Sunday, March 21, 2010

Banjo versus TV week 105: Jamming at end of Old Town School session

A check-in on the Banjo versus TV project — J.R.'s ongoing plan to spend more time on his banjo than on TV. This post covers 2/28/2010 through 3/6/2010.
Banjo 621 hrs, TV 618 hours

I joined the end-of-the-session bluegrass jam at Old Town School of Folk Music. Class sessions at OTS are eight weeks long so this jam is held several times a year.

It's a jam that's very beginner-friendly. Several OTS instructors take turns leading. Song sheets are provided.

The songs we played this time around were:

  • Nine Pound Hammer
  • Ring of Fire
  • I Hear a Choo Choo
  • Till the End of the World Goes Round
  • Pig in a Pen
  • I Wonder Where You Are Tonight
  • Won't You Come Home and Sing for Me
  • Footprints in the Snow
  • Hey Good Lookin'
  • Little Maggie
  • Banks of the Ohio

Also in the last week:

  • I can't believe I had to miss Shorty's Strickly Bluegrass Festival for the first time in three years, but this was a crazy busy week and I just couldn't get away. Next year for sure, Shorty!
  • At one point in the week I found myself sitting around, waiting for someone, next to the shelves where I've stored the cheap toy guitars that I used in my three-headed guitar project. So I tuned one of the guitars so its first four strings matched banjo tuning and got in a little practice. I understand that John Lennon did something similar when he got his first guitar, since he already knew how to play the banjo.

Cross-posted at J.R.'s Banjo Hangout blog

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