Category Archives: Music

Includes banjo, mandolin, guitar, teaching – all music-related topics.

Major Categories of Banjo Practice

Posted on December 20, 2021 by Pgibson

A banjo student and I were discussing these various topics just now and I realized that I’ve not actually discussed them more formally with very many people. Here are several major categories of banjo practice, as I’ve just thought of … Continue reading →

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Bluegrass and BBQ

Posted on November 3, 2021 by Pgibson

Held several times each spring through fall at Southside Park, Huntsville.

Posted in Photoblog, Venues | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

T.V.O.T.F.C.

Posted on October 20, 2021 by Pgibson

Stands for Tennessee Valley Old-Time Fiddlers Convention. One of the granddaddies of fiddling get-togethers, it is held annually in Athens, Alabama. Here are just a few photos from this years event.

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In Memory of Bill Emerson, 1938 – 2021

Posted on September 30, 2021 by Pgibson

I only met Bill Emerson a couple of times up in Nashville, but those brief times were lasting memories for me. Although I am self-taught on all the instruments I play, only in my later years did I look to … Continue reading →

Posted in Banjoists and Others | Tagged | 2 Comments

Should I Always Wear My Finger Picks When Playing the 5-String Banjo?

Posted on April 15, 2021 by Pgibson

When I first learned to play the five-string banjo (not the second time), I read the admonitions to always wear your finger picks. I kept to this rather faithfully, but there were a few occasions when I would just pick … Continue reading →

Posted in Beginning Banjo, Teaching, Tips & Techniques | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

The Good Idea Fairy

Posted on April 8, 2021 by Pgibson

Playing the mandolin, or banjo, as we have it in our modern society, is a fairly complex process. As such, it, like all complex systems, is susceptible to visits from the Good Idea Fairy. You may well have seen this … Continue reading →

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Found: A Prehistoric Banjo Bridge!

Posted on April 1, 2021 by Pgibson

Upon the banks of the mighty Aldredge, washed ashore on that ancient creek of destiny, lay a most astounding find. It must have come to surface during the recent floods, but whatever it’s source, there it was. And I was … Continue reading →

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Taxonomy of a Banjo Player

Posted on March 18, 2021 by Pgibson

Image by mcmurryjulie from Pixabay Elizabeth Barrett Browning (not William Shakespeare) wrote the Victorian sonnet that starts out: How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. In a fashion, we also have a plethora of sorts of banjo … Continue reading →

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Originators and Elaborators

Posted on February 25, 2021 by Pgibson

I’ve been reading a book by the well-known photographer and author Tom Ang. In it, he prefaces a section on other famous photographers by comparing and contrasting originators and elaborators; terms defining, respectively, those who invent and pioneer, and those … Continue reading →

Posted in Banjoists and Others, Philosophical Ramblings, Photography | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Reciprocity in Music

Posted on February 11, 2021 by Pgibson

Those of you who remember film in cameras will recall, perhaps, the notion of film reciprocity and the associated attribute of reciprocity failure; that quality whereby film, upon being exposed, started to lose its sensitivity to take in photons at … Continue reading →

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