Author Archives: Phill Gibson

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About Phill Gibson

I’m from Huntsville, Alabama where I work as a Hospice Chaplain and part-time banjo instructor. My former careers were in Research Biology and Software/Systems Engineering. My wife Miiko and I worship at Rivertree Downtown. I’ve been playing various instruments since my teen years. I started mandolin and dulcimer at about age 17 and banjo at 20. I love just about all kinds of music. In terms of banjo styles, I play and teach Scruggs, melodic, clawhammer, and 2-finger styles. I’m also very keen on theology, being a Trail Care Partner with the Land Trust of North Alabama, photography, urban planning, astronomy, ATM (amateur telescope making), birding, and about 30 other distracting hobbies to a (mercifully) lesser extent.

Inspiration vs Influence

Posted on November 1, 2009 by Phill Gibson

I’ve always used these two terms rather interchangeably. Saying that someone has been an inspiration, and thus has influenced my playing. Come to think of it though, they aren’t really the same. If someone is an inspiration, they don’t necessarily … Continue reading →

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Nine Reasons a Banjo Teacher Should go to NashCamp

Posted on October 29, 2009 by Phill Gibson

When I was at NashCamp two weeks ago, I didn’t hear anyone else mention that they were a banjo teacher. I’m sure several of the people there besides the faculty taught at various levels, but I got to thinking how … Continue reading →

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Seven Facts About Inspiration

Posted on October 27, 2009 by Phill Gibson

1 – Teachers should provide it for students. Some of it, at least. And remember too, the old saying about leading horses to water; it certainly applies here. We get inspiration from many different sources and our instructor should be … Continue reading →

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Day Three of NashCamp

Posted on October 25, 2009 by Phill Gibson

Day three of the NashCamp Fall Banjo Retreat is the last day, so Sunday had a bit of a different feeling to it – like we must do whatever we planned to do today or wait until next year. Getting … Continue reading →

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Music: A Cure for Modern Day Complexity

Posted on October 22, 2009 by Phill Gibson

Go check your email. Can’t do it? Maybe the SMTP server is down. Call ’em up and find out. Search for their number and find it if you’re lucky. Go through the voicemail maze and finally leave a message in … Continue reading →

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Five Lessons, Yea Six, from NashCamp

Posted on October 21, 2009 by Phill Gibson

Here are a few items I learned this weekend at NashCamp. Some for me, others for my students. 1) Lighten up. No, not in terms of relationships; here, I mean lightening up with my right hand. I pick pretty hard … Continue reading →

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Day Two of NashCamp

Posted on October 20, 2009 by Phill Gibson

Saturday was the second day of my first time at NashCamp, just southwest of Nashville, TN near the small town of Fairview. I got up and headed for the dining hall, where almost all of the activities took place. Still … Continue reading →

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The Company Band

Posted on October 19, 2009 by Phill Gibson

I suppose such things happen often enough. A bunch of folks at work find they have a little (very little? 🙂 common musical ground and so does the department administrator, who puts them all together in front of everyone to … Continue reading →

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Just a Little More

Posted on October 18, 2009 by Phill Gibson

You know, I suspect EVERY banjo / mandolin, etc. player deep down inside wishes he had started ‘just a few years earlier’! Like the anecdote you hear about when someone asked Warren Buffet (second richest guy in the world, behind … Continue reading →

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Day One of NashCamp

Posted on October 16, 2009 by Phill Gibson

Well, I made it here to NashCamp! I’m sitting in the Dining hall, listening to the cacophony of twangs – barely a guitar or mandolin in sight. Needless to say, it’s rather loud. I see one reason why only banjo … Continue reading →

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