Articles

Obtaining your optimum tone preference from your banjo is something that can be influenced by number of variables.  One of those variables is banjo head tension.   If your banjo head is too loose, the tone can be too tubby.  If the head is too tight, the tone can be too bright.  Some players will…

Like A Flowing River is a 2-Disc project from James Reams, guitarist, songwriter and long-time leader of his band, the Barnstormers. This outing includes songs from his many albums along with many of the songs included in his DVD, Like A Flowing River: A Bluegrass Passage, in which Reams relates his musical odyssey from his…

In recent years there have been a number of books written that cover the history of regional bluegrass.  Kip Lornell’s Capital Bluegrass focused on bluegrass music in the Washington, D.C. area.  Tim Newby’s Bluegrass in Baltimore covered the legacy of bluegrass in that city, and—most recently— Industrial Strength Bluegrass, edited byFred Bartenstein and Cutis Ellison,…

This new banjo instructional book by Jamie Francis could have easily been titled “Fiddle Tune Boot Camp for the 5-String Banjo.”  The 120-page book is an extremely comprehensive approach to learning how to play fiddle tune melodies—including old-time tunes, reels, jigs, hornpipes, polkas, slip jigs, and airs (41 tunes in all)—on the 5-string banjo.  …

Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine May 1978, Volume 12, Number 11 Vassar Clements is one of the best known and popular fiddlers in all areas of country music and is quickly becoming a favorite of jazz and rock players and fans. A complete list of his credits would be as long as a moderate-sized article…

Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine November 1977, Volume 12, Number 5 There are many young pickers in bluegrass and traditional music; child prodigies are visible in every field of endeavor, not only music. What is unusual is a teenager who can do it all musically, handling virtually every traditional instrument as well as singing, arranging,…