schlange - Posted - 10/24/2013:  09:10:53

OK--I'll see if we can get a couple more folks in here.

I forgot to post from yesterday's practice--worked on FMB up the neck and "I Saw the Light." Also messing around with Bach's "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" although it will be tough since it's not just a few different repeating sections. Good brain stretcher though, and I like the sound of classical pieces on banjo for sure.

andspence - Posted - 10/24/2013:  10:36:13

I'll have to check out RealBand.  Never heard of it before - but I'm always up for more technology in my practicing.

Amazing SlowDowner on my iphone was the best purchase I have made in a while.  I can take all the classics and just play along with them....not even learning a particular part or break, but just to practice changing chords at speed, starting a break on time, and timing in general.  Metronomes are awesome, but most jams and bands don't have metronome timing, so it's good to get practice at being "fluid"

automatic octopus - Posted - 10/24/2013:  18:54:36

I think I've joined this group!

Hi there, I'm Sven, though this being the internet, you can call me by whatever name you wish, including the silly name to the left that I came up with randomly when registering here.  I'm in Australia, not a land with a strong banjo-playing culture, and am a veteran of... weeks, positively weeks, of banjo playing.

Andrew, I can relate entirely to your guitar tale - I've played on and off for years, but in an unfocused way, and really can't claim to be able to play much.  However, that does at least mean that I have pre-toughened fingertips, saving me that part of the beginner banjo experience. I love musical instruments in general, and have at least had a brief stab at violin, mandolin, guitars of various kinds, and probably other things, but picking up the banjo was a different experience entirely.  Maybe the physical form just happens to suit my hands and body, or something, but the mechanics of it just seem to work for me.

Initially, I was in it for clawhammer playing, because I love that sound, but I found myself some picks and now I'm working on rolls and chord shapes.

Long-Term Goals

Play solo banjo capably.  

Realistically, much as I'd love to play with other people, I expect I'll largely be playing on my own for the foreseeable future, whether at home or around a campfire, or whatever.  So, I'd like to get to a point where I can comfortably play in a manner that works in isolation.

Be able to explore appealing sounds.  

There's quite a variety of banjo music niches, and some appeal to me more than others.  I'd like to be equipped to understand what it is I like about given pieces, even if it's as simple as "blues scales" or "minor key", and to explore and expand on that.

Develop a basis in music theory.  

This really feeds into the above two points.  I'd like to understand, in a practical way, how chords work with each other, to get familiar with where notes lie on the fingerboard, to appreciate how scales, modes, chords and so on work.  This is also just because I'm a nerd and enjoy such academic pursuits.

Short-Term Goals

Get comfortable with rolls.  I need to continue to practice rolls and get them automatic, comfortable, natural, and accurate.

Practice D and F shape chords on open G tuning, and get familiar with what chords I'm playing when I apply those shapes up the neck.

Edited by - automatic octopus on 10/24/2013 18:55:46

automatic octopus - Posted - 10/24/2013:  19:04:37

Last night's practice was largely around playing rolls.

• Forward-backward roll is my more competent, and is getting comfortable.


• Forward roll is improving in speed.


• Alternating thumb roll is getting there, but still requires concentration to avoid mixing up the alternation.


• Started working on the roll from Foggy Mountain Breakdown.


• Worked on switching between those rolls, and changing chords mid-roll on the ones with which I'm getting more comfortable.

I played those rolls mostly over the D and F chord shapes, placed arbitrarily on the neck.  While my fingers did their thing, I worked out what chord I was actually playing.  Also played a forward-backward roll version of Worried Man Blues for a while, that I'd learnt from a YouTube banjo lesson, but my focus was really on the rolls themselves.

schlange - Posted - 10/24/2013:  20:14:04

Welcome to the group, octopus!

gclaunch - Posted - 10/24/2013:  20:41:34

Your post said the first 2 to sign up would be accepted....as of 10:30 PM local, I just saw "octopus" and myself....so, I hope I'm in!

My first name is Gerald, I live in Richardson, Tx and have been working on the banjo for about the last 6 or 7 years. I seem to run hot and cold with my playing...last year I was getting together on a weekly basis with a guitar player and a mandolin player - this lasted for about 6 months and kinda fell apart, but at that time I was really putting in the hours practicing and seeing good improvement all around. I Did Pete Wernick's banjo camp in Boulder last January, a group playing workshop at the John C. Campbell Folk school last summer and tonight I attended the first session of a 3 day Wernick Method Jam camp in Dallas. I seem to do much better when I have something to look forward to.........Hence my ultimate long range goal is to get good enough to fit with a group (band) for the long haul. a short range goal would be to increase my speed and clarity/quality of sound and to develop confidence in my singing ability the idea that a singing banjo player might be more valuable to a group than just a singer or just a player.

Practice: Been pretty good this week about doing about 2 hours a day getting ready for the jam camp...I've got the lyrics to 4 songs memorized that I can sing from memory while accompanying myself on the banjo, including breaks...I hope to give them a try this weekend at the camp.

I certainly look forward to participating with this group.

swamplunker - Posted - 10/24/2013:  21:04:05

Welcome Sven, you sound like you're off to a good start. I use Worried Man as my workhorse for the alternating roll, go through G-C-D-G with it, then start singing while keeping the roll going, then I put in Janet Davis' lead from Splitting the Licks with very minor changes before resuming the alternating (also called square ) roll for the rest of the singing, interesting to see it can be done with the forward/backward roll, too. I like the goals of exploring sounds and getting a theory base, regarding playing alone, we all do, usually, when we practice, but finding a guitar player to jam with could be very helpful for lots of reasons, timing, listening for chord changes, etc.-- So anyway, I did twenty minutes early in the day, downloaded Dark Hollow and My home's across the Blue Ridge Mountains( which I do in one band, but I'm on violin.....currently) from the BHO archive, then an hour just now, practiced Powder Creek, I've only got the first quarter of it memorized. Also did my standard set list with metronome between 105-120.

swamplunker - Posted - 10/24/2013:  21:15:57

Welcome Gerald ,too, I didn't see your post until I finished. The only thing I want to say about singing is just do it, you get better only BY doing it, just like banjo. Start at home in private if you want ( I started in the boonies of Alaska,1981, where I knew nobody would be listening) and if you still worry, watch Pete Wernick and Tony Trischka sing on their DVD's, they won't get confused with Pavarotti....

automatic octopus - Posted - 10/24/2013:  22:05:09

If there's one thing I need to do, it's use a metronome.  I really have no excuse for not using one, seeing it's as simple as starting up an application on my phone.  There, now I've said it, and I'll face public shame if I don't start :P

schlange - Posted - 10/24/2013:  22:29:04

Practiced.... 70 minutes tonight. Worked on Salt Creek, I Saw the Light, FMB upper break, and did some site reading of Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring just for the fun of it.

polarbeardave - Posted - 10/25/2013:  04:06:33

Good Morning All,

Sorry for my 10 day absence. As I've said before, daily life has a way of crowding out banjo practice some times no matter good my intentions are!

Welcome to the new group members! I've been finding 15 minutes a few mornings a week before work. Been working on my 'comfortable' list of songs to play. Still working on the first and second breaks of FMB. Trying to play them more and more from memory, and working in a little back up stuff.

Still practicing the Janet Davis back up licks. I find I need to work on something new for a few months before it really sticks in the old brain.

Hope I didn't get bumped out of the group by my absence!

Dave

schlange - Posted - 10/25/2013:  08:52:46

Practiced about 45 minutes this morning. Got Salt Creek and I Saw the Light basically locked in, just need to play 'em a lot to speed up.

This morning my wife said, "You're sounding really good, I can tell you've been practicing. Sometimes I think you're listening to a CD, but then you stop playing." God bless her poor hearing!

Kemo Sabe - Posted - 10/25/2013:  09:14:22

As time goes by and I get a little better on the banjo - my wife sometimes comments on the name of the song I am playing - to which I reply:  "You know, your hearing is getting better and better .... you didn't use to be able to identify my songs at all!"

picker51 - Posted - 10/25/2013:  13:05:09

Practiced an hour today. Old Joe Clark, Salt Creek, FMB, Foggy Mountain Chimes.. Worked with Murphy Method. Of course I had to read BHO too!

gclaunch - Posted - 10/25/2013:  13:34:35

Thanks for the welcome Sean - I appreciate the encouragement on the singing thing....I've been getting my wife to sing along with me, neither one of us is worth a hoot, but there has been several times we get the giggles and break out into laughter. A lot of fun.
Practice today: in the AM, a solid hour - warm up with rolls and harmonized G scale on 1st and 2nd strings then 2nd and 3rd strings then a couple of easy tunes - 15 min total....practiced new song about 20 min. then remainder of time working from my play list and backing tracks.
After lunch another solid hour practicing, 4 songs with Pete Wernick's Jamming CD - Blue Ridge Cabin Home, Take Me Back to Tulsa, Worried Man Blues and Long Journey Homes - Then went through the songs with out the CD. It's 3:30 PM, local, I'm off to the Jam Camp in about 30 minutes.

automatic octopus - Posted - 10/25/2013:  15:53:07

I was supposed to be camping last night, and was all set to break out the banjo by the campfire, but plans fell through and I ended up at a friend's place for the night instead.  Still broke out the banjo, though.  Annoyingly, I broke my thumb pick, so my plan to quietly* accompany conversation with square rolls was replaced with clawhammer renditions of Darlin' Corey, Cluck Old Hen, and Deep Elem Blues.  

* open-backed banjo with a mute, and a cloth jammed inside.

swamplunker - Posted - 10/25/2013:  20:46:51

Got a midday 45 minute practice in, Powder Creek (1st quarter), regular set list, was away from books and metronome today, no late practice, gotta get up at 7 and get a ride to Jacksonville to play in a benefit kinda gig in some park, violin and guitar, three different bands but no banjo, then my friend Mike and I might try to make in back to our town to do an open mike our friend Bill hosts, still no banjo, some days just aren't banjo days.....we are just getting into the cool nights/camping/ music festival weather, after six months of Dante-ain't -got-nothin'-on-this kinda weather. I think announcing the plan to use the metronome, Sven, is a good example of how the group thing helps, we might ask how it's going, so you've commited yourself in that direction, and now like a hypocrite I say I took the day off it, but that is unusual for me. We're all accountable to ourselves but stating a goal makes it harder not to do.

gclaunch - Posted - 10/26/2013:  04:50:27

6:45 AM local time:
No "practice" today..........Jam camp starts at 9 AM and runs to 5 PM, so will get plenty of playing in today. At last night's session, I led Take Me Back to Tulsa and Long Journey Home...not stellar, but passable. I really need to play and sing more with other people ( one of my goals). A good Saturday to all.

winnipegbanjoman - Posted - 10/26/2013:  19:30:20

Hello All,

Welcome Sven and Gerald!

I haven't posted in a couple of days.  My practice routine has been a bit sporadic this week.  Today, I thought I'd try recording what I've been working on for the last month.  So here's Foggy Mountain Special.  I hope you like it.  FYI - my backup band is a backing track I made using RealBand.

Foggy Mountain Special

andspence - Posted - 10/26/2013:  20:07:30

Nice job on foggy mountain special!!!

automatic octopus - Posted - 10/27/2013:  14:04:26

Indeed, nice work!

Hello from Monday morning!  So, I knew I had a full weekend, and fitting in practice would be a challenge, so I just made sure I had the banjo around.  Sure enough, I managed to get a full hour in on Saturday afternoon, in a park while the kids were playing.  I mostly practiced the FMB roll, which is coming along.

Now, while positioning chords arbitrarily on the neck, I found one that sounded kind of... old-timey.  I decided it had a seventh chord sound, and furrowed my brow to understand what I was doing.  Let's see, it's the F shape, with the upper fingers on the seventh fret, but it's the inclusion of the fifth string that provides the characteristic sound.  So, I'm playing... an A major chord, with a G added in.  Some research shows that A7 can be played at that position by fretting the first string down at the fifth fret, which gives the same G as the fifth string (and of course, the fourth string still provides what the first would have if fretted at the seventh fret).  So, A7 it is!

Sunday, I had a very early start, and made it back home late, but had the banjo out briefly.  Actually, it's still sitting where I left it on the kitchen table before I dozed off :P  Not the most productive banjo weekend, but it was something, and there's something triumphant about managing to squeeze in at least a little playing when it would be easy to just say there wasn't time for it.  It helps that I have an open-backed Goodtime, which is an easy banjo to take places and play in odd moments.  I have a new banjo arriving this week, but I suspect the Goodtime will still get played plenty :)

I hope the rest of you had great weekends, too!

swamplunker - Posted - 10/27/2013:  15:34:06

Nice job, Nestor, I don't think I ever heard that, lots of cool boogie-woogie influence. I haven't even practiced yet today, I'll write back when I do, just had to say that!

gclaunch - Posted - 10/27/2013:  15:43:21

dittto...good job on Foggy Mountain Special....
Thanks Dave and Nestor for the welcome, looking forward to participating.
All day yesterday at the Wernick Method Jam Camp...a lot of playing in the afternoon, good group, very encouraging. The Camp leader a fellow by the name of Rick Sparks from Reno Nev. did a great job. He was very complimentary about my playing during our "one on one" session. He made some suggestions concerning the position of my right hand - said I was doing ok, but if I arched a little I'd get a little better tone. Practiced with him several minutes going back and forth from old to new position..."son of a gun"! I could hear the difference. Fits perfectly with one of my short range goals of improving tone.
Practice today: Hour and a half total......spent about 30 min. doing rolls and harmonized G scale on 1st & 2nd strings and 2nd and 3rd strings concentrating on new hand position.... About 30 min. working slowly on familiar tunes concentrating on new hand position......then wrapped up with a half hour of playing while singing. My wife came in and joined in on the "sing a long".

swamplunker - Posted - 10/27/2013:  21:42:29

Spent an hour and a quarter tonight, started with Janet Davis' Bluegrass Melodic Style book,"A" scale without a capo, Sailors' hornpipe and Twinkle, twinkle, a few from regular set and ended by working on Powder Creek, went through the second quarter but not convincingly, not as good as the first quarter. There's a high slide I gotta work on that comes around twice in that quarter. Sounds like a fun camp, Gerald, I really enjoyed the only one I went to so far, good to get the one-on-one for technique too.

winnipegbanjoman - Posted - 10/27/2013:  21:50:01

Hey guys, thanks for the encouragement on FM Special!

I got in about 80 minutes tonight - a new scale pattern (these melodic/"arpa" ones are tough to get my head around), played though 16 pages of the Janet David backup book and spent some time on tunes.  I'm going to have to go back and review the backup material and let it sink in. I didn't touch the Hatfield book tonight, but I did a bit of ear training, trying to pick up bits of Windy and Warm and work it out on banjo.

schlange - Posted - 10/28/2013:  01:57:16

About 40 minutes tonight, playing through my songs slowly to emphasize tone and accuracy.

picker51 - Posted - 10/28/2013:  12:03:54

One hour today. Practiced FMB, Fireball Mail, Over in Gloryland, Blue Ridge Cabin Home.

automatic octopus - Posted - 10/28/2013:  15:14:41

Half an hour after getting home last night, then half an hour this morning before I left for work.  More roll practice, and I'm still noticing definite improvement, which I guess is inevitable in early stages.  I'm getting more controlled and even with the picking, and can play more softly than I could previously.  

I also tried some different thumb and finger picks, which made a big difference, especially on my thumb. 

gclaunch - Posted - 10/28/2013:  15:45:55

Started out today working on scales for warmup, focusing on hand position and tone. Looking for another song to learn to sing while I play and focused on Uncloudy Day (Unclouded Day)...had a break worked out in G, but didn't feel comfortable singing it, switched to D and the singing felt better. Spent the rest of my practice time working out a break in D...no capo, seems to be coming along....I looked up a short time ago and 2 hours had passed at one sitting - dang! Tomorrow will try to be more organized and get more variety into my practice.

winnipegbanjoman - Posted - 10/28/2013:  21:51:29

50 minutes tonight: a melodic G/Em scale pattern, backup patterns over Wabash Cannonball and trying to figure out some clawhammer tunes for an old time jam coming up.  We have lots of good clawhammer players here, and I don't play clawhammer at all. If I want to participate I'd better learn quickly - at least so I don't get in the way.

schlange - Posted - 10/29/2013:  08:36:13

An hour this morning. Worked on playing backup--mostly rolling--over some "Bluegrass Jam Camp" MP3s I've got. The speeds on these things just seems crazy to me. The "medium" speed tracks are at 130BPM, the fast ones at 160BPM. Crazy fast. I can play along with the "slow" tracks when rolling, but that's it.

Also played through my song list, playing at a slower speed today to concentrate on accuracy and tone. I'm working on arching my hand more to improve (increase) my fingerpick attack angle on the strings--trying to angle the pics more perpendicular to the head. Sounds better that way.

automatic octopus - Posted - 10/29/2013:  13:29:54

Three hours last night, with some breaks along the way.  No, not that kind of break; I just needed some food.  I practiced rolls, periodically played that forward-backward roll version of Worried Man Blues, and began learning a version of Rolling in my Sweet Baby's Arms from a YouTube tutorial.

polarbeardave - Posted - 10/29/2013:  16:39:35

Hey Guys,

I going to bow out of this thread gracefully. I cannot practice as much as I would like and cannot do it on a daily basis, so I figured that I should allow those who can to continue posting. I'm still very much committed to the banjo, but between work and home stuff, daily pickin, ain't happening!

All the best to you all and thanks to Eric for starting this thread. I'll see you around the Hangout!

Dave

swamplunker - Posted - 10/29/2013:  18:31:22

Keep in touch, one way or the other, Dave, I've enjoyed the conversations, on and off the "team". I generally think of this as a practice tool, but the camaraderie, or pen pal, thing creeps in a little too, so you will be missed.... I did an hour just now, found a high break for Lonesome road Blues in Janet Davis' Up the Neck book, so I tried doing the whole song, low break first, then the new high break. I'm not up to speed, but the metronome was pushing me, in a good way. Other than that, worked on my memorized-standards-that-are-in-danger-of-getting-rusty, including Arkansas Traveler which is both memorized and up to speed (meaning 110 for me, not trying to set a speed record), but could use further development in the G and C modulations. I may do more tonight, didn't practice yesterday....

gclaunch - Posted - 10/29/2013:  19:04:49

Hey Dave, just met you and sorry to see you go, but certainly understand obligations.
Today, I got a solid hour and a half in, disappointed that I didn't get more time, but felt very focused.
30 min on rolls, scales, working very slow for tone and quality.
45 min on new song in key of D, using "D fingering" and no capo.
about 15 min playing songs from my play list, concentrating on hand position and tone.

winnipegbanjoman - Posted - 10/29/2013:  20:42:51

Hey Dave,

Sorry to see you go, but I understand how there are only so many hours in a day.  Stay in touch.

I did 45 minutes today. I spent a half hour trying to learn some tunes playing clawhammer.  There's an old time jam coming up that I'd like to join and I want to have my head wrapped around a few tunes before I go.  Also kept  plugging away at the scale exercises in the Pat Cloud book, which actually also doubles as ear training because he encourages using the tab only as a last resort.

swamplunker - Posted - 10/29/2013:  22:28:49

Another half hour. Started with J.D.s' Melodic Bluegrass book, then after doing Blackberry Blossom there, I realized I wanted to tackle Bill Knopfs' version, so did that a couple times, ended up working on powder Creek, am doing the first half now, although the second quarter is still rough. Wrote down a new partial g scale up the neck that I found in that version, a fingering I want to remember. I do think guys' voices do best in D,E, and F, Gerald, whereas girls seem to prefer G,A, and B and not only because of what it spells. If you ever read an interview with a Bluegrass purist, they tend to Jack these keys up about five notes each, but that doesn't affect my observations.

schlange - Posted - 10/30/2013:  08:46:21

Only 20 minutes this morning--a bit busy today!

Something I've started doing is playing along with the "Bluegrass Jam Camp" tracks I got on iTunes---just practicing rolls. The tracks come in 3 different speeds, different keys, and waltzes as well as 4/4 stuff. I think it's helping me speed up and smooth out my rolling, just doing the same pattern over and over again for the entire ~5 minute track.

polarbeardave--thanks for joining us this far. Keep on pickin!

Kemo Sabe - Posted - 10/30/2013:  10:51:42

Hello Eric and Group #1 - I am Phil and have been waiting in the wings to join and am happy to join you guys as of today.  Please excuse that I have not read the rules and pages leading up to today but I promise I will read those logs and pages as soon as I can.  I have scanned through the pages and will read in more detail to meet you folks soon.  I told Eric some time back that I would like to join the group - what I did not tell him was that I was unable to start a new group and monitor it due to some exciting but busy schedules that I have very recently gotten for me and my wife [as in: I have been retired for 11 years and my wife and I just got two grandchildren to raise - 3 yrs. old and 5 yrs. old] ....WOW! is right!

Therefore - and having said that - please excuse me if it takes me a while to get up to speed on learning your names and your progress.

I would like to say that I have two short term goals that I would like to have in pretty good shape by Dec 31 - about two months from now:

1.  I would like to develop and play a decent high break to a song I love to do in the key of C:  "Wildwood Flower".  I plan to work this goal daily and I will post my progress.  I am ok happy with what I do down low but going up the neck is my goal.

2.  A few months back I started an acoustic jam at my residence - it has grown and grown .... we may have as many as 12 folks this week in the jam.  We have been a little .... shall I say 'Rag-Tag' in our procedures.  My goal for the next couple of months is to get all the input possible from some of the very experienced players to improve the sound of the jam and to observe the jam etiquette that we should be using while still:  A.  Having fun   B.  Learning

That's it guys!  While not lofty in nature .... it is where I am at this time and I want to get on with these two short-term goals.   Comments will be appreciated - I am looking forward to discussions and getting to know you folks.  Phil

automatic octopus - Posted - 10/30/2013:  13:58:18

Hi, Phil!  I wouldn't worry that your goals aren't lofty - I'm here practicing basic rolls!

On that note, I spent half an hour last night and another half hour this morning doing just that, with a metronome.  Speed is improving, and I pushed myself a bit on that to see how fast I could sustain it, but backed off for the sake of accuracy.  Mainly forward-backward, forward and FMB rolls today. 

Kemo Sabe - Posted - 10/30/2013:  16:12:05

Hello Octopus and all of Group:  I should mention that I always start my practices or jams (before the jam starts) or any warm-up with banjo rolls.  I usually practice a few different rolls (forward-reverse, forward, alternating, Dillard Roll, and sometimes reverse rolls (I need to get better on the reverse roll).  I use my IPad (or IPhone) and practice the rolls with the app called 'Banjo Rolls Trainer'.  It has many different kinds of rolls with adjustable tempo, metronome, instruments such as guitar, banjo, etc.  It also changes chords if you select that function - G Chord, C Chord & D Chord and back to G.  This exercise therefore gives you the option of going up and down the neck with good chord changing practice while you are doing the rolls.  BTW - a guy here on the BHO invented this app and I am happy to say he added the chord changing function at my request.

As usual - today I practiced various rolls using the 'Banjo Rolls Trainer' for about 15 minutes then:

My practice today was on my #1 S/T goal:  up the neck break in Key of C for "Wildwood Flower".  I have already made progress today on that goal.  I realized that the notes are VERY largely within the chords when I go to frets between 5 and 10.  I found all the melody notes using three finger chord formations and some pinky with a little stretch here and there.  I am encouraged already.  To those melody notes I was able to add some filler notes (actually, I call them 'decorations').  BUT - it doesn't sound like 'Wildwood Flower' yet.  It will by Dec 31.

S/T Goal #2:  Improved musical sounds for the jam group and gentle introduction of jam etiquettes - tomorrow night we jam and I have heard from one of the advanced musicians (guitarist/singer) that he would be happy to help us on that goal.  BTW - I already know jam etiquette ..... I have been to maybe 100 jams or more ... but what we need is those above the intermediate level to help us on this journey.  Phil

gclaunch - Posted - 10/30/2013:  16:18:38

6:15 PM local.
Hey, Phil, welcome, glad you made it.
Sean - thanks for the ref to chords most people sing in...one of the guys I got together with last year sang a lot in F (GAB...that was good)
Eric- saw your mention of Bluegrass jam tracks...Googled it and found a neat site with a lot of tracks...plenty of "free ones" to keep me busy.

Practice today: 30 min this morning before mandatory errands - rolls, G harmonized scale, and just strumming chords and singing Unclouded Day.
Went to the Jam tracks site this afternoon and got totally distracted, spent an hour and a half singing and taking breaks on a few of the songs I already knew - wife at store - I really let it hang out and had a blast....discipline went out the window.
Ended up with another 30 min of just doing rolls on D, G, and A and picking melody for Unclouded Day. For a total of two and a half hours.
Tomorrow my goal is to stay focused, maybe not as long, but more quality.

swamplunker - Posted - 10/30/2013:  21:51:26

Did 40 minutes before dinner, mostly worked on Black Mountain Rag and East Tennessee Blues out of Alan Mundes' Great Pickin' Tunes book, then did 45 min. just now, out of Janet Davis' Bluegrass Melodic Style book, did Fishers' hornpipe, Devils' Dream, and Flop-eared Mule, I think I notice scale segments better now as they go by, mostly G,C,A, and D, Munde's even more of a scale madman, the last two lines of Black Mountain are ALL scales in C,G,and D followed by a Scruggs lick in G. Ended by practicing Powder Creek, I've got more of it memorized than I used to just by all the repetition.

gclaunch - Posted - 10/31/2013:  15:08:45

4:50 PM local -
Better discipline today:
9:15 AM to 10:15AM... warm ups, rolls, scales with metronome, not too fast, going for clarity and tone...used a CD with GG,CC,DD,GG progression repeated several times (about 2 min. per track), with different speeds on different tracks, used 80bpm, 90bpm and 110bpm tracks, repeated each track 3 times and moved up a track, then worked down the tracks 3 times each getting slower, did this pattern several times.
10:25 to 11 AM Used my backing tracks for Bury me Beneath the Willows, Cripple Creek and You are My Sunshine...finished with a couple of run through's of Jesse James.
2:50PM to 4:05PM worked on new song Unclouded Day 30 - 45 min. Then wrapped up playing and singing along with the Bert Casey's Acoustic Guitar CDs.
Total time - 3 hours...however, about every 5 to 10 minutes, I would stop and rest for about 2 minutes...this kept me from getting tired and was able to maintain focus better.

automatic octopus - Posted - 10/31/2013:  17:01:03

I put in an hour last night, and twenty minutes this morning before leaving for work - it's interesting how tricky it is to get half-asleep fingers to cooperate!  Roll practice, particularly changing chords mid-roll.  I also spent some time just playing with sounds, emphasising notes, or keeping them all even, slow tempo, relatively softly played.

swamplunker - Posted - 10/31/2013:  20:31:02

I got a festival called Barberville for a couple days, will bring a banjo and record practicing when I get back, see y'all soon.

automatic octopus - Posted - 11/01/2013:  02:59:22

I sat for an hour in a park in the middle of the city this evening, playing my new Bishline, which was delivered to work.  So very nice :)

gclaunch - Posted - 11/01/2013:  19:17:28

Running late today...........got a good hour and a half in today.
30 min on scales, rolls and working with my "speed" tracks at 80, 95 and 110bpms - 4 rotations at each speed...interestingly, I was consistently getting a half beat off when doing the forward-reverse roll, at 110bpm. I finally determined that there was a "miniscule" lag between plucking with my thumb and fore finger that was causing the timing problem...more focus on even spacing of the notes during the roll seemed to help quite a bit.......continued by going through my play list and ended up working on new song.

winnipegbanjoman - Posted - 11/01/2013:  19:57:33

Hello Gents. Sorry, I've been absent for a few days.  Welcome,Phil!

I practiced for 90 minutes tonight - 70 minutes on tunes (FM Special, Night Sky, and Wabash Cannonball (also backup); and 20 minutes on scales.  I finally got some progress on the latest scale exercise that's been giving me grief.

Hey Sean, have fun at the festival!