The Banjo, Yesterday and Today
By: Cordelia Tremont

The banjo is a wonderful instrument with its own unique sound. Generally, we associate it with Dixieland, Country-Western, or the blues. We often think of the blues and the banjo as going hand-in-hand, but the banjo actually changes according to where it’s being played.

African Americans have been playing the banjo and the fiddle for nearly 300 years. Caucasians also have been playing it since the late 1800s and early 1900s, and both races shared their strumming style and appreciation for the banjo. Region also influences how the music sounds. If you hear it played in the Mississippi Delta, then travel to Virginia Piedmont, you may not know it’s the same instrument.

Black musicians had a major influence on banjo tunes and style beginning in the late 1800s. One famous player was Gus Cannon, also known as “Banjo Joe”. He was often joined by Blind Blake. Banjo Joe made recordings for Paramount Records in 1927 that made his “frailing”, slide style, and rolling patterns famous.

Today, you hear banjo played with a square dance type sound, swing, blue grass, and everything in between. The music played in the late 1800s had a more fluid sound, almost like good friends gathering for a good, old-fashioned jam session. The sound back then was accented with off beats and speckled with rhythm. What we hear more of today is a stiffer sound. While still a wonderful instrument, you cannot help but miss the old playing of Allen Shelton and many of the other famous banjo players that knew how to cut loose.

Article Source: http://www.ArticleJoe.com

Cordelia Tremont runs the Red Banjo, web site that focuses on a range of resources about the banjo. For more details, go to: www.redbanjo.com

Please Rate this Article

5 out of 54 out of 53 out of 52 out of 51 out of 5 

Not yet Rated