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ezFolk Forums > Banjo > Beginner Questions - Banjo > how long does it take to learn the song dueling banjos |
| Moderated by: Tony Provencher, Richard Hefner |
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| how long does it take to learn the song dueling banjos | Rate Topic |
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| Posted: Sat Oct 8th, 2005 12:53 am |
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1st Post |
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blade Approved
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can you do it on a tenor banjo. if so i was wondering how long it would take if i started learning how to play the banjo today
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| Posted: Sat Oct 8th, 2005 01:47 am |
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2nd Post |
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Richard Hefner Administrator 
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Sure, it can be played on a tenor. The original recording in 1955 by Arthur Smith and Don Reno I'm pretty sure had Don Reno playing the 5-string banjo and Arthur Smith playing a 4-string banjo (either a tenor or plectrum). I grew up watching Arthur Smith's local TV show that came on every morning at 7:00 a.m. (I really hated it then but my dad liked it). Anyway, Don Reno was a frequent guest and every time they played that song Arthur (who wrote it) played a 4-string banjo. To answer your question, if you started playing today how long will it take to learn to play it? That depends on a lot of things of course. If you want to sound like Arthur Smith or Don Reno or Eric Weisburg or Earl Scruggs, it could take a while -- probably several years if you have 5 or 6 hours a day to practice. On the other hand, it's only 3 chords, and if you practice hard and have a reasonable degree of musical talent you should be able to come up with a reasonable facsimile in a few months. It also depends on what style you play. It's easier to play clawhammer style than bluegrass style for most people, but that's on a 5-string. The 4-string banjos are usually played with a flatpick and it's more like guitar flatpicking (that's how Arthur played it). Good luck! 
____________________ Richard Hefner MP3 Page: http://www.ezfolk.com/audio/richardhefner Running Blog: http://old-runner.com |
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| Posted: Sun Oct 9th, 2005 06:05 pm |
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3rd Post |
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Philj200 Approved 
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I saw a film dating from the 30's where Roy Smeck played tenor banjo, guitar, tenor guitar and mandolin in an early splitscreen four-part version of Dueling Banjos. And as I recall, it was a technical tour d'force. The dueling part betwen banjo and guitar isn't all that hard. The reliese is simply the chorus from Cripple Creek. (A bit faster) I've noticed most audiences really think the release is the hard part. I thinks its getting the timing down with who ever you're playing with.
____________________ My MP3 Section: http://ezfolk.com/audio/bands/1143/ My Myspace area: http://myspace.com/philj200 |
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| Posted: Mon Oct 10th, 2005 07:25 pm |
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4th Post |
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banjo brad Super Moderator 
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Philj- Are you sure it was from the 30's? The liner notes on my CD "The Original Dueling Banjos" (CMH cd-8045) say: 1955 Charlotte, North Carolina...Arthur Smith shows Don Reno the melody line of a song he has just composed. It'a a feud between banjos - aptly titled "Feudin' Banjos." They run through the tune, record it and soon have a hit. ... That is a great cd, by the way - Smith, Reno, Benny Martin, and The Nashville Superpickers all appear on it. Bunch of great songs!  Keep on pickin'Brad
____________________ ezFolk Help Brad Prickly Pear Music Banjo Brad's ezFolk page TOTMC |
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| Posted: Mon Oct 10th, 2005 08:09 pm |
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5th Post |
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Philj200 Approved
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I am sure. It's stuck in my mind because I just purchased my first banjo that week (a Vega FS-5). I was working at an audio-video rental company that had a huge film rental business (mostly 16mm stuff). Select Film Library was the name of the company. I wonder how long they lasted when VHS camealong and ate their lunch. My boss saw me plicking away at lunch an handed me a 400' reel of 16mm b&w film. It was a print of Roy Smeck as described. Fueding or Dueling...it was the same tune. Unfortunately, I had to give it back. As for original... if you ever get to New York City, you'll find most pizza parlors are named Ray's...Ray's Original, Famous Ray's, Ray Barri's... and they all claim to have invented pizza as we know it. Logic tells us it probably was probably a cook in Italy and just as probably, a while ago. A few minutes later: I went to the IMBD and looked up Roy Smeck. He's there and they list some films from the '30s but give scant details. He was still active in his 80's in 1985. I wish I had appreciated him more when there was a chance. Last edited on Mon Oct 10th, 2005 08:15 pm by Philj200 ____________________ My MP3 Section: http://ezfolk.com/audio/bands/1143/ My Myspace area: http://myspace.com/philj200 |
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| Posted: Mon Oct 10th, 2005 09:13 pm |
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6th Post |
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banjo brad Super Moderator
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Interesting. The "Dueling Banjos" came about in the film deliverance when the song was (mis)appropriated by Eric Weisberg. There was a lawsuit filed and won by Smith. RE: Pizzas - Of course, the pizza was invented by "Ray"  (I heard somewhere on the Food Network that it was the NY style that was invented by "Ray") Keep on pickin'Brad Last edited on Mon Oct 10th, 2005 09:16 pm by banjo brad ____________________ ezFolk Help Brad Prickly Pear Music Banjo Brad's ezFolk page TOTMC |
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| Posted: Mon Oct 10th, 2005 10:13 pm |
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7th Post |
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Richard Hefner Administrator
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I'm pretty sure that what Roy Smeck was playing was "Bugle Call Rag." The chord progression is identical to Dueling Banjos (the fast part anyhow) and that's a song Roy recorded in the 1930s. They really do sound similar, and Bugle Call Rag was one of Earl Scruggs' classic bluegrass banjo tunes as well.
____________________ Richard Hefner MP3 Page: http://www.ezfolk.com/audio/richardhefner Running Blog: http://old-runner.com |
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| Posted: Tue Oct 11th, 2005 02:37 am |
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8th Post |
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Philj200 Approved
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Chord progression maybe...but really different melodies. I'm not talking about a recording which he very likely did make. I saw a film and he played all the parts.
____________________ My MP3 Section: http://ezfolk.com/audio/bands/1143/ My Myspace area: http://myspace.com/philj200 |
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| Posted: Sat Oct 18th, 2008 09:45 am |
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9th Post |
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JRTinNC Approved
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I've been looking for the sheet music for the 1955 version and the one from the film deliverance, but all I can find are other people's versions, or people wanting money for it.
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| Posted: Sat Oct 18th, 2008 12:19 pm |
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10th Post |
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Philj200 Approved
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To get back to the original question, "can you do it on a tenor banjo." Certainly. And exactly as Steve Mandel and Eric Weissberg did in the film. They traded two and four barre parts until the B-part of the tune. If you mean play a 5-string part on a tenor banjo, the answer is yes as well, But you two choices. Played on a tenor as a tenor, the sound will be a tenor. Retune the tenor to simulate a 5-string and you can do a BG roll.
____________________ My MP3 Section: http://ezfolk.com/audio/bands/1143/ My Myspace area: http://myspace.com/philj200 |
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| Posted: Sat Oct 18th, 2008 06:01 pm |
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11th Post |
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banjo brad Super Moderator
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Since the tune is still in copyright, I believe that you will only find others arrangements or for-profit sheet music.
____________________ ezFolk Help Brad Prickly Pear Music Banjo Brad's ezFolk page TOTMC |
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| Posted: Sun Oct 19th, 2008 06:05 am |
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12th Post |
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JRTinNC Approved
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Copyright laws are flawed, it's sad, but they are only valid when enforced. I checked with Amazon, and I noticed several cds with the tune played by various authors. Plus unlike the movie, I'm not charged to see this board, so it's "Not for profit" (a world of difference than even Non-Profit), so posting the tune here is covered by the first amendment. Or someone could just email me at JR @ ncrcag.com (without the spaces to stop spam bots). The reason I'm asking is not for myself. Deliverance is my grandfather's favorite film, and when his VCR broke, I got the DVD for his birthday, and now I want to put the song from the film in his hands. Since a MP3 player is too complicated for him, I'm getting him this: http://www.thinkgeek.com/geektoys/science/8f7f/
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| Posted: Sun Oct 19th, 2008 08:51 am |
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13th Post |
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Richard Hefner Administrator
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JRTinNC wrote: Copyright laws are flawed, it's sad, but they are only valid when enforced. I checked with Amazon, and I noticed several cds with the tune played by various authors. Plus unlike the movie, I'm not charged to see this board, so it's "Not for profit" (a world of difference than even Non-Profit), so posting the tune here is covered by the first amendment. Or someone could just email me at JR @ ncrcag.com (without the spaces to stop spam bots). I don't like copyright laws either (unless they're protecting ME!) but they're "valid" whether or not they're enforced. It's just that many people ignore the laws until they're enforced. Remember OLGA -- The On-Line Guitar Archive? http://www.olga.net/ Having said that, in a lapse of judgment I went ahead and posted a tab of Dueling Banjos here... http://www.ezfolk.com/forums/view_topic.php?id=6443&forum_id=17&jump_to=40265#p40265 Oh, the DIY Music Box from ThinkGeek looks nice but you're only going to be able to do a few notes from Dueling Banjos on that thing -- maybe one-tenth of the arrangement -- and you'll need to decide what part of the song to use. I have a feeling Grandpa's gonna be wishing for an MP3 player before it's over. 
____________________ Richard Hefner MP3 Page: http://www.ezfolk.com/audio/richardhefner Running Blog: http://old-runner.com |
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| Posted: Sun Oct 19th, 2008 10:39 pm |
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14th Post |
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JRTinNC Approved
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The website tells you how to make your own paper for it, so I just make a strip 10 times as long.
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