mr phil - Posted - 04/29/2012:  11:25:51

So it's been 1 week of practicing the clawhammer BUM DITY. It feels more natural now.

Should I concentrate on targeting the different strings ?  1 st 2nd 3rd and 4th . You know , the BUM  before the DITY. 

I have been practicing my left hand chord transitions as well.       Well C and D-7 anyway.  Two nights ago I felt like I had made great headway.      Last night I felt like I was strumming with a frozen chicken wing.  It had been a long day and I was forcing the practice.

tbfnyc - Posted - 04/29/2012:  12:10:57

quote:

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Originally posted by mr phil

Should I concentrate on targeting the different strings ?  1 st 2nd 3rd and 4th . You know , the BUM  before the DITY. 

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Absolutely.

chip arnold - Posted - 04/29/2012:  12:12:07

yes to practicing hitting individual strings ...both on the "bump" and the "dit". you can also work on hitting the thumb on the 5th string (or any string you select) between the bump and the dit so as to get a bump-pa-dit-ty .. 1&2&1&2 .. rhythm going. practice slowly enough that you're able to do things without error. work on speed only as you gain accuracy and you won't be practicing mistakes.

mr phil - Posted - 04/29/2012:  13:08:42

quote:

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Originally posted by chip arnold

yes to practicing hitting individual strings ...both on the "bump" and the "dit". you can also work on hitting the thumb on the 5th string (or any string you select) between the bump and the dit so as to get a bump-pa-dit-ty .. 1&2&1&2 .. rhythm going. practice slowly enough that you're able to do things without error. work on speed only as you gain accuracy and you won't be practicing mistakes.

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 Thumb the 5th string between the strike and the strum ?

mr phil - Posted - 04/29/2012:  13:12:41

I get it.

majikgator - Posted - 04/29/2012:  13:25:58

Oh No - looks like it's too late and you are hooked on the banjo - oh well at least you have company here. Yes do try the bum pa dit ty finger, thumb, finger, thumb - bum ditty is just a silent thumb on the pa, the rhythm is the same. the bum does last through the pa though (is a 1/4 note) in the case of bum ditty.

chip arnold - Posted - 04/29/2012:  14:36:51

common language is ...

double thumbing: hitting the 5th string on the "pa".

drop thumbing: hitting an inside string on the "pa".

you can also make musical noises on the "pa" with a left hand device such as a slide, hammer on or pull off.

have fun :-)

leemysliwiec - Posted - 04/29/2012:  15:26:01

Practice can be boring but the right hand rhythms of the Dum Ditty, Ditty Ditty and Drop thumb are crucial to playing the banjo.   IMHO, the banjo is a right hand instrument.  You only have to learn the patterns ONCE but those patterns keep coming up in the playing so get them well.  Once you can do the right hand "like a machine", the left hand will be easy.

countryman99 - Posted - 04/30/2012:  07:31:17

Just one thing Phil, if youre feeling tired and trying to ...Force practice....Just put it aside for a while, and give yourself time to really enjoy the practice session, its a fun thing not a chore. And all the guys have given you some stellar advice, as usual on BH.

Best regards, Mac

mr phil - Posted - 04/30/2012:  08:19:21

I realized my Banjo was out of tune as well. Sounds much better now.
I have noticed that I look forward to my practice time. So I practice longer than I intend to. I enjoy it.

Bard - Posted - 04/30/2012:  09:30:30

you are doing great, even using chords, thats something I find really hard to do, using both right and left hand. Like you, I also started couple of weeks ago practicing clawhammer banjo. Past week used the "rocketscience banjo" lessons, and I can advice them to you as well. I too started with the bumb-diddy, but rocketscience banjo uses some different approach to learning the basics, and clawhammer banjo is all about the basics, Good luck and happy frailing.

mr phil - Posted - 04/30/2012:  10:45:04

Thanks Folks. Yes I have also been at RSB. Very helpful.

scthompson - Posted - 04/30/2012:  11:07:37

I started learning banjo the first week of March-I remember because my parents were visiting the following weekend and as I was practicing the RSB lesson one, my dad said he thought he could hear my Gillian Welch & David Rawlings poster weeping quietly:) I just doggedly stuck with Old Woodchuck's recommendations and now they are muscle memory. I can't recommend his course highly enough. The exercises there ease you into the other strings and the drop thumb.

maryzcox - Posted - 04/30/2012:  11:18:30

quote:

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Originally posted by mr phil

So it's been 1 week of practicing the clawhammer BUM DITY. It feels more natural now.

Should I concentrate on targeting the different strings ?  1 st 2nd 3rd and 4th . You know , the BUM  before the DITY. 

 

I have been practicing my left hand chord transitions as well.       Well C and D-7 anyway.  Two nights ago I felt like I had made great headway.      Last night I felt like I was strumming with a frozen chicken wing.  It had been a long day and I was forcing the practice.

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 IMHO--it is better to practice a couple short sessions a day (maybe 20-30 minutes) than to practice for long periods of time. :) Spend your extra time just listening to clawhammer banjo tunes you enjoy--that way you will develop your ear along with your motor muscle coordination without wearing yourself out. :)

Best wishes,

Mary Z Cox

maryzcox.com

Evan C - Posted - 04/30/2012:  12:13:20

I started playing around Christmastime. There are two things that have been integral to this whole experience for me.

The first is that I am learning concurrently from several sources. There are many styles of play being taught that are different in more or less nuanced ways. It is helpful to get a feel for several of these styles as it vastly improves your repertoire of techniques and allows you to put them together in such a way to develop your own style. I chose to work though material from Ken Perlman, Pat Costello, and Brad Leftwich. There are other options as well, such as the one some of you are using: RSB. Just don't limit yourself to one, even when you're starting out.

The second is to find some people to play with. This not only helps you develop certain skills that every musician should have, but it will keep you motivated to practice regularly. Going to jams has become THE highlight of the whole experience of learning the banjo for me. You don't need to know what you're doing to play with people. I went to my first jam after having played for about a month, and I was so inexperienced that they had to show me how to tune into double C. The idea is to learn some things without annoying anyone in the process, so play quietly, don't be pushy, etc..

minstrelmike - Posted - 04/30/2012:  12:50:50

I think you should get a songbook or two and bum-ditty your way thru it, trying any of the familiar songs.

Some of them will work really nicely and you'll learn the chords.

Then you'll start exploring those lower notes in order to make the song sound better.

imo, it's the 'natural' way to musical ability: 

Start with simple, familiar songs and proceed from there.

george pereda - Posted - 04/30/2012:  18:01:53

stick with it- I remember being terrified what would happen if this thing goes outta tune. I,m dead.

PhillH - Posted - 04/30/2012:  22:05:50

Hey Mr Phil, another Phill here, albeit with two L's... I started playing about 3 weeks ago and find myself in a similar place as you. I've played guitar for many years so getting the basic clawhammer strum down pat has been a bit counter intuitive but I've got it now. Just started adding C and D7 chords as well.

I've been watching Patrick Costello's Basic Frailing tutorial on You Tube which has been invaluable. I also downloaded his e-book "The How and Tao of Banjo". It's seems really good to me but I'm a complete novice at the banjo.

Anyway, all the best and keep it up and let's all share all the resources we can find.

Cheers
Phill

Ps; Chip Arnold above wrote "drop thumbing: hitting an inside string on the "pa". I assume "inside string" refers to strings 1-4?

mr phil - Posted - 05/01/2012:  13:38:07

Hey Phill

I just found Patrick's website and videos . He does a great on his instructional videos. And he lives 1 hour away. I am hoping to meet up with him some time. Thanks for the encouragements.
PS I,'ve always wanted to see Australia.

steve mcgrath - Posted - 05/01/2012:  19:33:17

After you get the bum ditty down pat theres plenty of tabs here and at many sites for beginners but this is the one I use as theres enough good tabs for beginer all in the one place to practice changeing chords and struming and make it sound like the tune.

blog.fingerstyle.com.au//tab_mountain.html

PhillH - Posted - 05/01/2012:  21:18:21

quote:

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Originally posted by mr phil

Hey Phill



I just found Patrick's website and videos . He does a great on his instructional videos. And he lives 1 hour away. I am hoping to meet up with him some time. Thanks for the encouragements.

PS I,'ve always wanted to see Australia.

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Come on over Mr Phil, it's a beautiful place. I hope to make it back to the States in a couple of years - it's definitely on my agenda and now I'm playing the Banjo, I'd love to hear some authentic Bluegrass in its place.

Cheers

Phill

mr phil - Posted - 05/02/2012:  21:16:04

quote:

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Originally posted by steve mcgrath



After you get the bum ditty down pat theres plenty of tabs here and at many sites for beginners but this is the one I use as theres enough good tabs for beginer all in the one place to practice changeing chords and struming and make it sound like the tune. blog.fingerstyle.com.au//tab_mountain.html

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Cool site . Thanks.

mr phil - Posted - 05/02/2012:  21:17:12

Cheers Phill