Banjo Tenor and Bluegrass

The tenor banjo is a relative newcomer to the world of Irish traditional music, being around one hundred years old.

Up until as recently as the 1960s they barely featured at all in the genre.  The banjo falls into the category of ‘folk lute’ – that is, it is an instrument with a sound box that is drum-like.  The origin of the Irish traditional music instrument as we know it today can be traced back to the southern states of America.  The dance halls of Ireland and those across the Atlantic in New York and beyond were the starting point for the traditional tenor instrument we know today.   PH: 07856 256653

The five-string bluegrass banjo was very popular in the late 1800s and early 1900s and many pieces of music and 78 rpm records survive from this time. This is referred to as ‘Classical banjo.’ A classical banjo player picks the strings in exactly the same way as a classical guitar player. The five-string banjo, with a short fifth string, was popularised by Joel Walker Sweeney, an American minstrel performer from Appomattox Court House, Virginia. The five string banjo has been around Irish music since Joe Sweeney and the Virginia Minstrels introduced it to Ireland in 1840 or so. The use of banjos in any context, however is only about 50 years old in Ireland although in the US it has a longer pedigree with bands such as the Flanaghan Bros.  Five string banjo has been used extensively in Irish folk music (e.g. Clancy Brothers) who also played Irish traditional music (sessions) in Northern Ireland and Ireland. PH: 07856 256653