https://banjobenclark.com/lessons/hymn-study-i-surrender-all-mandolin-intermediate
I’m really stoked about this series, Hymn Studies! I’ll take you with me on the journey of learning how to play a song, especially if you’re playing with other instrumentalists!
@BanjoBen, this is the best 30 or so minutes I’ve spent in front of a computer in a LONG time! Really great instruction on real world opportunities for musicians. I have the privilege of getting to work with some wonderful people who play music at our church every week and sometimes we do this very thing. BUT, this last section just blessed me so much. I’ve read your bio a couple times, but to see you set there and just honestly share what God has done in and through you and the struggle and blessing of it was powerful! Your work here on this website has enriched my life, and it has pointed me to Jesus. Thank You!! “All the Thee my Blessed Savior, I Surrender all”
Keith, thank you so much for those words.
This is my mission.
Well done!
This is exactly the type of lessons I need. I’m often called on to play mandolin in our church. Sometimes we do songs in a traditional or “old time religion” style, and some contemporary songs. I’m always having to chart my own songs to suit the mandolin. I’m looking forward to learning from your expertise with this. Thanks, Ben!
Great lesson @BanjoBen. Thanks for sharing your story and how you see that song in you life. I really like this format for lessons, especially how you break down the chords from the hymn book music. I do really well learning traditional gospel songs since I have about 50 years experience singing/listening to those songs.
STUART JOKE WARNING: I’m glad “Whiskey Before Breakfast” isn’t the song that impacted your life.
Great lesson Ben. This is much needed information.
Ben, Great lesson(s)!!!
Please keep going with format!
Thank you!
Ron Rapp
All I can say is………“Wow”. What a song and what a story. What separates the BB Clark lessons from almost all others, is that these lessons don’t simply teach by “rote” movement such as learning how to type, but give students the vital tools, knowledge and theory that are required to become real musicians. For that, a Gold-Pick membership is just that. Golden.
This is invaluable. Finally watched all 5 sections of the lesson (+ the preview.) It is exactly the kind of stuff anyone who picks in church can benefit from. It will be very helpful to me! Now if only I can get some lead time before actually trying to play them in front of people 
! I can read treble clef, but not bass clef notation, so will be challenging. And now I want to bring home the hymn book and see, but 1st I need to get camp songs down!
I had a tear in my eye watching the last segment of the lesson, Thank you Ben 
Amen 
Thanks Ben for the lesson and the testimony! Looking forward to camp!
Welcome to the best musical website, forum, & teachings @brock , @risky , and @Daddio!
Welcome back @kmmac62 , and @deanwood!
Beautiful “About The Song” discussion Ben! A great message that we all need to be told or reminded of. Thank you!
Thank you for this lesson. I have played acoustic guitar in church for the past twenty years. Many times I have been confronted with writing out the guitar chords from the music in the hymnal. This structured approach to breaking down a song into its 1-4-5 chord structures was a real eye opener. It made me wish I would have had that in my bag of tricks a long time ago. Most of my efforts centered around listening to the melody played and deriving chords that seemed to fit. I always thought that doing it that way was haphazard at best (most likely it was). Your approach gives good advice in how to break down the song by analyzing the notes in the bass line and building off that. Thanks for the enlightenment, Ben! On a further note your testimony at the end was riveting. I’m at that stage in life where I finally realized that the emptiness that I have experienced in life stems from drifting away from Jesus. In the past year I have started to pray more and study His word more to get closer to Him and how he fits into my life. Great message, Ben. May God continue to bless you and your family in this walk of life. - Dan
Great lesson Ben! As of now I only play guitar but I think a lot of things in this lesson could be applied to guitar as well so thanks man! Also thanks for having the courage to share those words in that last video… You have such an awesome way of connecting and finding common ground with people and relating and teaching things, whether it’s the Gospel or music or anything outside or in between! I’ve been watching your lessons for several years now and I really mean that! God bless!!
Thank you so much for your testimony and this lesson. I have been looking for lessons like this for some time, so I could learn how to methodically approach a song and develop a lead sheet for it. There is so much meat here not only from a musical perspective but from a spiritual one as well. May God bless you.
Looking forward to meeting you at Cabin Camp. -Tim
@BanjoBen This lesson is just what I needed to help me get started playing mandolin in the orchestra at church. I also needed to hear the message. God’s perfect timing. Thanks Ben!