Ben, I just got your anchors in the mail…it is amazing how much I have improved in a short amount of time. My hand doesn’t wander forward and the sound on the strings are much crisper. My speed is also much improved as I am not guessing where my fingers need to go…I just set the anchor and I’m off…I am up to 170 bpm and I know I can go faster…Im just up to the cripple creek lesson but I’m loving it.
Talk soon,
Larry
Thanks for asking the same question that I was going to ask!
With a few minor tweaks, measure 41 could be the basis for a cover of either the intro to “Lucy in the sky with diamonds” OR the verse of “Lady” by Little River Band.
Edit: that is about 3:15 of part 4 if anyone wants to find what I am talking about.
I started this square roll lesson being mad and frustrated with my fingers. I kept at it and now I feel a sense of accomplishment and confidence.
@BanjoBen Great lesson. I appreciate your encouraging manner.
Greg, Nothing like a frustrating banjo roll to calm you down. Now time to get started on the backwards roll now that is a real challenge. 
Excellent to hear!
Hi Ben, just started. When you say be proficient, what does that mean/look like?
Hi Nathan! I think what Ben has said in the past is that once one can play something from memory and can do it without thinking through each note is the start of proficiency. In other words, you don’t have to be able to play it at the highest speed before working on other things.
I hope that answers the right question.
Hi @nhorgan23 Nathan to @BanjoBen 's Forum. Mike nail it. Just work on through the beginners learning path at your own pace and you will find everything begins to fit. Work through each lesson till you are comfortable then move on to the next. You can always go back to a previous lesson to refresh your memory or practice what you have already covered. Once you complete the beginners learning path you’ll be ready to try your hand at lessons from the Intermediate & Advanced sections.
Yep, great advice from these guys! Keep it up!
I am very much a newbie learning the banjo. One thing I have been doing that I hope is ok is I pick whatever 3 chord song that comes to mind while playing a roll and sing it while I play. It forces me to switch chords and gives practice with the roll.
Welcome to the Forum Rachel !
to the Forum Rachel! Glad to have you on board. You have definitely come to the right place to learn banjo. @BanjoBen get’s into all the detail that many other teachers skip over and his lessons are fun and informative, your gonna love it here. If you have any questions just holler, this is a family friendly forum and if Ben is not around to help, someone will try their best to answer your query until Ben is free to get back to you.
These lessons are like a good novel I just can’t put down. Thank you!
Really thought I was doing good with square rolls, then I became a gold pick member and started from the beginning. This was humbling but awesome!!!
I have a quick question on left hand fingering for measure 42.
Can the beginning of the last eighth note (4th fret, 4th string)
be played with the pinkey finger instead of the ring finger ?
Yes, @kooseman Steve. But why would you want to? It’s an exercise to help you with your finger coordination. The purpose being to get you using that ring finger on the 4th string. It’s a common walkup in Bluegrass
Archie the problem is the stretch is just not happening physically without leaving the other strings.
My pinkey seems to land naturally and feels more comfortable.
I know compensation is often acceptable but, as a beginner, I wanted to ensure that doing so
here would not create any hard-to-break bad habits later on.
However, if you have some suggestions/creative ideasexercises on how I can get my ring finger on that
string I’d appreciate it. 
Hi Steve If you watch the part 4 video closely you will see @BanjoBen shifts his hand position for the walk up. Placing his Index on fret 2, Middle on fret 3 and Ring on fret 4. So there is no stretching involved. Trust me going forward you really need to learn this walk up. Later on you’ll learn to add a slide from 4 - 5 using the ring finger. So by using your pinkie you are in fact creating a bad habit