For enthusiasts of early banjo
LincolnsHornpipe
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Comment by Tim Twiss on January 19, 2014 at 10:33pm
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Now, a banjoist would play it the same, correct? I would liken this to Briggs/Rice.
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Comment by Al Smitley on January 20, 2014 at 7:46am
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Yes, you're right, Tim. But I think some who have learned to read notation from Briggs' then might have trouble re-learning notation which came afterward. We have discussed this and I know that you are, in turn, confused by the confusion some of us might have. ;) ...but with your musical background, I think reading/transcribing notation comes easier for you. Your tab will resolve it, however.
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Yes, the tab reads the same for either piece...AND you can tune your banjo any way you wish.
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What does that do to the fiddler, to see the same song in 2 keys? Do you reposition everything? That is part of the confusion in banjo. We do ( should ) not. But, without a thumbstring indicator, it becomes unclear.
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It would depend who I was playing with. If I were to play the tune with an early banjoist, I would probably to learn it in 'G' as I think most tend to go with Briggs' tuning. I think it's actually a little easier on the fiddle in 'G', anyway.
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But 2 distinct fingers, right? The banjo player......does it the same for both arrangements. I see this confusion over and over.
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Maybe I should add that, given that a banjoist is not retuning or capo-ing, I think transposing tunes to different keys is easier on the fiddle than banjo. Years ago, when I played with hammer dulcimer players, I used to resent, somewhat, not being able to play good tunes in 'F', 'Bb', etc., but I suppose most can be transposed to 'D' and 'G'. It's not hard to play backup chords on early banjo in any key, however, and perhaps it would be a good endeavor to at least become familiar with it. It only requires a few patterns.
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Comment by Wes Merchant on January 20, 2014 at 1:43pm
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I've been learning it in A as it is in Ryan's. Though as Tim says for the banjo tab it makes no difference.
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It's almost like a saxophone.....Tenor and Alto. Reading different key signatures, producing different sounds, but read notes are fingered the same. Perhaps we all need to pack 2 banjos....a D and an E.
Call 'em Briggs and Rice.
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Wes said, "I've been learning it in A as it is in Ryan's. Though as Tim says for the banjo tab it makes no difference." Yes, the banjoist plays it the same, either way but, whether we can play along will depend on how the banjo is tuned. I guess we fiddlers will have to learn both keys. ;)
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