Banjo Lessons For Beginners
Edora MS provides banjo lessons for everyone who wants to learn how to play this traditional American instrument. The lessons are available for beginners only.
Perhaps not everyone knows banjo can be used in a wide variety of musical styles, from old-time American folk tunes, jazz, and country to classical and even rock music. For example, the pieces of a great composer such as J.S. Bach sound natural when played on the banjo. The instrument is also widely used in rock songs by the Eagles and Led Zeppelin.
It is worth mentioning that several different types of banjos exist. There is the four-string plectrum banjo or tenor banjo usually used in jazz and Irish music; whereas the six-string plectrum banjo and five-string banjo are the most commonly used instruments in bluegrass music.
Edora MS specializes in teaching five-string banjo. The five-string banjo is one of the easiest instruments to learn at first, but some confusion arises due to the placement of the high fifth string. On the banjo, unlike a guitar, each consecutive note is played on a different string, which means the melody notes are not always on the higher (firsts) strings. That can cause confusion in the beginning, but after you understand how to play melodies and scales, you will achieve quick progress.
Banjo lessons at Edora MS cover the following topics:
- How to hold the five-string banjo, position of right and left hand, and how to use banjo fingerpicks appropriately. The string names, banjo parts and their function. How to choose general supplies for banjo (such as capo, strap, picks, etc.).
- Simple bluegrass rolls, accompaniment patterns, and easy bluegrass banjo solos. You will learn various rolls that can be used as accompaniments for such well-known songs as "Blackberry Blossom," "Foggy Mountain Breakdown," and "Little Maggie." If you practice enough, soon you will be playing difficult virtuoso compositions, such as "Dueling Banjos.” Moreover, in these lessons, you will learn the "textbook" banjo solos by Sonny Osborne, Earl Scruggs, Ralph Stanley, etc., as well as forward-reverse roll, the pinch pattern, square.
- Banjo tricks and tips, scales, and melodic-style banjo. How to play slides and grace notes. "Chopping" and "vamping". Open and closed position scales plus chromatic scales. Drop-thumb exercises and clawhammer banjo.
- Reading banjo chord diagrams and understanding banjo tablature. How to tune a banjo, rudiments of music theories, and fretboard geography. Knowing musical notation is not mandatory for the five-string banjo program, as it is enough for a student to understand how to read tablature (TABS) and chord boxes. Although the tablature is often written without rhythmic notation, during the lessons at our school, teachers use one that is presented with stems and beams indicating rhythm corresponding to standard notation. Therefore, you will learn such musical terms as rhythm, bars and notes values, and time signatures. Also, you will get acquainted with such musical terminology as tempo, dynamics, and articulation.
Edora MS is a classically oriented school where education is organized using modern computer technologies. We provide our students with an opportunity to learn musical instruments with a personal teacher online through Skype, Zoom, etc.
According to recent research, the effectiveness of education under a teacher’s supervision is 70% higher compared to self-study by various YouTube lessons. However, you can learn a banjo on your own, but it would not be worth it especially if you are a beginner. This is because most times, to learn on your own a piece of music effectively takes a few months. During this period probably, you would lose motivation and confidence in yourself.
In other words, various Youtube courses & tutorials that are promoted on the Internet, despite the growing popularity, will not replace the live communication with the teacher, and would not give you the desired rapid progress. Besides, self-study does not give you a real assessment and evaluation of your performance level, which often leads to failures and mistakes such as the wrong choice of a musical piece (for instance, an advanced composition that is a few levels higher than your current level). You might even stop playing banjo and lose all interest in studying.
The teachers of Edora MS will help you love studying and playing the banjo. There are a large number of sites that could provide similar services, but our research has shown us the administrations of these sites have no idea about their freelancers’ competence. Unlike them, Edora MS arranges labor contracts only with certified teachers whose qualifications we are confident about. All of our teachers possess vast pedagogical experience, have graduated from the best European music academies, and have earned many awards for their performance as musicians. They can meet the selection criteria to a very high standard, and we can assure you the best quality of services and professionalism from our team.
By clicking on this link, you can book your first lesson or a trial. The trial lesson will give you a clear idea of how we work and help you understand if our style of teaching suits you. Follow this link for Cancellation and Refund Policy at Edora MS. On this page, you can also read our teachers’ biographies.