Ben, Great lesson(s)!!!
Please keep going with format!
Thank you!
Ron Rapp
Discuss the Mandolin lesson: Hymn Study– I Surrender All
4 Likes
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.
5 Likes
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 
5 Likes
Amen 
5 Likes
Thanks Ben for the lesson and the testimony! Looking forward to camp!
5 Likes
Welcome to the best musical website, forum, & teachings @brock , @risky , and @Daddio!
Welcome back @kmmac62 , and @deanwood!
2 Likes
Beautiful “About The Song” discussion Ben! A great message that we all need to be told or reminded of. Thank you!
4 Likes
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
6 Likes
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!!
6 Likes
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
4 Likes
@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!
4 Likes
I like you could read treble clef but have been trying to learn to read bass clef. One trick I figured out is on bass clef the note you know in treble clef is just one line or space lower than what you are used to on treble clef. For example, in treble clef the A on the second space of the staff would be located on the first space of the bass clef, in the same staff position as the lower D in treble clef. I hope this helps you pick it up faster.
-Tim
2 Likes
Hey Ben! I’m sitting in a hospital in upper East Tennessee and it’s 2:30 AM. For over a month now I have been battling a bowel obstruction that is simply not clearing. I’m praying and hoping to get out of the hospital later this morning and spend the next six days resting at home before my opportunity to finally see a gastroenterologist. I retired at the end of 2018 after spending my full-time working years as a Music Minister. I have been a friend of your music minister Phil for many years. In all my years of ministry I never missed leading worship any two Sundays in a row due to sickness. Since retirement I’ve been fulfilling a strong since of call to help in a smaller church that couldn’t afford the salary for a full-time music pastor. And as of last Sunday I have missed 3 Sundays in a row with no clear picture as to when I’ll be able to lead again. Being here in this hospital bed has become an incredible challenge. I’ll spare the details. I just want you to know that watching your video this morning has refreshed my soul. Thanks for reminding this life-long minister that our satisfaction, fulfillment, peace and joy are solely in Christ. I’ve had much pain and discomfort during the last six weeks, but during the time I watched this video I didn’t even notice my pain. More importantly, I’ve been reminded that in Christ I have it all even if I can’t be where I thought I needed to be each week. Thanks for sharing your story so eloquently!
7 Likes
Thanks Tim, I’ll try that! Was trying to do the acronym thing but kept forgetting them. Maybe between your suggestion & coming up with new, snazzy acronyms it’ll finally sink in…
These helped me:
Spaces: ACEG: All Cows Eat Grass
Lines: GBDFA: Good Boys Do Fine Always (I usually think of “Great Big Dogs Follow Amy”)
And this was helpful to me too: Middle C is one line above the bottom staff and one line below the top staff:
3 Likes
Ben,
Your last video was hugely moving to me.
God bless you.
Boyd
4 Likes
Thank you very much for this extremely valuable lesson. This lesson is a blessing that has come at just the right time. As a follower of yours now for many years, I must tell you I found this lesson to be one of the most helpful yet. Also, my wife and I were both deeply moved by your testimony. In the past I also have struggled with balancing my faith and giving in to the Holy Spirit.
My wife and I serve on our church’s worship team for the mid week service, which has evolved into an old time/hymn based worship service that we lead. Your teaching of how add to kick off the song and to add to the melody for impact is extremely helpful for us and the other musicians. We have been ‘winging it’ and now see a better way to plan effectively for us and the others we play with. Much of the music we play has been inspired by your lessons, and we just added ‘I surrender all’ to our list. My wife leads the vocals and plays upright bass, and I go back and forth from guitar and mandolin depending on the other musicians available. Our church is in a urban setting in Tacoma, WA, and many who attend are new believers in recovery from years of addiction and homelessness. The people who come are deeply moved by the old hymns and bluegrass based worship which to a large extent been inspired by you (…and your sisters of course!). Thank you and keep the hymn studies coming! You are a great blessing to us and our church.
7 Likes
Wow, thank you for posting that! Praise God!
4 Likes
What an AMAZING idea!
Hymn studies in such great detail. We can learn and praise all together! A great idea: Hymns to Bluegrass what chorale is to Piano Studies!
The ‘Bach of the Banjo’ title remains as relavant as ever. Thank you @BanjoBen for this novel and inspirational set of lessons.
Sending positive energy throughout our musical corner of the Bluegrass world.
2 Likes
Ben, I have been looking for the D scale study you mention in the lesson and I have yet to find it. Could you point me in the right direction? I have printed out some scale studies, but can’t find D. Thanks!
Steph
1 Like