Hey Mike. I’m still on the beginner track myself. I’ve received lots of great tips by searching the forum for questions and topics just like yours. Here are some of the top tips that have had a lot of impact on my progress…
memorize 1 measure at a time
use the Tef files (this is a game changer)
even the advanced players sometimes start at 40bpm
know when your playing vs practicing
stay active on the forum and you learn real quick that you’re not alone in your struggle du jour
have fun and be thankful for that banjo, Ben, everyone on this forum, and that skill you can do this month that you couldn’t do last month.
Thanks Brent! I think you hit it on the head. I think I was just looking for a little proof that I wasn’t in this alone.
Been practicing today, just enjoying that I can do something new that I couldn’t do a week ago, and it’s sounding just a little better every day.
Absolutely thankful to Ben for building this community! I was struggling with the decision to even buy a banjo before I found Banjo Ben’s site, lessons, forum. That’s what sealed the deal. I saw everything he has here and realized that I can learn an instrument from home.
Now, I’m just kicking myself for not buying the banjo from the General Store. Had to do all the setup myself, but again, thanks to Ben and Steve Huber for the setup videos, I think I have it pretty much sorted.
Just remember… Practice DOES NOT make perfect, PERFECT practice makes perfect.
So, as has been said, practice at a speed that you can play correctly, and repeat that. The speed will come. Practicing over and over, incorrectly, only instills those imperfections into your playing. I do, as others have said, eat the elephant 1 bite at a time. I will get a piece I wish to learn, and take the first 2 or 3 measures and play them until I can remember them and play them correctly, not to speed, but correctly. then I will grab another 2 measures and play the first 2 or 3 along with the new 2 until I can play those 4 or 5 measures, so on and so forth until i am playing it all, not to speed, but correctly.
Something else I found out for me, anyway, is play along with the jam tracts as much as possible when you can. For me, I find that if I just use the tab, and learn the song, and can play it fairly well, when I play with someone else, or play with the jam track, my timing is off. I got where I could play Lonesome Road Blues pretty good… i thought, but when I was playing with a friend, I couldn’t get through the first 4 measures without being out of sync, same with the jam tracks. So, use them when able.
Oh yeah, something else… Keep in mind that learning PACE, is NOT a universal constant! Everyone’s learning pace is different, some really fast, and me, really slow, (I’m still trying to find something or someone to blame that on…). But, as long as you are learning, you are progressing.
As far as practicing… I like to do, as others mention, do a few minutes of warm-up, you know, make sure I’m still in command of my fingers, lol. Then I will spend 15 or 20 minutes, give or take on learning what I’m trying to learn. Then I’ll play something I know how to play, and have a bit of fun. Then maybe take a few minutes break, then back to what I’m trying to learn, and I always finish up with something I know and enjoy. That way I finish on a good note, (pun intended), and my last memory of practice was FUN and not frustrating.
You have alot of good advice here on the forum. The only thing I would add, being your completely new to banjo, is learn your rolls before getting to deep in a bunch of songs. Learn the alternating thumb roll, forward backward roll, forward roll, backward roll and foggy mountain roll. Practice these with a metronome till you can do them without thinking much about them. To me , these are the basic fundamentals of the banjo. Get these down and you’ll be off to a great start. And to keep from getting bored learn one or two licks you really like. Especially the standard banjo lick. There all on Ben’s site. I know it’s tough but you have to learn to walk before you can run. Good luck to ya.
Very good advise here.
I recommend you always start at 40bpm and slowly increase the tempo after a few repetitions. Practicng slow helps your brain develop the synapses your body needs to execute the new movements you are teaching yourself. It helps a lot to understand the measures and the notes values (duration) and count or tap your foot while you play.
I had forgotten about those. Saw them when I started, but couldn’t get them opened so I was just using the tab pdf files. Last night after re-reading your comments, I downloaded a tef viewer. HOLY BUCKETS! Those are helpful! Especially for tempo.
Thanks again everyone for all the help! It is much appreciated. Yesterday, I managed to get through the entire forward roll song without a mistake (once, but it proved I can do it).
Here’s something odd I noticed about myself: if I go too slow, I make as many mistakes as going too fast. There’s a tempo just a little faster than too slow where I do well. Even stranger, it takes me awhile every session to find it. Odd.
I’d looked at them, couldn’t open them and just used the PDFs so far.
After reading your comments I spent a little time getting my head round the TEF files and downloaded the player.
WOW…
I’m used to just having you count and figure out what the riffs are meant to sound like - I’ve always hated doing that, so this is amazing!
Worked out how to speed them up and slow them down. I have tendency to rush licks too quickly and miss the importance on giving space to each part; or to miss the importance of letting some of the notes ring out clearly and evenly. So these TEF files are brilliant.
I’ve not always had the luxury of being able to listen to exactly what I need to learn - or have been stuck with a back up track that’s going too fast - Though that did teach me to keep up and to be patient, as the lick, tune or melody would come around again.
Being able to pace the TABs tempo to somewhere you are comfortable with and hear exactly what’s going on it brilliant.
So impressed with Ben’s work and how all of his lessons have been immaculately presented. With other material I’ve used in the past I sometimes end up wondering - is that right? Being able to play the TABs , to hear exactly what your learning and to play along is fantastic.
I shall try make the most of them and look into buying the full version of the player.
Thanks for highlighting a whole area that I not been using so far!
I have noticed, too, that if I go too slow, I tend to make more mistakes, regardless of how many times I play it, I make mistakes. My thoughts are that if I know the song, playing it faster doesn’t give me time to think about each individual finger movement, rather my brain just puts them there. Almost like I think of the song in little chunks instead of individual notes. Also, with my timing, I have found that when I am “in the grove” with a song, I hear the notes I am playing, but I don’t really hear them. I hear more of the picks thumping the string with each thump equally spaced from note to note. I guess I’m just weird that way.
That’s what I was thinking! I’ve noticed that going too slow, my mind tends to wander. I’ll notice the feel of the drum head, how one pick is a little tigher than the other, the fly that just buzzed my face, a million other things that have nothing to do with practice. If I go too fast, I overplay my ability. There is a speed in the middle that keeps me focused and isn’t too fast.
I think I need to hear whole piece to understand the context for what I’m playing.
I do sometimes stop completely and focus on difficult parts, but only if I’m not getting them at all or I’m starting to develop a bad habbit to skip over the correct fingering and pick management.
It is so convenient to pace the tempo of the TEF files exactly where you want. I’ve been happy to dive in at 120bpm for most of the exercises. Though I’ve previously downloaded a few of Ben’s PDF TABs , so I probably know the material I’m learning reasonably well.
I’ve also been able to speed them up rediculously - not to play along - but to just listen to what they sound like. Which can make me listen in an entirely new way and appreciate how to recognize each part and what I should be looking to achieve.
The TEF files are great. When compared to the AABB backup tracks I’ve used in the past - where I can find myself yawning through some parts, while panicking at a difficult section that is about to come up - Ben’s lessons seem very focused and manageable. He packs a lot to learn into a good sized lesson.
Anyway great to hear about your experiences when practicing
I’m out of town for a week and I have a trailer load of folks helping out newbees. THANK YOU to the best forum members anywhere! Keep pickin, @mike.thomson!
I’m still not sure if I’m progressing as quickly as the “average” student, but I do know I’m enjoying the heck out of it. Sure, there’s frustrations, lots of 'em, but being able to recognize that I’m just a tiny bit better than a few days ago, or a week ago, is such a good feeling.
Not sure if I’ve said this before, but I almost didn’t buy a banjo until I found this site and @BanjoBen 's lessons. After watching the free ones, I knew I could learn to play banjo even remotely with the coursework Ben has created. Thank you @BanjoBen, it’s been a lifelong dream come true to learn an instrument, and I’m thrilled to be on the journey with all of you!
Rather than start a new thread, I’ll just add to this one…
Today was a momentous day for me. I played straight through - along with the accompaniment - the forward rolls song “Boil dem cabbage down” at 110 BPM. Actually did it more than once, and even found that I can play a little faster than 110 BPM accurately, but not 120 BPM.
Best part, I had to slow myself down a hair to keep time. Boy that felt good!!
