The only advantage I can see of a 'real' banjo is the chanter string allowing for syncopated bluegrass and old timey style picking. But in jazz, pop and commercial country the guitar kicked the banjo's butt, popularity-wise. Earl Scruggs and Pete Seeger changed much of that.
African-Americans viewed the banjo as an unpleasant reminder of plantation days and slavery. The relatively uncomplicated chord voicings and melodic structure of bluegrass and folk music was a perfect fit for the open-tuned, chanter string-equipped banjo.īut even in commercial country music the 5-sring banjo was considered the instrument of backwards hillbillies. The popularity of folk music and the work of Earl Scruggs with Bill Monroe in the 40s saved the 5-string banjo from obscurity. Electronic recording and electric guitars allowed the richer tone of the guitar to come to the fore. Not to mention a shift in jazz tastes away from 2/4 rhythms and tuba bass towards smoother 4/4 rhythms and the use of the bull fiddle for bass. The invention of the electric guitar and electronic recording pretty much sealed the fate of the tenor, plectrum and guitar-banjo. Not to mention the fact that the guitar wasn't loud enough on stage in the pre-electric days. It was a volume and frequency thing. Early acoustic recordings didn't pick up bass notes very well and tenor banjos really cut through the mix. Since most jazz banjoists played strummed chords the need for a chanter string was negligible. Some traditional jazz banjoists (Danny Barker springs to mind) made great use of the guitar-tuned banjo. That fact - along with the louder volume compared to an acoustic guitar - explains the popularity of the banjo in early jazz. The tuning of a tenor or plectrum banjo allows for an easier played variety of keys and chord voicings. At the turn of the 20th century banjo orchestras were quite popular (as were mandolin orchestras) and the playing of light classical music on the banjo was very common.Īny banjo with a short 'chanter' string is usually tuned to an open chord, with the same limitations that opened tune guitars have (unless you are Bela Fleck). Perhaps people just don't like the tone, being used to the lush tone of the guitar.
There is no reason that a banjo strung and tuned like a guitar should be in any way lesser than a 5-string, tenor or plectrum. As I said in an earlier post, at one time banjos had as many as 7 strings, if not more. "The idea of only 4 or 5 string banjos being 'real banjos' is pretty much a modern conceit. Are there other issues regarding tone, playability, etc? What are the disadvantages? RevGeo posted a reply in the other thread (see below) saying one issue with a six string banjo is the lack of a chanter string which would be needed for certain types of music. My question is basically, why not buy a 6 string banjo vs a 4 or 5 string? I can see the advantage of a six string given that I already know guitar and it seems to me that a six string banjo would be easier to learn for a guitarist.
I posted a question in that thread about this but wanted to start a new thread so that I didn't hijack that thread. Some people posted comments to the effect that this is not a good idea - that 6 string banjos may not be a good choice. There are some good ones out there, and if you want banjo tones from a guitar type neck it'll do that.In another current thread a poster is asking for advice on what 6 string "banjitar" to buy. Maybe worth trying a 6 string out to see if it's what you are looking for. Which is either cool or not depending on what you want. In terms of the 5th string and banjo sound, it isn't going to sound like a 5-string unless it is one. Probably better to borrow one for that just in-case it doesn't work out. In that respect you could -especially if you already use a finger picking style on guitar- if you wanted to go over to 5 string at some point, use a 5 string and tune the main 4 that way and test it out without the 5th string or the 2 lower strings of a 6. (A plectrum banjo in Chicago tuning would be similar as that'd be tuned to dgbe, like a baritone uke or 2/3 of a guitar), mine's cgbd it's just a matter of tuning two strings up from there). Resource wise for setup and technical stuff most banjo information will be helpful and as a guitarist aside from the sound/decay/and how best to use its voice, you'll already be able to play it give-or-take. It's in effect a guitar for tuning and a banjo for setup/head/that end of it. It's been used by some great players in the past, Django Reinhardt started on 6 string banjo, Johnny St Cyr used one (incluing in the hot 5 I think, but not 100% on that). I play plectrum and tenor, so maybe approach it from a sideways perspective.
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