Cdom7

I'm never one to do things in an orthodox manner.

Now, I've been playing the Tenor Banjo, off and on for some 7 or so years. I own an Ozark 2102T, the 2102 range being a range of beginner instruments, the Tenor model costing a mere £150 on average. I first took up the instrument after hearing the Banjo solo from the title track of the soundtrack to the Anime film Metropolis. Loosely based on the manga of the same name by Osamu Tezuka, widely regarded as the father of modern manga, can be found translated by Dark Horse Comics. Tezuka is also responsible for Astro Boy, Kimba the White Lion (the source for The Lion King) and Buddha, a 14 volume account of the life of Siddharta Gautama, of course the Buddha. Anyway, the film version, directed by Rintaro, has a shit-hot soundrtrack, which opens with a Dixieland number, on the opening credits. Once the dialouge starts, the soundtrack fades out, and it is at this point that a Banjo solo starts. I wanted to play this solo more than anything at the time. I immediately petitioned my parents for a banjo. I didn't let up, which especially pleased my father (SARCASM)

So for Christmas, I recieved a Tenor Banjo, in a CGI Banjo bag. Wow. Actually, the lining of the bag soon ripped, which caused the bass side tuning pegs to become stuck. The thing about the art and science of tuning a banjo is that the change in position of the bridge and the pressure on the skin head means that all the strings must be fine tuned at once, making a restring a long-winded excercise. The Tenor model is tuned in fifths, namely CGda, the same pitch and tuning as the modern orchestral viola. The first string should therefore be A440. As a 9 gauge string, this is pretty high. Guitarists may recognise the 9 gauge as their first string as well. I like to string mine with Martin Vega strings, where the d and a are silver. Lovely jubbly. It can be a real life-shortener to tune the a up though, so I only replace my strings should one go, or once a year for the whole set. I put aside the 14th of February for this arduous task. See, I can have a sense of humour. This wide tuning, however, after some experimentation, I soon discovered was wrong for my chosen goal. After a year of following the excercises in the Mel Bay Banjo Method I had bought for me, I tried to play along with the solo...to discover the inevitable. The type of instrument used in the recording is presumably the Plectrum Banjo, tuned CGBd, with a long, 22-fret neck. The Tenor only has 19 frets. Hmmm.

My Banjo has somewhat of a unique feature, that of a perilously high action. Grim. Approaching and excceding the 12th fret becomes a nightmare proposition, even 7th fret on the lower strings can get a bit hairy. It's a shame, because it's actually got quite a nice tone for saying it's just a small open back. Even seasoned guitarist Mr. G. Smith of Oakwood was terrified and dismayed by the action. Its a matter of tuning though. The bridge is far away down the head to keep the tuning right all the way up. And Jesus Harry Christ have my fingers gotten soft! It's very painful , and the blisters are forming under my fingertips already. Why have I dusted off my Baby?

I want to play the Cello Suites. I can hear Herr Bach rising from his angry grave now, but turns out it's quite popular for Banjo players to take on the first suite prelude, particularly the iconic prelude (you know how it goes). I'm sure Cellists, not to mention classical music buffs and pretentious jackasses around the globe are grinding their teeth at the thought of their master, Joh Seb Bach's wonderful suites for the solo Violoncello are being rendered on such an instrument. Well who cares. I mean, seriously. Some idiot is always banging on about the inexorable nature of Bach, that he and his music will live on pretty much forever (helped by the great availablity of it on the internet, natch) due to some ineffable and architectural quality that carries on for all time...blaaaaaah. Whatever.

The Cello suites, are, unsurprisingly, very hard. Of course, they're idiosyncratically composed for the Violoncello...or are they? Various conjecture (or, my friend and yours Wikipedia) leads us to the hitherto lost instruments Viola da Spalla (literally Viol on the Shoulder, a smaller violoncello held by a strap to the player's shoulder) and the Viola Pomposa, a large viola/violoncello with a fifth string tuned a perfect fifth above the top a. This is specifically for the last suite, the D major, that according to three of the sources is "a cinqe cordes", with only one giving the exact tunings. There's a wonderful free edition on the WIMA that has everything which I'm using.

The G major suite is the most covered because it's technically the easiest. The prelude is very well known, and its a nice bit of Bach to roll out as a party piece. However, you'll notice that the action height on a 'Cello is really very low, as it your average internet Banjo players'. Oh dear. Oh dear oh dear. Keep telling yourself it's good for your technique, and get on with it. The extra height gives extra punch, which allowed me to cut through the whole band in a UEA Grad Bar Jazz night. Tremolo solos as standard, and then block chords in the finest Dixieland style.

It's hard, and it hurts, but ultimately, the Cello suites are great. Fiendish, yes. I might have to purchase a new Banjo specifically for playing them. And what a shame that would be.

And the title? My tuning chord. it goes 0-3-2-3. Just think about it.