rest

of your life as a banjo player when you connect to the worldwide

community of other banjo players and bluegrass musicians who love the
banjo as much as you do! Bluegrass banjo sounds best when played with
others. Even as a beginner, you can jump right in to enjoy making music with
others. Taking part in the jam sessions, festivals, and camps in your region
with likeminded musical souls is the best way to fast-track your progress on
the banjo.

Finding jams
Jam sessions are informal group gatherings of bluegrass musicians that are
held in living rooms, community buildings, and public spaces, as well as at
larger musical events. Most jams are public events in which all musicians are
welcome. When you’re comfortable tuning your banjo and playing a few
chords with roll patterns in a steady rhythm (which you’ll master after
checking out Chapters 3, 4, and 5), you’ll be right at home in a slow jam,
which is a jam designed especially for beginners and often directed by a local
bluegrass teacher. Your local music store or regional bluegrass music
association is a great place to learn about jams in your area.

You can get the opportunity to play a song or two of your choice at a
jam session. Do your part and arrive at the session with a couple of
favorites that you can play without stopping. And playing slowly is fine
— you get to set the tempo, because it’s your tune! Don’t forget to spend
time internalizing the chord progression to your songs — you’ll need to
use accompaniment techniques to support the other musicians when it’s
their turn to take a solo.

Heading out to festivals

Bluegrass festivals are multiday, family-friendly events found all across
North America where you bring your banjo and your camping gear and spend
an entire weekend jamming in the campground and checking out your
favorite bands on stage. Although larger festivals pack more of a punch in
regard to the national talent, it’s often the smaller, regional events that have
better jamming scenes. Bluegrass Unlimited magazine
(www.bluegrassmusic.com) publishes a comprehensive annual festival guide.
Here’s a short list of some of my favorite festivals: