Minstrel Banjo

For enthusiasts of early banjo

Bell Banjos's Comments

Comment Wall (36 comments)

At 9:32pm on July 30, 2009, John Masciale said…
Welcome to the Minstrel banjo site
At 1:11pm on September 28, 2011, Paul Heller said…

Thanks for your warm welcome!  My interest in minstrel banjo is primarily historical.  I've been researching and writing about a variety of banjo pioneers such as Frank Converse and his contemporaries.

Best regards to all!

At 7:14am on September 30, 2011, Tom Morrison said…
Terry, Little Henry and I are both doing fine, Thanks.
At 2:18pm on October 1, 2011, Rick Churchill said…
Thank you for the welcome. I found your site after visiting Rob Mackillop's Early Fingerstyle Banjo page. I am just starting out on the 5-string banjo and am not certain where I want it to lead.
At 5:33pm on October 1, 2011, Bell Banjos said…
Don't lead,  follow.  There's wonderful music, people and places out there.
At 8:13pm on October 30, 2011, Mike Stein said…
Thanks for the lead. I'm checking them out now.
At 10:19pm on November 15, 2011, Bruce Reich said…

Thanks Terry, One more road to explore on this life long musical journey.

At 2:39am on November 19, 2011, Kirk Haden said…

Thanks for your welcome, I intend on building some fretless banjos in the future and am happy to have this resource.

 

At 10:47pm on December 19, 2011, Randy Price said…

Thanks Terry. I'm glad I found the Minstrel Banjo group.

At 6:26am on February 7, 2012, Jordan S said…

Thansk, Terry.  Great to be a part of this place.

At 4:15am on February 21, 2012, Peter Walker Pardee said…

Thanks so much for sharing the Nylgut gauges. I'll keep in touch.

Check out my proposal. One thing not specified (this is a very short

introductory version of what I'd like to partner with many to do) are

the ten primary categories of banjo music:   •Minstrel, •Classic Fingerstyle (The American Banjo Fraternity is the primary conservator of the urban banjo ca. 1860-1915),

•Rural and Old Time; •Plectral Jazz (tenor and plectrum); •Bluegrass; •The Folk

Music Era; •Celtic; •Cutting Edge (those pushing the envelope in all categories);

•Classical Music (my specialization); •Brochure%20Page%204.pdfFingerstyle Jazz (Pat Cloud, Béla Fleck's overtures with Chick Corea, etc.)

At 8:32am on March 1, 2012, Ross James Hale said…

Thank you, Terry. People call me Jim, as in www.suzanneandjim.com. Jim Hale

At 12:29pm on March 14, 2012, Elaine Masciale said…

No, not yet.  It's something we were discussing last week.   We have to figure out how to produce one (a good sounding one!) - and I have major insecurities about being good enough to be recorded....but that's my own thing, right?    So you vote we should, huh?

At 11:23am on March 18, 2012, Patrick Haas said…

Thanks for the welcome.  I've been doing historic reenactments of 1830-1860 time period in the Pacific NW for a few years and wanted to add more music to my presentations.  Got a fretless gourd banjo built by a friend and am having a great time with it.  Still very much a novice, so I am always looking for new tips and ideas.  I am glad ou have this site.

At 5:30pm on March 27, 2012, John Anderson said…

Terry,

Thanks for your welcome. 

I am interested in the historical development of minstrel songs.  I am a member of MBSGB (musical box society of Great Britain).  I have a box pinned in 1841 with the tune sich a'gettin upstairs.  Said to be an English Morris tune, but believed by many to have been brought here in 1836 by Thomas D Rice. He also played and sang it when performing as Julius Caesar Washington Hickory Dick in a show called 'Yankee Notes for English Circulation at the Surrey Theatre London  in 1843.

Border Morris teams dance it as Getting Upstairs and interestingly border morris sides usually black up for their dances. Check out Benji Kirkpatrick on Utube playing getting upstairs for a great and accurate performance (according to the 1841 arrangement on my musical box) .  I do not play banjo but I'm interested in tunes that were so popular so many years ago.  My box sounds today exactly as it did when new in 1841 or 1842. that's why I wanted to join your group!

At 9:13pm on June 24, 2012, Armand Thieblot said…

Terry: Thanks for the welcome. Not sure if you ever got the pictures of me with the 6-string. If not, when I get around to posting a picture for this forum I'll use one of those. I had it with me at the Antietam gathering over the weekend, where it attracted a lot of comment. Peter Szabo (did I spell that right?), who has the original, was there and pronounced it very authentic.

At 10:23pm on June 24, 2012, Bell Banjos said…

I have your picture on my website. I still think about that banjo a lot. I bet it DID get a lot of comments!!

At 9:01am on July 15, 2012, Gerald Vassar said…

Thank You, Terry.

Can't wait until my new banjo arrives!

Gerald

At 4:40pm on September 7, 2012, Gerry Regan said…

"Bell, thank you for the greeting. Delighted to have an opportunity to look around this site, and learn about the banjo's extraordinary musical heritage."

At 7:39pm on February 14, 2013, Edward R Hoover said…

Terry , Looking forward to next saturday :< )   And many there after , Thanks !

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