helps spice up the melody! Played at quite a fast tempo, this lesson would suit the more advanced student. Go to lesson...
Bonaparte Crossing The Rhine is a traditional tune in the key of D Major and we are in standard ‘gDGBD’ tuning, which works really well for this melody using the D major scale. In this arrangement we’ll be using the melodic techniques.
There are 2 variations within this arrangement. Firstly, the basic melody, played using the melodic technique. Go to lesson...
In this banjo lesson we’ll take a look at a great arrangement of the traditional tune, Whiskey Before Breakfast. The tune is in the key of D Major and we are in standard ‘gDGBD’ tuning. This is a popular session tune, and in this arrangement we’ll be using the single-string & melodic techniques – and the bonus – no re-tuning required! Go to lesson...
In this 3-finger banjo lesson we’ll take a look at an arrangement of the Traditional Australian Folk Song, Click Go The Shears. The tune is in the key of G Major and we are in standard tuning. The time signature we are in is 6/8 (two dotted quarter note beats per measure). Go to lesson...
In this banjo lesson we’ll take a look at a method to play Blues Backup using the 7th chords and walking lines following the chords in the 12 bar blues, played in G. If you’ve been learning the blues licks from the previous lessons here, this lesson will be perfect for you to develop blues ideas for backing up other musicians. Go to lesson...
In this banjo lesson we’ll take a look at Childgrove; a traditional English Country Dance. This arrangement is in the key of Am and it’s a great tune for the advancing beginner/intermediate picker, with 2 variations that use both the single-string & melodic techniques. Played at a slow/medium tempo, we’ll focus on the right-hand fingering needed to play both the techniques as we work our way through the tune. Go to lesson...
A course focusing on the melodic & single-string techniques including scales, arpeggios, chords, rhythm (back up), improvisation, speed development, general technique exercises & sight-reading.
Scales & Technical Work should form an important, structured part of your practice routine. It will improve your general technique, practical theory knowledge, improvisation, understanding of melody & harmony, rhythm, tone, and so on. Go to lesson...