https://banjobenclark.com/lessons/fretboard-geography-part-3-banjo
Part 3 of the Fretboard Geography course with Alan Munde!
Discuss the Banjo lesson: Fretboard Geography- Part 3
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So, I’ve watched most of the lessons in the course several times and have been practicing the exercises but I’m still not sure how to get to the step of using them with backing tracks for backup and stuff. I do pretty much understand how the chords are constructed but not sure I’m sure what to do with this. Say I’ve got an easy song like “boil dem cabbage”. I don’t see where I’m really transitioning with these chords going from G to C back to G, up to D etc… Can anyone help me out? Thanks.
hi Keith,
Although the chords are in the same order as BTCD, that song has shorter chords (one measure each). You normally wouldn’t have time for so much movement unless you played double time (twice as fast as the example) to play it as taught.
You could use parts of the exercise on Boil them Cabbage, but you’d have to cut out some parts of the exercise to make it fit. For example: you could use only the first measure of each chord in the exercise and make it fit.
A better song to work on this exercise would be something that has 2 measures of each chord (like Ben is playing on guitar). Just off the top of my head, all I can think of that fits is the chorus of Little Mountain Church House , but there are really hundreds more that fit that progression.
Hope this helps…
Dave
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Dave,
Thanks. I guess my question is more along the lines of, “How does learning this stuff translate to playing backup to songs, especially songs up the neck?” I mean, I know that he’s not just teaching this technique to learn this particular chord pattern, but rather to be able to use this stuff to play these techniques in general.
Sorry, I’m probably not very clear. I’m just trying to figure out how to go from just a normal “boom chuck” or basic rolls to something better, like this diatonic stuff.
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Hi Keith, What I take away from the Fretboard Geography Course and the Lessons on Intervals is a roadmap, or as Alan Munde phrases it, stepping stones.
When you look at a piano keyboard you will immediately see a reoccurring pattern and once you know where middle C is you can work your way up and down the scales to locate the position of each note. Not so easy to SEE these patterns on a banjo fretboard but they are there.
Understanding and memorising the locations of notes & chords again is not so easy but by learning three simple shapes will help you demystify the process.
By working through the Fingerboard Geography Lesson you’ll gain a greater understanding of the layout of the fretboard map which although you may not appreciate it now, will help you as you tackle more advanced lessons up the neck where you’ll learn about how to play partial chords.
Take your time working through the coursework if you don’t understand it first time through go back and revisit the lesson. It’s important that you have a good grasp of this before moving forward. Trust me the benefit gained here will help later on.
P.S. Just read your response to Dave
This Course and the lesson on Intervals is not about Boom Chuck or Rolls that will come up in later lessons for now focus what’s in front of you now not what you want to aspire to.
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As I stated. To use the material in this particular lesson requires a certain amount of room.
It is transferable to many things, but you need a certain number of beats to have the room to do it.
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Alan pointed out at camp that a great song to employ these concepts in would be John Hardy, particularly the end where it hangs on a 5 chord for I think 12 beats. He demonstrated by doing a forward-reverse roll over 3 different chord shapes for 4 diatonic chords in the D scale in rapid succession (shifting every beat), which filled the 12 beats perfectly.
Then we all went and hid in a cave.
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This is just what I am practicing now. I was just at a Banjo Ben Cabin Camp and during circle jams I played up the neck vamping in the 1 shape. I seemed able to stay in pretty good time doing that. Now my goal is to insert some rolls in with the vamp or pluck and to try some of these chord walks in the minor chords occasionally to see how it works. I need more jamming time but there doesn’t seem to be many options in the Seattle area. Maybe my old time fiddle group once a week.
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