Archive for the ‘Training’ Category
Spotlight On David Holt
David Holt is a four-time Grammy Award winner is not only a musician; he is also a storyteller, historian, television host and entertainer. He has dedicated his adult life to preserving traditional American music and stories through performance on the ten acoustic instruments he plays. He has been a guest on Hee Haw, Nashville Now, at the Grand Ole Opry, and you can even see him playing in the popular film “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” starring George Clooney.
In 1968, David Holt started his musical journey in the Appalachian Mountains. He wanted to become an old-time banjo player, so he visited remote mountain communities in Kentucky and North Carolina to learn with traditional musicians. He met hundreds of mountaineers with folk music knowledge including banjoist Wade Mainer and washboard player Susie Brunson. In his career David has performed and recorded with many of his mentors such as, Grandpa Jones, Bill Monroe, and Earl Scruggs. Today he tours solo, with Doc Watson, and with his band The Lightning Bolts.
The five-string banjo presents a unique problem when using a capo. Since the fifth string doesn’t start until the fifth fret, capoing the four long strings at the most common frets (two, three, or four) leaves the fifth string unaltered. A number of solutions have been devised over the years. Simply re-tuning the fifth string is always an option, but tightening and stretching the string beyond its intended range repeatedly can cause it to break. Plus, the fifth string won’t note correctly when fretted. Fifth-string capos are available; some attach permanently to the side of the neck and some clip temporarily onto the string.
Earl Scruggs solved this problem by hammering a couple of his wife’s bobby pins into the fingerboard at the desired frets, leaving a small length of pin sticking out of the fingerboard and bent over so that the fifth string could be slipped under it. Pete Seeger illustrated the same idea in his pioneering book “How to Play the 5-String Banjo”, using a screw placed in the fingerboard. In more recent years, players have turned to less-obtrusive HO-gauge model railroad spikes to provide a simple and reliable way to capo the fifth string.
When my youngest son endeavored to learn the banjo last year, I honestly knew nothing about the instrument. After going to a local music shop, I decided that purchasing the various components individually would be much too costly and time consuming. After doing some research online, I found a site that carried comprehensive banjo starter packs.
Not only did they come with a quality banjo, but the packs also included a case, strap, beginner’s books and picks. When my son got the package, he was overwhelmed and quickly began learning the instrument.. Although the music was atrocious at first, he rapidly developed his skill and can now play several classic tunes.
The banjo is conventionally associated with bluegrass musical styles, and it’s really no wonder. Along with the fiddle, acoustic guitar and fiddle, the banjo is a mainstay in that storied musical tradition. A bluegrass picking style is accomplished by using the fingers in an up-picking motion and the thumb to pick downward. But you can throw those rules out the window if you’re playing in a clawhammer style.
The clawhammer style is much slower and more rhythmic than bluegrass, and it requires a unique grip and picking style. So named because the player must shape his hand into a claw to play correctly, this style is employed by such famous musicians as Neil Young and Eric Clapton. Interestingly, a clawhammer banjo player will sometimes finger and pick with the left hand by pulling off and picking at the top of the neck.