GeoffHohwaldBanjoWarehouse - Posted - 04/06/2026:  16:44:21

Hey folks, Geoff Hohwald here from Banjo Warehouse in Yellow Springs, Ohio.

I'm resharing a free YouTube lesson from 2017 that I thought some of you might find useful, especially anyone working with newer players or anyone whose own playing feels technically clean but somehow flat.

The whole point of the lesson is that drive in bluegrass banjo doesn't come from fancy licks. It comes from a simple roll played with rock-solid timing, every note even. Once the roll is locked in, the drive shows up on its own. The licks are just decoration.
In the lesson I work through Pretty Polly, a third-string quarter note roll variation, and how to add simple licks without losing the groove behind a vocalist. About four and a half minutes total.

Here's the link if you want to watch: youtu.be/bXOUCFt1LIQ

Curious what the rest of you think. What's the simple roll you keep coming back to when you want to lock in the drive? I'd love to hear how others approach this.

chuckv97 - Posted - 04/06/2026:  17:18:04

I also can “drive” the forward rolls better if I start with that long slide on the 4th. What I’m impressed with is how you maintain a slight swing to your playing at a faster tempo, Geoff - the long-short on the 1/8th notes.

GeoffHohwaldBanjoWarehouse - Posted - 04/06/2026:  18:28:07

Thanks, Chuck. I really have to credit one of my first teachers, John Hickman, for helping me develop that "swing." One day it sort of just clicked for me when I was taking lessons from him. People have asked me for help developing it for themselves and I've always had a hard time describing it.

chuckv97 - Posted - 04/06/2026:  20:24:59

quote:

---

Originally posted by GeoffHohwaldBanjoWarehouse

Thanks, Chuck. I really have to credit one of my first teachers, John Hickman, for helping me develop that "swing." One day it sort of just clicked for me when I was taking lessons from him. People have asked me for help developing it for themselves and I've always had a hard time describing it.

---

Ah, yes, I do notice it in John's playing,, some people call it bounce , dunno,, I hear it as swing eighths.   Nice playing,, the forward roll sounds great playing it that way. Too late for me to change... lol

BobbyE - Posted - 04/07/2026:  10:19:57

I think the forward roll and drive go together since the forward roll consists of notes that start lower in pitch and move upward in pitch in a constant pattern. I know when you start over you drop back to a lower pitched note, but I theorize that the ear is still tuning in to the movement of the lower to the higher pitched notes. But I could be wrong as I was wrong one time before.

Bobby