Music, clawhammer banjo, and more...
<i>Progressive</i><i>Clawhammer</i><i>Banjo</i>
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ProgressiveClawhammerBanjo

New Territory For Clawhammer Banjo

Over the past twenty years or so, I tried to bring a different vision to clawhammer banjo by providing a free learning site that encouraged the exploration of clawhammer banjo in genres other than "old-time" music (although I included "old-timey" music as well).  I'm now attempting to push the boundaries even further by exposing young players to music they might otherwise have never considered attempting on their banjos.

To accomplish this, I enlisted the help of the most progressive minded banjoists of the day in a special “Progressive Clawhammer" project.

Title Page
Once again, the idea was to introduce clawhammer players to the music (and arrangements) of the most progressive minded musicians playing today - including clawhammer players such as Michael Miles, John Balch, Ken Perlman and Mark Johnson.  At the same time, I wanted to encourage young frailers to tackle music from progressive players of other instruments (David Grisman, Tony Rice, Bela Fleck, Jerry Douglas, Mike Marshal, Norman Blake, Tim O’Brien, etc.).

I've created pages for each of these visionary banjoists with video footage and sound files.  I will also include links to the artists' respective websites. I’d encourage all clawhammer banjoists to listen to (and purchase) the recordings of these musicians. You should also check out the other resources (books, DVDs, etc) that they may have available.

If you are on Facebook, you may want to join my Progressive Clawhammer Banjo Group. It will open your ears to new possibilities on the banjo.

I find it very frustrating that so many banjoists seem to have a problem differentiating between clawhammer (a technique) and “old time” (a musical style). I'm hoping this project will help players realize that clawhammer banjo is an amazingly versatile instrument that can effectively fit into any genre of music!

Mike Iverson
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