Looking for a banjo instructor in the Huntsville / North Alabama area, or online via Zoom?
I teach from my home in southeast Huntsville on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays between about 5:30 and 8:30. I’ve been playing banjo, mandolin, guitar, and dulcimer since about 1977; been teaching banjo formally for the past 15 years or so. Occasionally, I also teach bluegrass mandolin and beginning Bluegrass guitar as well.
I charge $25 per 30-minute lesson, which are usually weekly, but don’t have to be. I don’t charge for missed lessons, and busy schedules aren’t a problem; I know we are all very busy, and sometimes (rarely) I also have to cancel. I also do online teaching with Zoom after having covered the basics (usually we can do that after a couple of months or so).
I teach both Scruggs and Melodic banjo styles, plus the basics of clawhammer and 2-finger styles, and where you can apply those styles to good effect. Beginning students usually start with Scruggs style and I usually start new students with “Earl Scruggs and the 5-String Banjo” which is the most popular method.
I’ve been told I am a very patient teacher and I do work with younger children (down to 6) with a modified version of Scruggs style as well. I usually start with learning tablature (the predominate way to convey bluegrass concepts) which is a bit different if you’re more used to reading music. The eventual goal of most banjo players is to learn to play by ear and/or improvise.
An added benefit of learning the banjo is the fact that the same techniques used to learn the banjo (or mandolin or guitar for that matter) can be applied in general to success at anything. We discuss these similarities and their general applications quite often in my lessons.
I can also furnish all the equipment that you’ll need, including rental banjos.
For more information on banjo lessons, or banjos in general, contact me at pgibson@hiwaay.net.
Phill Gibson 