A Mel Bay Publications, Inc. Webzine
August 2007 · Bimonthly
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In this issue: Red Wing | More Right Hand | Building Chords | Essential Left-Hand Techniques for Bluegrass Banjo - Part 1
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More Right HandI was recently asked on www.banjohangout.org about whether or not the little finger should be "anchored". The questioner showed me a youtube clip in which a bouzouki player seemed to have his finger attached to the top of the instrument while he played a nice version of "Maid Behind the Bar." He asked if this bad technique and if he should have used "a free floating hand the way Gerry O'Connor does." (Gerry graciously allowed me to use this picture from his web site www.gerryoconnor.com) 
If you look at Gerry O'Connor's hand (http://gerryoconnor.com/tech2.html for all the pictures), you will see that he places the heel of his hand on the head and approaches the instrument from the near side of the bridge. As a result he recommends that you move your elbow out in order to better align your hand/wrist/arm with the neck for consistency very much like a rock and roll guitarist (which he is/was) would do. He also recommends that the banjo to body angle be very specific. In contrast, the bouzouki player on the youtube clip had his instrument at a much different angle than Gerry's but was still able to play the tune at a fairly good rate. His grip was such that his little finger brushed the top of the bouzouki. He used a wrist stroke but his pinky finger did not move very much. He did not use a "fingers only" stroke which would have robbed him of speed and tone. Instead he had a small efficient stroke that made it look like his pinky finger was not moving. 
It is possible to play a tune if you anchor your fingers a' la Earl Scruggs provided that you are consistent in every other way and use an efficient wrist stroke (see video below), but your tone will suffer and you will lose some speed. Anchoring (putting your finger on the head and keeping it there) limits what you can do. Ninety-nine times out of a hundred when you see a good player appear to "anchor" the little finger it is really sliding back and forth to orient the hand to the strings. Here is a little hornpipe called "The Honor Of It" that I will use to show the difference between an anchored hand and a brushing hand. 
This is not limited to Irish banjo either. I strongly recommend getting the Buddy Wachter beginner jazz banjo video (http://www.buddywachter.com/) in order to see how he holds his right hand. I don't agree with everything he teaches, but he shows a true "floating hand" (he calls it the "Peabody style") in which the hand is free from any contact with the banjo and sharply bent the way a German classical mandolinist might do it. This style completely frees the arm from the banjo for the chord style of playing but it loses the finer orientation/control needed for single string work. Using a free floating hand would be like trying to type without ever touching the keyboard (or looking at it) - you lose both accuracy and precision - and will have only speed which isn't much help. It works for chord melody because you know where all four strings are and only have to concentrate on rhythm forms. You don't need to know where the individual strings are or have to crosspick, etc. with this technique. Free Floating Hand Video In order to play melody your right hand has to have a) orientation, b) consistency, c) accuracy, d) precision, and e) good tone. Speed comes after you establish good tone. If you anchor your fingers or hand (in the sessile meaning of "to anchor", look it up) you will have neither consistency nor good tone; If you have a completely free floating hand, you will have no accuracy, precision, tone, consistency, or orientation. If you use your finger or hand for orientation and move that part of the hand as you go from string to string or from one section of the sweet spot to another you will maintain orientation, precision, accuracy, consistency and tone. Most people find that they have a natural hand position with open or closed fingers that regulates whether or not you are a pinky oriented or heel oriented. Your grip will also determine how your hand is placed. The important aspect is not whether you drag your pinky on the head but whether your have a good tone and are consistent, accurate, and precise with that method. You need to find what works for you, but this is not "what ever feels good, do it." You are trying to improve and if you settle on a technique that is not going to give you the opportunity to improve, you will be stuck at a level you won't like and eventually go elsewhere. A good teacher will help you discover what will work best for you (provided he or she is not married to their own style to the point that it is "my way or the highway") and try to put you on the path of the principles I mention above. They allow a lot of leeway but if you look at any skill, you will see that the best always follow them no matter what the sport or endeavor. Go back and look any good player - guitar, banjo, mandolin, etc. - and see how they go about it. There will be obvious differences in form and style, but most of these differences are not essential (orientation with fingers vs heel of hand, etc.) and the players are going to be very consistent with their techniques. You will also notice that they are very efficient and will seem to be doing very little to achieve that great tone. So much so that part of the hand may appear to be anchored but if you look closely you will see that it is not, only that the stroke movements are so efficient that there is little movement. This comes from a lot of practice. The OrioleOf course you need a practice tune for all of this right hand stuff. Here is "The Oriole", a tune I wrote just to cause pain and agony. Not only does it use all the strings (which means that you cannot anchor that pinky or you won't get the notes) but it also has a C# on the fourth string to annoy you. 
The Oriole Jump The Oriole Video Maid Behind the BarHere is "Maid Behind the Bar", a popular session tune. Note the position shift to reach those high B notes. 
The Maid Behind the Bar The Maid Behind the Bar Video ResourcesBanjohangout (http://www.banjohangout.org) and The Session (www.thesession.org) remain the best places to ask questions about Irish tenor banjo or to get new tunes. Youtube (www.youtube.com) has zillions of amateur videos of tenor banjo and Irish music, most have terrible visual quality and some are downright weird, but it is a great resource. You can explore it for hours. Buddy Wachter (www.buddywachter.com) has a web site that you might want to explore. He may be the best jazz tenor and plectrum banjo player out there. Gerry O'Connor (www.gerryoconnor.com) is possibly the best known Irish tenor banjo player. He has several tutorials published by Mel Bay and a CD Rom from Mad For Trad all of which can be bought at various places including Elderly Instruments (http://elderly.com/search/elderly?terms=gerry+O%27connor&x=0&y=0) Mike Keyes, a native of Franklin, Tennessee, has played tenor banjo since 1957 and over the years has learned to play five string banjo, mandolin, and guitar. He earned his way through college and medical school playing in bluegrass and dixieland bands and currently plays in the Irish band "Maggie's Misfortune." He is an expert in sports performance and has written a book and over 200 articles on the subject. His interest in Irish music started a number of years ago when effort to learn more about his musical roots led him to the discovery of session playing. Since then he has been to Ireland to learn more about the music and has taken classes and interviewed such banjo greats as John Carty, Charlie Piggot, and Gerry O'Connor. His medical practice is in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin where he practices Psychiatry. You can email him at mikeyes@charter.net if you wish to discuss some aspect of the Irish tenor banjo or go to his web site at www.mikekeyes.com. [ top ]
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