"This beginner's book will guide you step by step to playing songs on your banjo in the popular and exciting bluegrass style"--P. [2].

Learn to play the ukulele and open up a brand new world of musical knowledge with this exciting method from Alfred. Beginners of all ages can start their journey to a lifetime of musical enjoyment. Beginning with the fundamentals, you will learn about the history of the ukulele, its components, how to hold and tune it, and getting acquainted with standard musical notation. You will then move right along to playing different notes, chords, scales, and songs, lesson by lesson, all while continuing to increase your ever-growing knowledge of reading and understanding standard musical notation and playing a variety of well-known songs. You will learn different strumming techniques to help you play in a variety of musical styles. The book also contains a section teaching you how to play by ear. Upon completion of the book, you will be able to play your favorite songs on the ukulele in any key and know how to read music. The book features the following resources for reference during and after your lessons: * Transposition chart * Dictionary of tablature techniques * Ukulele fingerboard chart * Complete ukulele chord dictionary This book teaches entirely in C tuning. The D tuning edition of Alfred’s Teach Yourself to Play Ukulele (item 14135) is available from your favorite music retailer and at Alfred.com. Be your own teacher, and let Alfred be your resource every step of the way.

(Banjo). If you're new to the 5-string banjo, you're probably eager to learn some songs. This book provides easy-to-read banjo tab, chord symbols and lyrics for the most popular songs beginning banjo players like to play. Explore clawhammer and three-finger-style banjo in a variety of tunings and capoings with this one-of-a-kind collection of master-crafted arrangements. Songs include: Angel from Montgomery * Blowin' in the Wind * Carolina in My Mind * Cripple Creek * Danny Boy * The House of the Rising Sun * I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow * Maple Leaf Rag * Mr. Tambourine Man * Shady Grove * Take Me Home, Country Roads * This Land Is Your Land * Wildwood Flower * and many more.

The Contemporary Banjo Player is a unique new tutor from world-renowned banjo player John Dowling. It covers not only the basics of Bluegrass banjo, but also teaches you how to expand and develop your playing and diversify into other musical styles. - Suitable for players of every level. - Packed with Photos, techniques, exercises and full songs to learn. - Covers all the basics from rolls to hammer ons, slides, percussive playing, finger picking guitar style, and so much more!. - The accompanying CD contains demonstration tracks to aide progression.

The Banjo Encyclopedia is a comprehensive, in-depth banjo instructional tool that covers the many intricacies of bluegrass banjo playing, including numerous topics that may have been overlooked in banjo instruction to date. The Banjo Encyclopedia can take a student from the beginning, to intermediate, and right through to more advanced styles of banjo playing. Ross Nickerson uses his many years of experience helping hundreds of aspiring banjo pickers by offering the banjo student an opportunity to learn in a practical, straightforward manner. This wide-ranging banjo instructional book will focus on many techniques that will help every aspect of a banjo player's musicianship while simplifying many subjects in the learning process. The downloadable audio with 99-track recording will enable the student to learn easily by hearing author Ross Nickerson demonstrate each song, and perform many of the banjo licks and phrases included in the book slow, and up to tempo. The audio download available online includes anadvanced song section with a full bluegrass band accompanying Ross along with additional intermediate songs for the student to learn. The Banjo Encyclopedia is undoubtedly one of the most complete five-string banjo books on the market today and a must for every banjo player's collection. Includes access to onlineaudio

A complete guide to the world of the five-string banjo written for both beginners and more experienced players. Packed with over 120 how-to photos and 130 musical examples. 94 track CD included - hear and play along with every exercise and song. The only book to offer instruction in clawhammer, bluegrass, melodic, single-string, minstrel and classic styles. From Earl Scruggs’ driving bluegrass picking to the genre-busting jazz fusion of Béla Fleck and the multi-million selling movie soundtrack O Brother Where Are Thou?, the five-string banjo can be heard just about everywhere in American music these days. Banjo For Dummies is the most complete guide to the five-string banjo ever written. It covers everything you need to get into the banjo: including how to choose, tune and care for your instrument, developing a good playing posture, fretting your first chords and getting comfortable with the left and right hand picking patterns used for clawhammer and bluegrass playing techniques. You’ll then add the left hand, spicing up your playing with slides, hammer-ons, pull-offs, and chokes for an authentic five-string banjo sound. From there, you’ll move on the play 19th century minstrel style, early 20th century classic style as well as try your hand at more advanced examples of bluegrass style. An in-depth chapter on bluegrass music explores Scruggs licks and techniques as well as melodic and single-string styles, with song examples. Also included is a banjo buyer’s guide, a section on music theory as applied to bluegrass and old-time music, an accessories guide (advice on cases, picks, straps, metronomes, computer aids and much more), information on how to find a good teacher, banjo camp or festival, chord charts, bios of twelve influential players, practice tips and much, much more! Banjo For Dummies is accessible and fun to read and it’s easy to locate just what you’re interested in playing. Included are 20 songs including several new compositions written by the author just for this book, including Reno Rag (single-string style), “Winston’s Jig” (Irish three-finger), and “Everyday Breakdown” (Scruggs style). All musical examples are played slowly on the accompanying CD, many with guitar and mandolin accompaniment. Bill Evans is one of the world’s most celebrated banjo players and teachers. He has taught thousands of people to play the five-string banjo in private lessons and group workshops literally all over the world. In addition to leading the Bill Evans String Summit, Bill has performed with Dry Branch Fire Squad, David Grisman, Peter Rowan, Tony Trischka and many others and he hosts his own acclaimed banjo camp, the NashCamp Fall Banjo Retreat in the Nashville area. As an American music historian, he has taught at San Francisco State University, the University Virginia and Duke University. He has written a popular instructional column for Banjo Newsletter magazine for the last fifteen years and hosts three popular instructional DVDs for AcuTab Publications. To learn more about Bill, visit his homepage at www.nativeandfine.com. Note: CD-ROM/DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of the e-book file, but are available for download after purchase.

Southern Appalachian native Dan Levenson and Mel Bay Publications present Clawhammer Banjo from Scratch - A Guide for the Claw-less! This book teaches clawhammer banjo the way we play, not the way others say. It really begins as though you really have NO knowledge of how to play the five string banjo clawhammer style. Based on Dan's innovative Meet the Banjo program (where Dan brings 15 banjos and teaches players who may have never held a banjo), this book assumes no prior experience. Beginning at the beginning, Dan presents a brief history of the 5-string banjo then goes over the parts of the banjo, holding the banjo, right and left hand positions and his basic clawhammer strum. Even the strum is broken down into the steps of the finger and thumb. You are guided through the chords, the scale and then the individual notes of each of 12 jam session favorite tunes from scratch. Includes 2 reference CD's with all exercises, tunes (slow and up to speed), and a fiddle version of each tune.

"How to Play the Banjo: A Comprehensive Guide for Beginners and Beyond" is a detailed and informative book designed to help aspiring banjo players learn everything they need to know to become skilled musicians. The book covers a wide range of topics, including the history and types of banjos, choosing and tuning a banjo, basic and advanced techniques, playing chords and melodies, different banjo styles, playing with others, maintenance and care, and resources for banjo players. The book also includes tips, exercises, and practice routines to help readers develop their skills and improve their playing. With clear explanations and step-by-step instructions, this book is the perfect resource for anyone looking to learn how to play the banjo or enhance their existing skills.