"Dirty Tricks Workshop"
$25.00
Please note that prices are in USD. If for whatever reason you can't afford the workshop, but would like to take it, email me and we'll find a way to make it work.
“ Today's workshop was extraordinary. Not just the material, but the pedagogy! You are a master at making the most of the technology, from the camera angles, to the lighting, to the use of both ear training and tab. Well done!” - Scott Clemons
PROVIDED WITH THE PURCHASE OF THIS WORKSHOP
- Pre-workshop package (videos, tab) to make sure you are up to speed with the techniques that you will need for this workshop. As well as a tune arrangement which is referred back to in the workshop to put each technique into context.
- access to video of the Zoom workshop exactly as it went down live on Jan. 10/2021
- a 20-page written overview of the topic (including tab examples)
- Video examples of everything that is tabbed out.
Scroll down for workshop description
WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION
Who doesn’t want to add a few dirty tricks to their repertoire!?
In this workshop, we’ll look at 3 techniques that are a bit unconventional, but that are integral to my style of playing clawhammer banjo. I think you’ll find them useful tools to have in your back pocket! We’ll use a common tune (which you will learn before the workshop) as a vehicle to show how you might apply each of these techniques practically.
STRUMMY-STRUM
Strummy-strum is a silly name that I’ve given to the technique of breaking away from the clawhammer stroke and stumming the banjo. Think of it as temporarily becoming a tenor banjo player (the way a Dixieland player strums the banjo). It’s a technique that I first became aware of from hearing Bob Carlin do it on some of the later John Hartford albums. My friends, and great Toronto-based banjo players, Arnie Naiman and Frank Evans artfully incorporated it into their playing and I followed suit. It’s become a big part of my style, especially when playing with The Lonesome Ace Stringband.
Strummy-strum
- Increases my dynamic range
- Allows me to play on songs with time feels that are hard to pull off convincingly with clawhammer
- Allows me to emulate a guitar, as well as, a banjo-uke or mandolin
- adds a very unique element that can be (with practice) applied to moments in your tune playing
I’ll show you how it works as a “stand-alone” technique as well as how it can be something that you can access at any time during your regular clawhammer playing. We’ll look at how the right and left-hand work together, and hopefully, get you started on this very cool and exciting technique.
FUNKY BASS LINES
The name sort of speaks for itself! Adding bass lines can be a great way to add variation, musical tension, and moments of excitement to your playing. I’ll show you a basic overview of how bass lines work, and how they can be applied to clawhammer. Then, using drop thumb and rest beats, how you can make them FUNKY!
THE EXPLOSION LICK
This is a name I gave to a ghost note (ASPO) lick that I use to make my playing (especially solo) much “bigger” sounding. Although you can use this lick in G tuning, it really shines in double C, and that’s where I use it the most. It’s a trick that allows me to get that low C string to “growl” over other phrases, in a sense letting the banjo back itself up. It’s super cool, and I look forward to showing you how to do it, and how you might apply it to your playing.