How to Play a Roll on the Banjo

Playing banjo rolls at high speed takes practice.

A banjo roll is a repeated pattern, typically play very quickly, on the banjo. The pattern is played while fingering a chord and is referred to as an arpeggio by guitar players. The note order for banjo rolls can be switched around to vary the sound, but the technique for playing these roll variations remains the same. Learning how to roll is an essential technique needed to get the characteristic banjo sound and will come in handy in any playing situation.

Things You'll Need

• Banjo
• Thumb pick
• Index pick
• Middle finger pick

Instructions

1. Tune your banjo to an open G tuning, with the strings tuned G-D-G-B-D. The first G is your short fifth string; the other four go from lowest to highest. The string numbers are one through five, with the D string on the right being string No. 1.

2. Pick the third string with your thumb, the second string with your index finger, the first string with your middle finger and back to the third string with your thumb. These are all the notes of a G chord. Play them one after the other. Start slow and gradually work up to speed, aiming to play the notes as quickly as you can manage.

3. Finish this musical phrase by playing string two with your index finger, string one with your middle finger, string three with your thumb and string two with your index finger. In common time music, these two sets of notes equal a measure of music. This pattern uses all of the notes of the G chord in the first half of the measure and the third and fifth notes, plus the first and third notes, of the G chord in the second half of the measure. This simple roll can be played with any song in the key of G at whatever tempo is appropriate for the song. The same note and fingering pattern can be applied to other chords.

Tips & Warnings

• The best way to build up speed on your banjo rolls is to play a roll pattern very slowly at first, breaking it down into sections. Once you've mastered playing one section of the roll quickly, work on the second section, then combine the two.

References

• Folk of the Wood: Forward Rolls on Banjo