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This is an excellent question, and it comes up all the time from smart musicians.
The difference between the Tenor Banjo and Irish Tenor Banjo is, on one level, analogous to the difference between a violin and a fiddle. They are played differently.
But Irish Tenor Banjos are also tuned differently than regular tenor banjos, so maybe another analogy:
A tenor banjo is like a classical viola (tuned CGDA) and an Irish tenor banjo is tuned like an octave (often called a baritone) fiddle (GDAE, an octave lower than a violin).
Not captured by the analogies is the fact that Irish tenor banjos are usually set up differently, the most notable difference being a capo on the second fret (or even higher on some vintage instrument with long necks) in order to allow for less string tension and to shorten the scale length for faster melody playing.
The videos that follow illustrate the radical differences in tuning, setup and playing style. Both players are extremely good.
Classic Tenor Banjo, played by Clifford Essex: Tiger Rag (direct link to this video on YouTube)
Irish Tenor Banjo: medley played by Gordon Johnston by using fingerstyle (less common than use of a plectrum, but allows for smoother playing on complex tunes like these) (direct link to this video on YouTube)
I am sure that you could hear the differences in pitch and playing style between classic tenor banjo style and Irish tenor banjo. They might as well be different instrumens entirely. When you acquire a tenor banjo from Adventurous Muse, we make certain that your instrument is set up for the genre of music you intend the instrument for.
All the best!
D.R.
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