No Excuse For Not Learning Proper Bluegrass Techniques
I was just on the Banjo Hangout web site a few moments ago. Somebody asked for a review of the Jim Mills instructional DVD for 5-string banjo which I willingly chimed in with my 2 cents worth. That's what prompted me to post this blog entry.
For quite some time I've been telling people that there is no excuse for not learning some proper Bluegrass techniques as applied to their instrument of choice. We're living in a time when there is a record-breaking amount of instructional material available through books, CD's, DVD's and internet lessons. Many of the internet lessons are free.
I'm not advocating that people stop taking lessons from local music teachers in favour of alternate methods of learning, but I am saying there is one pile of good material to be had these days which can be used to supplememt lessons from your local teacher or even replace them in some cases. I own several instructional DVD's for 5-string banjo. Some are better than others, but each one offers something different and I don't regret buying any of them.
I'd like to take a minute to talk about finances. Almost every week through the Banjo Hangout discussion forums, and face-to-face when talking to people at the Bluegrass Friends weekly jam sessions, I hear people say how they don't know if spending the money for a DVD would be worth it to them, especially if at the time, they only want to learn one song from the DVD.
Look people, I realize not everyone is wealthy and I also realize not every one of us is so passionate about learning Bluegrass music that they are willing to spend hundreds of dollars in learning materials as I have, but let me throw this at you. If you were to take lessons from a local teacher you would typically take a lesson at least once a week, yes? How much would you spend on that weekly lesson? and how long would the lesson be? a half hour? full hour? And how much would a single lesson cost? Twenty-five dollars? Thirty dollars? More?
There are a few great things about learning from a DVD. First, most DVD's contain several lessons, not just one. Let's use the Jim Mills DVD as an example. On this DVD Jim Mills teaches you how to play 12 of his tunes. That's twelve people, twelve! Not one, but twelve! The DVD is 110 minutes long and includes a tablature booklet with of course, the tablature for each song on the DVD. The DVD has close-up views of Jim's hands in action and Jim explains many facets of each tune. You're being taught by one of the absolute best banjo players in the business and you get all of this for $35.00 US. You tell me if all of that isn't worth thirty-five dollars? On top of that, you can rewind a DVD and watch the same lesson a hundred times if need be.
If you don't play banjo, not to worry, there are several great videos for other Bluegrass instruments. Chris Jones' The Art of Bluegrass Rhythm Guitar is fantastic. I hightly recommend this video to anyone wanting to improve their rhythm guitar playing in a Bluegrass environment. I think this video can be had for 29 dollars. It's a steal. If you're an advanced player looking to learn some great Bluegrass guitar solos you might check out Kenny Smith's double DVD set available from Acutab Publications. This one's a little more pricey at $60.00, but I bet it's worth every penny!
There are some good DVD's for mandolin, dobro, fiddle and bass as well. Besides Acutab Publications, Homespun Tapes has a very large selection of videos as does Musician's Workshop. Absolute beginners might enjoy The Murphy Method series produced by Murphy Henry.
I get tired of people telling me they don't have access to Bluegrass CD's or DVD's, apparently one of the reasons they feel justified in making copies of their friends materials. Exactly what does "I don't have access" mean? I wonder where they think I obtained my copies? Do they think I manufactured them in my back yard? I'll be very blunt and to the point. Stop being so cheap and go purchase a DVD or two.
Of course, before any of us decide to take lessons or purchase DVD's, we have to want to get better at playing Bluegrass music the way it's supposed to be played, don't we? For some people, the reason for not seeking a teacher or other learning methods could simply be that they just don't care what kind of noise they are making. Still for others, they may be too lazy to put the required effort forth. What's your reason?
For quite some time I've been telling people that there is no excuse for not learning some proper Bluegrass techniques as applied to their instrument of choice. We're living in a time when there is a record-breaking amount of instructional material available through books, CD's, DVD's and internet lessons. Many of the internet lessons are free.
I'm not advocating that people stop taking lessons from local music teachers in favour of alternate methods of learning, but I am saying there is one pile of good material to be had these days which can be used to supplememt lessons from your local teacher or even replace them in some cases. I own several instructional DVD's for 5-string banjo. Some are better than others, but each one offers something different and I don't regret buying any of them.
I'd like to take a minute to talk about finances. Almost every week through the Banjo Hangout discussion forums, and face-to-face when talking to people at the Bluegrass Friends weekly jam sessions, I hear people say how they don't know if spending the money for a DVD would be worth it to them, especially if at the time, they only want to learn one song from the DVD.
Look people, I realize not everyone is wealthy and I also realize not every one of us is so passionate about learning Bluegrass music that they are willing to spend hundreds of dollars in learning materials as I have, but let me throw this at you. If you were to take lessons from a local teacher you would typically take a lesson at least once a week, yes? How much would you spend on that weekly lesson? and how long would the lesson be? a half hour? full hour? And how much would a single lesson cost? Twenty-five dollars? Thirty dollars? More?
There are a few great things about learning from a DVD. First, most DVD's contain several lessons, not just one. Let's use the Jim Mills DVD as an example. On this DVD Jim Mills teaches you how to play 12 of his tunes. That's twelve people, twelve! Not one, but twelve! The DVD is 110 minutes long and includes a tablature booklet with of course, the tablature for each song on the DVD. The DVD has close-up views of Jim's hands in action and Jim explains many facets of each tune. You're being taught by one of the absolute best banjo players in the business and you get all of this for $35.00 US. You tell me if all of that isn't worth thirty-five dollars? On top of that, you can rewind a DVD and watch the same lesson a hundred times if need be.
If you don't play banjo, not to worry, there are several great videos for other Bluegrass instruments. Chris Jones' The Art of Bluegrass Rhythm Guitar is fantastic. I hightly recommend this video to anyone wanting to improve their rhythm guitar playing in a Bluegrass environment. I think this video can be had for 29 dollars. It's a steal. If you're an advanced player looking to learn some great Bluegrass guitar solos you might check out Kenny Smith's double DVD set available from Acutab Publications. This one's a little more pricey at $60.00, but I bet it's worth every penny!
There are some good DVD's for mandolin, dobro, fiddle and bass as well. Besides Acutab Publications, Homespun Tapes has a very large selection of videos as does Musician's Workshop. Absolute beginners might enjoy The Murphy Method series produced by Murphy Henry.
I get tired of people telling me they don't have access to Bluegrass CD's or DVD's, apparently one of the reasons they feel justified in making copies of their friends materials. Exactly what does "I don't have access" mean? I wonder where they think I obtained my copies? Do they think I manufactured them in my back yard? I'll be very blunt and to the point. Stop being so cheap and go purchase a DVD or two.
Of course, before any of us decide to take lessons or purchase DVD's, we have to want to get better at playing Bluegrass music the way it's supposed to be played, don't we? For some people, the reason for not seeking a teacher or other learning methods could simply be that they just don't care what kind of noise they are making. Still for others, they may be too lazy to put the required effort forth. What's your reason?
posted by Michael Floyd at 10:15 AM
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