CeeBeeBanjo - Posted - 07/31/2022:  08:13:15

I am new to banjo (9 months of Scruggs-style lessons) but not new to music theory or standard music notation.

It puzzles me why accent marks are so rarely added to banjo tabs. It would make it so much easier to 'hear' the sometimes-elusive melodies! Can anyone explain? (I know that some of you believe one should never learn a song until they've already got the tune locked in their auditory memories, but tabs don't always match audio recordings and tunes remain elusive). Thanks in advance.

Old Hickory - Posted - 07/31/2022:  08:51:47

Some tabbers do. They make the melody notes larger, bold, outlined or some other different format.

I use TablEdit for the few tunes I tab out completely. I don't know how to differently format an individual tab note/number in TablEdit. I suppose I could add some type of character above certain notes and outside the staff.

I believe that as you work your way through a tab and practice it enough to pick it cleanly and in time, the likely melody notes (if its an instrumental version of a vocal song) or the notes deserving of some type of emphasis will reveal themselves. Probably not the answer you're hoping for.

I've been playing for a long time and I absolutely cannot describe what, if anything, I do with melody notes.

Joel Hooks - Posted - 07/31/2022:  09:11:38

Because most banjoists do not use dynamics. I seem to remember the Scruggs’ book teaching two playing positions, one loud for solo and one for “ backup”.

Regular banjo notation, like the tens of thousands of solos published between the 1870s and WW2 do use all the standard notation markings that one would expect (depending on the piece, simpler ones don’t). But that is not “bluegrass” (or “old time”) so does not apply here.

stanleytone - Posted - 07/31/2022:  10:21:46

If the tab is based on a particular recording then one can use their ear to hear the accents.
If no recording is available then you may have to go with your gut if no accent marks are there

Ira Gitlin - Posted - 07/31/2022:  10:49:42

quote:

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Originally posted by Joel Hooks

Because most banjoists do not use dynamics. 

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The good ones do.

janolov - Posted - 07/31/2022:  11:13:59

If it is paid tabs, I can agree that it would be helpful to have the melody not shown by accents or by lager figure. However, most of the tabs on BHO is made by voluntary unpaid players that just want to help others. Often it will take a lot of more time to indicate the melody notes in the tab. And in most cases the player should be able to find out the melody notes from the tab himself/herself. 

Texasbanjo - Posted - 07/31/2022:  11:46:05

For beginners looking for instruction books that highlight melody notes, check out Jack Hatfield's Beginning Bluegrass Banjo Books 1, 2 and 3. Jack highlights the melody notes so you know where they are.

When I was learning by tab years ago, I would listen to a song many times until I had the melody down, then figure out where the tab melody notes were and highlight them in yellow. Helped me a lot to know what the melody note was so I could strike it a little harder than the others.

Eventually, you'll learn to listen and figure out the melody without needing any kind of cheat sheet. Just takes time and practice, practice, practice.

Joel Hooks - Posted - 07/31/2022:  19:25:31

I think I misunderstood, for some reason I thought the OP was asking about dynamics.

Banjo notation, as well as guitar and many other polyphonic instruments that use the treble clef, are often written with two voices, the melody with stems one direction, and the accompaniment with stems the other. This is a very clean way to present the melody over the harmony.

Emile Grimshaw gives a good example here...

archive.org/details/the-banjo-.../mode/1up

of course this has nothing to do with Scruggs or any of the various "old time" methods conveying music.

With the play by number systems it seems that writer/publisher often expects you to have access to a recording of such and does not include all of the info on the written page.