But play AND sing, and suddenly you’ll have their rapt attention. Outside of a select few die hard fans of the banjo, most folks couldn’t care less about listening to all instrumental tunes on the banjo. In fact, if he played delicate and timidly, it wouldn’t sound nearly so good.īenefit #3: The “Dale Carnegie Effect” – you’ll win friends and influence people.

He’s assaulting that banjo! And it sounds flippin‘ fantastic. It’s hard to beat belting out a tune at the top of your lungs while you’re hands busy slapping the strings in rhythm.īenefit #2: You can beat the livin‘ snot out of your banjo, and it still sounds awesome. The Benefits Of Playing And Singingīenefit #1: It’s fun.

In fact, I’m making it a personal mission to get more folks playing and singing!Īnd in case any you out there are skeptical, or apprehensive, about the prospect of playing and singing, let me lay out a few of the benefits of doing so. Playing and singing with the banjo is a big part of the tradition.Ĭlawhammer style itself is tailor made for vocal backup, yet ironically the trend in recent years has been for FEWER clawhammerists to play and sing. Up until this point we’ve focused exclusively on tunes, or “instrumentals.” Just the banjo played all by its lonesome.Īnd while there’s definitely a place for solo numbers in every player’s repertoire, there’s also a place for music that’s to be played AND sung.

And a new year means a new season in the Core Repertoire Series! The calendrically oriented among you will note that we recently ushered in a new year. Season 3: Songs for Singing! Episode 1: “Will the Circle Be Unbroken”

Will the circle be unbroken