Featured:: Allergies; Grilling Guide; eHow Now Blog

History of the Banjo & Bluegrass Music

Learn about the history of the banjo and its use in bluegrass music in this free video music lesson.

Comments

ricchie40000 Aug 02, 2008
ur brill.......im an ancient guy......but u thought me........tanx
ricchie40000 Aug 02, 2008
ur brill.......im an ancient guy......but u thought me........tanx

Video Transcript

Hi I’m Fred Wilharm and I’d like to welcome you to banjo for beginners. In this segment we’re going to talk about the history of the instrument and how bluegrass music began. The predecessor of the modern banjo was first spotted in use by natives in Africa along the Ghana River around 1620. Naturally it turned up later in use by slave in the United States who bought the instrument over with them prior to the civil war. By the early part of the 19th century, the banjo was in regular use in minstral shows. Most banjo music of the time was folk and popular music, but there were also banjo virtuosos who were part of symphony orchestras and could literally play anything that violist could play. In 1925, the first Gibson Mastertone was introduced and eighty years later it remains one of the finest banjos in production. Along came the Great Depression of 1929 and suddenly there was almost no demand for bright and happy music, as we all know, it’s almost nearly impossible to play a sad song on the banjo. So for years after, it was almost impossible to buy a five string banjo or even replacement strings, but in the early 1940s a five string picker named Earl Scruggs, developed a three finger style based on the old classical method. He combined it with a folk style originating in the Appalachian Mountains and started bluegrass music as we know it today. This long scale five string bluegrass banjo is the most popular style today and is the direct result of the influence of Earl Scruggs and his band.

Follow eHow: Follow @eHow

History of the Banjo & Bluegrass Music

Comments

Related Ads

Related Articles & Videos