The Five-String Banjo
My Banjos | Projects, Events and Performances | Used Banjo Stuff For Sale | Banjo blog
You probably don't play 5-string banjo, but I do.
I have moved some of my banjo stuff from here to the five-string banjo section of my blog. That is where I keep a running account of my playing and events, at least that was the idea. That is where I would like to post time-sensative information and keep a journal about my playing. I haven't been keeping up with it very well, however.
I would very much like to meet and play with other bluegrass fans in and around Tuebingen. If you play guitar, dobro, bass, fiddle, mandolin, banjo, etc., please get in touch with me! Deutsch ist auch kein Problem.
Ich wäre ganz besonders daran interessiert, in eine bestehende Band mit Schwerpunkt Bluegrass einzusteigen!
My Banjos
Deering "John Hartford"
My main instrument is a 1995 Deering John Hartford model that I bought in July of 2002 from Wim van der Weg. Drop him a line if you are looking for a good buy on a used instrument here in Europe. The photo above on this page shows this banjo.
The John Hartford model is special for having a grenadillo tone ring, as opposed to a brass tone ring like most high-end banjos. That makes it much lighter than a normal banjo and gives it a warmer, woodier tone. I think it sounds great for both bluegrass and clawhammer playing and I use it for both. I use light-plus gauge strings and a normal Snuffy Smith bridge. For purely aesthetic reasons, I replaced the white tuner buttons (as in photo here) with black, ebony buttons (photo below).
Fretless Appalachian
In July of 2009 I got a fretless Appalachian banjo, made completely by hand by Richard K. Smith of Comer, Georgia according to the design published in the Foxfire books. The front, back and neck are made of black walnut, the nut is maple. The head is calfskin. The tuning pegs are ebony fiddle-style friction pegs. He even hand-made the bridge, but at the time the photos below were made, I had been trying a slightly higher Grover bridge on it. I have since gone back. I have nylgut strings on it, but I may try light gauge steel strings on it soon.
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Mr. Smith has built lots of these banjos and he sells them regularly on e-bay. Watch for them. His perfect seller record is well deserved. He makes a fine product, ships promptly and answers questions thoroughly.
Projects, Events and Performances
- Horse Mountain: I have played two gigs with Horse Mountain, a bluegrass/roots/country duo/trio based in nearby Kusterdingen. I played one set with them in Bebenhausen at the annual reception of the German-American Institute (30 June 2011) and another set at a matinee performance at the Vorstadttheater (3 July 2011). The picture here is from that event. See the whole group here. We will play together again at the Lorettofest on 10 September 2011.
- BLUEGRASS SESSION IN PLOCHINGEN: On the first Friday of every month there is an open session for bluegrass in Plochingen. I started going this February and now go as often as I can. If you are interested, just contact me and I'll get you on the invitation list. It's for anyone who wants to show up. Sometimes it is postponed a week, however, so I'm not posting the address here. I'm making you get on the invitation list so you don't show up to a non-event.
- NECKAR RIVER CRAWDADS: That is the working name of a project that hopes to turn into a performing local band for bluegrass, folk, cajun and other music. It evolved via various stages from a loose meeting of local musicians, formed originally as the parents of kids at the same kindergarden. We named ourselves informally Saibenband. Later, we tried a play on words, SweepWeek and performed a few songs at a few local events. We have lost and won some members and are now focusing a bit more than before on bluegrass, but we are having a difficult time finding musicians willing and able to commit the time necessary to build a repertoire.
- BANJOREE: In May of 2007 I attended the second Banjoree, a meeting of banjo players in Hagen, Germany. Check out the pictures here. Check out the pictures of the 2005 event here
- EISENBAHN UND LIEBE: On July 22nd, 2005, I performed several songs at a literature reading in Vaihingen/Enz. The writers Johannes Beilharz and Ulrike Dietmann read short stories based on their experiences in America and I played railroad, gospel and other bluegrass and old-time style tunes on my banjo. The reading was sponsored by ligatur e.V. and moderated by Oliver Gassner. The event was announced at www.qshots.de and covered in an article in the 26 July issue of the Vaihinger Kreiszeitung.
For Sale
I also have the following items on sale. If interested, just drop me an e-mail:
- An Emerson Power bridge. This is a very thin bridge, made to increase volume and improve the the higher tones of the banjo. The one I have here is the old kind and NOT the new "sweet" kind. Make me an offer or trade another bridge for it.
- I have several sets of D'Addorio J61, nickel-wound, medium gauge strings (.010, .012, .016, 0.23w, .010). Banjo strings typically sell for over six Euros per set here in Germany. I'll sell these for four Euros each and pay the postage myself.
