I’m constantly contacted by people who can’t find playable banjos to try out, and they can’t even find anyone to answer their questions intelligently. Surprisingly many of them live in or near large metropolitan areas with dozens of music stores in a thirty-mile radius. In nearly every part of the…
Why would anyone take forty hours or more to write an article to help newbies find suitable banjos? Wouldn’t it be easier and more profitable just to sell banjos outright or accept advertising from banjo vendors for representing ONLY their products? But I believe in giving as many people access…
Yesterday, I came across an online community of people who enjoy singing traditional songs and accompanying themselves on banjo with a simple pattern they had learned from an online source and a few self-published books. An hour later, trying to track down the materials they had used to get started,…
Every banjo is worth more in many ways than what it will probably sell for if you put it on the market. It may help you remember a cherished family member long gone. It may give a youngster a chance to learn skills and musical principles that will last a…
Mitchell “Mickey” Cochran loved traditional acoustic music. So much so that when he left a successful career as a graphic artist and web programmer, he started his own online music store, complete with free online lessons for many instruments, including 5-string banjo, mandolin, and Appalachian dulcimer. Years ago, I archived…
What’s in a Name? Sometimes shaming and resentment. This includes the name “banjitar,” which certain musicians have used to stress that 6-string banjo players aren’t real banjo players, but rather guitar players who want to play banjo without learning anything. The name needs to be retired. For one thing, the…