pickingfive - Posted - 06/24/2016:  07:38:21

For 2 1/2 years in the early 1970's, I practiced most days at least 30 minutes learning rolls and using tabs in Earl's book to learn how to three-finger pick.  At the end of those two and one-half years, I was able to play a close-to-unrecognizable "Cripple Creek," and play square, reverse, and forward rolls.  I put the banjo away, believing there were some people who simply did not have the skills/abilities needed to do that kind of picking, and I was one of them..

Thirty years later, I heard of The Murphy Method "by ear" strategy of learning to pick the five-string banjo.  I ordered the beginning tape (no DVD's available then), watched 15 minutes of it, and put it back on the shelf. 

A few months later I was buying a CD from Ralph Stanley prior to a performance he and his band were about to put on.  I told him of my failure in learning to three-finger pick some thirty years ago, and asked him if my conclusion was correct that some people simply cannot learn how to three-finger pick bluegrass style on the five string banjo.

His reply was "Your ear is your teacher."

That stimulated me to retrieve The Murphy Method tape from the shelf and get out my 30+ years old OME XX banjo.  In one month, I learned more from letting my ear be my teacher than I had in 2 1/2 years of practicing rolls and using tabs.

In "The Ralph Stanley Story" DVD, Ralph Stanley says of himself (in essence) that he can say more in a few words than most people can.  His words to me, "Your ear is your teacher." demonstrates not only that, but that he also quickly saw my question to him was the "wrong" one, as his answering my question with "No, that is not correct." would not have been helpful, while his answer "Your ear is your teacher." went to the heart of what I needed to know.

While my picking is at the advanced beginner/low intermediate level and no one has ever confused my picking with that of Ralph or Earl, Ralph's answer to me set me off on a joyous journey of learning to do something I had admired and wanted to be able to do from the time I heard Dave Guard pick the banjo back in the 1950's.

When I heard this morning that Ralph had died, I was sad to hear the news.  

yopasjim - Posted - 06/24/2016:  08:31:47

Arden, thanks for sharing.  What a VALUABLE lesson to learn from a master.  I will ponder this thought throughout the day!  

LisaSimpson - Posted - 06/24/2016:  13:31:33

He was onto something! 

Dave1climber - Posted - 06/24/2016:  15:12:03

Arden

Wonderful advice from a great man.  Very sad to hear of his passing.

monstertone - Posted - 06/29/2016:  13:09:36

Ha! What you just described, Ralph's ability to cut right to the crux of the issue, and with a minimum amount of wasted time or words, hit the nail squarely on the head, is a prime example of accurate analytical prowess, combined with excellent communication skill. Make every word count! And I'm sure Dr. Ralph never took any high falutin' classes at university level to get that. Thumbs up on that one. Too bad we all are not so blessed.

Rawhide Creek - Posted - 06/29/2016:  13:30:59

I took only medium-falutin' courses; I couldn't afford the high-falutin' ones.

quintr0 - Posted - 06/29/2016:  16:18:24

great tribute to a great man

Ira Gitlin - Posted - 07/01/2016:  06:11:54

I always tell my students, "All good players are self-taught, even the ones who took lessons." But it looks like Ralph edited that down to its essence!

In pace requiescat!

pcfive - Posted - 07/03/2016:  15:34:39

Ralph Stanley's banjo picking was an inspiration to me, I was sad to hear he is gone. And the words of wisdom he gave you seem very true. In trying to learn any kind of music, listening is the most important thing. I always try to remind myself to listen carefully, to myself and to everyone else. 

It is possible to mechanically play notes as written, or from memory, but it will never sound right unless you are listening carefully.