The banjo was originally developed and used by African Americans enslaved in the South. The slaves used gourd to create makeshift instruments that looked like the ones they used in Africa. In fact, the word "banjo" is believed to have evolved from a Kimbundu term for a similar musical instrument. African precursors to the banjo include the spike folk lute used by the Jola tribe of Senegambia and the Senegalese xalam of Senegal. The xalam has been found dating all the way back to ancient Egypt.

Modern banjos are available three main types:

Four-stringed, five-stringed, and a rarer six-stringed variety.

The six-stringed version looks almost like a guitar and is played in a similar manner. Banjo playing usually incorporates quick strumming and arpeggios on the fingerboard with the right hand. The current banjo was developed by American minstrels in the 1830s and were introduced to the British in the 1840s, becoming quite popular in English music halls.

Joel Walker Sweeney is thought to have developed the first five-string banjo in Virginia. An American minstrel performer from Appomattox Court House, Sweeney was looking for an instrument that would sound like the banjars he had seen the Southern Blacks play. He also had some new ideas he wanted to incorporate into his new musical instrument. He collaborated with a drum manufacturer in New York and decided upon replacing the banjar's skin-covered gourd with an open-backed drum, much like the current banjo variations. Sweeney also added another string, giving the instrument a broader range of tones.

These days, you think of bluegrass or country music when you think of banjos. Throughout history, the banjo was an integral part of African American culture and the minstrel shows in the 19th century. The banjo, along with the fiddle, gave African Americans an opportunity to influence the evolution of both types of music. In modern times, the banjo is becoming more popular in alternative music styles such as punk and pop rock.

There are various styles of banjos, depending on the type of music to be played. The five-stringed, open-back banjo is the standard instrument for American old-time music. There are a few different technique of banjo playing, including frailing and clawhammer. Frailing uses the thumb to catch the fifth string after each strum of the banjo or to pick out extra melody notes. This type of picking is also called drop-thumb picking because of how the thumb is used to pluck the strings. Banjo picks can also be used to make playing easier and the sound clearer.

Bluegrass music can be played in several styles, including Scruggs, Reno, or Keith. Bluegrass almost always requires a five-string banjo with a resonator. These styles all use a fingerpick and emphasize a continuous eighth note arpeggio. The Scruggs style was named after its originator, Earl Scruggs. Similarly, the Reno style is named after Don Reno and is mostly performed on a single string, with three fingers used for plucking.

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Originally posted 2008-10-23 05:57:06. Republished by Old Post Promoter

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Acoustic Musical Instruments, Banjos, Instrument History

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1830s, 1840s, african american culture, alternative music, ancient egypt, appomattox court house, arpeggios, banjar, banjo variations, Banjos, english music halls, fingerboard, gourd, joel walker sweeney, minstrel, minstrels, senegambia, southern blacks, string banjo, xalam