Don Rickert Musical Instruments is a premiere designer and maker of innovative custom and historic musical instruments. Since starting our musical instruments enterprise in 2007, we have dealt primarily in those of the bowed variety (e.g. violins, fiddles and related instruments such as octave fiddles). We have also designed and made a number of fretted instruments along the way: mandolins, parlor guitars, acoustic bass guitars, tenor guitars and the like. We will soon be branching out in a serious way into the world of fretted musical instruments. Look forward to some really interesting mandolins, octave mandolins, mandocellos, parlor guitars, acoustic bass guitars, tenor guitars and the like.
Regular production items are usually available at the Don Rickert Musician Shop. If you want something that is not there, give us a call...
Our email is [email protected] and main phone number is (706) 896-0909. Don Rickert's mobile phone number is (706) 400-1481
Mailing address: Don Rickert Musical Instruments 726 Hall Creek Road Hiawassee, GA 30546
This is the primary website and blog for Don Rickert Musical Instruments .
We are NOT a "Brick-and-Mortar" Retail Establishment Nor a Typical Online Operation (We are Better!)
We are not a “brick-and-mortar” retail establishment; however, many customers do choose to visit our studio and workshop in the beautiful North Georgia Mountains (part of the Appalachians). Being shopkeepers for a corner musical instrument shop would be completely at odds with our multifaceted focus on continuous research & development, innovative instrument design and customization, combined with our creation of meticulously accurate replicas of historically significant fiddles.
The nature of our business demands that sales be conducted primarily online. We have done this for some time. The predecessor to the new Don Rickert Musician Shopwas called the “Adventurous Muse Store.” We initially operated under the name “Fiddle and Bow Shop.”
Please note that this site has been around for a good while. While working diligently to clear out the "junk" (old obsolete articles), this is going to take some time. We thank you for your patience during this period and offer a blanket apology for any incorrect links to our old online store.
It is quite clear that we are the place to come for the unique stuff…things you just cannot get at either the corner music store, traditional violin shops or the online mega-stores. What are these things that musicians, and the occasional museum, come to us for?
Over the 9 years we have been in business, our analysis of search engine “hits” to our websites and online store, corroborated by actuals sales records, indicates that we are best known, in descending order for the following:
Modern Travel and Backpacker Violins
The world’s finest and more models (to meet different player needs)…5 base models; all customizable!
We sell more travel violins than anything else, by a long shot. Yup, real musicians are willing to pay 3 to 5 times as much for a real luthier-built travel violin than for a toy instrument.
Octave Violins, Violas and Octave Violas (aka “Chin Cellos”)
Best and most innovative. Ours have been played by some of the greatest fiddle innovators in the world. Our instruments are on some CDs by some of the greats, including the musician responsible for the re-birth of the octave violin, Darol Anger (and most recently Alasdair Fraser and Natalie Haas, their “Abundance”CD).
There are only a few other 5-string violins in the same class as the models we offer. We offer our own Fat Strad Deux 5-String Mezzo Viola (violin length with viola ribs and bass bar) and the Realist 5-String PRO e Series.
Baroque Pochettes (the ancestors of modern travel violins)
These are the 19th Century instruments used by itinerant Dancing Masters (Dance instructors), and the inspiration for our modern travel violins and fiddles.
Musical curiosities, especially cigar box fiddles, made to master violin standards (i.e. not cheap!)
We do not currently have any of these for sale, but when we do, they always sell quickly. Contact us if you want us to make you one (email, the Contact Us link or telephone…all available at Don Rickert Musician Shop). Get your head around a minimum of $1,000 before calling!
Authentic Baroque Violin reproductions
There are fake “replicas”, readily available on eBay (modern violins “dressed up” to look sort of like Baroque Violins, and authentic Baroque Violins, which are the kind we sell. Some of the finest Baroque musicians are proud owners of our higher end instruments.
Meticulously accurate historic period setup (violins, fiddles and parlor guitars)
When one purchases an instrument from us, part of the buying process is specification of period setup. We refine the setup preference with consultation, either in person at our studio, on the telephone, video conferencing (e.g. Skype) and email.
We also offer period setup as a stand-alone service. See…
While we have not advertised parlor guitar setup, particularly setup for Civil War re-enacting, we have set up quite a few modern guitars as plausible mid-19th Century gut-strung guitars. We have even set up re-enactor guitars with synthetic gut strings (generally Nylgut) that can be played with a stiff leather ukulele flat pick!
Genre-specific setup (violins and fiddles)
Either in conjunction with a period setup or a contemporary setup (the most common case), we do absolutely correct genre-specific setup, including, but not limited to:
Classical violin
Scottish Highland fiddle
Irish Fiddle (and its many regional sub-genres)
Old-Time Fiddle (New England, Southern Mountain and everything in between)
Bluegrass Fiddle
Cajun Fiddle
Gypsy Fiddle
Things For Which We Appear to Be Not So Well-Know (Yet)
New Violins and Bows
These are violins and fiddles from the Post-Baroque or Pre-Modern Period (about 1770s) to the present (modern violins and fiddles). We offer a number of setup and accessorizing options to replicate any specific period or playing style from 1770s to the present day.
We are very pleased to announce our “Golden Era Old-Time Fiddles”. These fiddles replicate the very best (and most sought after today by Old-Time fiddlers) of the so-called “factory fiddles” imported by the millions from Markneukirchen, Saxony, German and neighboring Bohemia, Austria-Hungary (now the Czech Republic) during the years from 1880 through the 1920s..
We also have the best collection of authentic early 20th Century fiddle accessories that you will find anywhere. We are one of the few makers of late 19th Century and early 20th Century chin rests on the planet.
Unless you have been following Dr. Rickert’s experimental instruments over the past decade, you might not know that our workshop has produced quite a few electric violins and MIDI-capable electronic violins (as well as some truly odd contraptions). A few of these have entered in and done quite well in major international new musical instrument design competitions.
You might not be aware that Dr. Rickert has lectured on electric musical instrument design in major University Industrial Design programs, including the Georgia Institute of Technology (better known as Georgia Tech), where he was an Adjunct Faculty Member when living in Atlanta.
Dr. Rickert designed and built his first electric violins, mandolins, basses and guitars about 40 years ago. We still have an intact electric bass from among Don’s early work.
We have not seen the point of introducing new electric violins or mandolins until such time as we had some designs that were unequivocally better than any thing else on the market. That time has arrived!
When using any kind of amplified instrument, especially violins, in live performance, the live performance rig is essential. Relying on the sound engineers to cobble together a way to plug into the main sound reinforcement system and personal monitor system is ill-advised and done at your own peril. If you are using effects processors of any kind, the interconnection of these processors is extremely complex, as the correct sequence of the effects in a "chain" is critical. Getting the order wrong will often result in nothing working properly. Most professional performance have an expert design his or her performance rig.
With four decades of designing live performance rigs for amplified fiddles, violins, mandolins, banjos, guitars, basses and even instruments such as dulcimers and accordions, combined with live performance demonstration of experimental electric and electronic violins in major musical instrument design competitions, we have the knowhow and experience to design a rig for you!
Cost ranges from under $1,000 for a living room setup to several thousand dollars for a large venue setup.
Our performance rigs are guaranteed to work.
If you ever tried to do it yourself or rely on the sound technitians, you know what I am talking about.
Our rigs are ready to be plugged in and send the right kind (e.g. correct impedance) of balanced signal to the master sound board.
Fretted Instruments
Mandolins, Octave Mandolins and Mandocellos
The Octave Mandolin is a mandolin family version of a tenor guitar or tenor banjo that is tuned in the Celtic G-D-A-E tuning (in other words, an octave lower than a mandolin). The only important differentiator from the tenor guitar is that, instead of four individual strings, an octave mandolin has four (occassionaly five) pairs (called "courses") of strings. Each string in a pair is tuned in unison.
A mandocello is to a bowed ‘cello what a mandolin is to a violin. The mandolin is tuned like a violin and a mandocello is a large mandolin tuned like a ‘cello. The primary differences, of course, is that mandolin family instruments are played with a plectrum rather than a bow and they have twice as many strings…actually four, or sometimes, five pairs (called courses) of strings, each pair being tuned in unison.
These instruments are seeing increasing use in Celtic music, Progressive Bluegrass and In Alternative Old-Time (aka "Neo Old-Time", "Old-Time Punk" genres.)
Included here are guitars that replicate instruments from the early 19th Century (called the "Romantic Period") to the 1930s. In the interest of being able to offer quite affordable instruments (all well under $1000), these guitars are customized/modified modern factory-built instruments of the "parlor guitar" type. This basically means that they have much smaller bodies than contemporary guitars. They would not have been called parlor guitars in the 19th and early 20th Centuries. They were simply called guitars.
These are meticulously accurate hand-built replica instruments and cost between 5 and 6 times as much as our modified factory-built reproduction instruments. Hand-made in the workshops of D. Rickert Musical Instruments (Don Rickert Musician Shop)
Tenor banjos
Even though D. Rickert Musical Instruments has never sold a regular production banjo of any sort, old blog articles we have published over the years about the difference between tenor banjos and Irish tenor banjos and related banjo articles continue to be the NUMBER ONE (i.e most popular, predominant, persistent, etc.) topic that leads visitors to our blogs, and sometimes even to our online store, Don Rickert Musician Shop.
If we saw even a hint of possibility that anyone would actually buy a new tenor banjo from us, we would design and build a really nice one. We are considering instituting a “bounty” (i.e. finder’s fee) program to start rescuing vintage tenor banjos from their imprisonment in hundreds (or even thousands) of small music stores, flea markets, antique shops and pawnshops throughout the U.S. We would then restore and sell them.
Recreating every detail of the military aspects of the American Civil War (early to mid 1860s) is more than just a pastime for many thousands of dedicated people known as “Re-enactors.” Re-enactments of encampments and major Civil War battles draw thousands of enthusiastic participants and spectators in U.S. States where the major action occurred, especially North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania and to a somewhat lesser degree, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Ohio, Kentucky, Missouri, Kansas and West Virginia.
Meticulous attention to historical accuracy with respect to even the smallest details of uniforms, tools, personal accessories (such as eyeglass frames), weapons, music and so forth is very much a part of the culture of re-enacting.
Don Rickert Design has been a source of period instruments to re-enactors on a limited basis for several years. Our 1860s style cigar box fiddles and whiskey bottle box fiddles, pictured below, are quite popular among period music enthusiasts.
Click on thumbnail images for full-size views.
I myself have witnessed many Civil War re-enactments and have even participated in a few many years ago.
Attention to Musical Detail
As with every of aspect of re-enacting, there is great attention given to the music that is played and the songs that are sung. For example, there are “Yankee” songs and tunes and there are “Rebel” songs and tunes, as well as songs that were popular with both sides in the Conflict, such as “Home, Sweet Home” (also quite popular in Japan, as curious as it may seem to a Westerner) and “Maryland, My Maryland” (the Union and Confederate versions had somewhat different lyrics)...Maryland, a Southern State, as officially part of the Union, despite the fact that the populace was divided in its allegiance.
Musical Instruments
There is also attention given to the historically correct basic instrument types that should be used, which include concertina, harmonica, penny whistle and fife, jaw harp, mandolin, dulcimer, bones and spoons as well as the historically essential fiddle, banjo and guitar. Among Irish regiment re-enactors, one will sometimes hear the uillean pipes (i.e. Irish pipes) and even small harps. One would never see or hear such an anachronistic instrument as, say, the saxophone.
Musical Instrument Authenticity
While the general instrument types used by musician re-enactors are pretty well-standardized, the specific models of instruments tend to be quite off the mark with respect to historical accuracy.
Banjos
For example, the modern Bluegrass banjo and even the open-back claw-hammer banjos often seen at re-enactments were not even invented until the 20th century.
A Bluegrass Banjo and an Old Time Open-Back Banjo (click on thumbnail images for full-size views)
The banjos actually used during the Civil War would have been either a “tackhead” banjo or a fancy Minstrel banjo (the immediate precursor to the modern banjo) if the player had some money saved up.
Authentic Reproductions of Civil War era Tackhead Banjos (click on thumbnail images for full-size views)
Reproductions of Civil War Era Minstrel Banjos (click on thumbnail images for full-size views)
Fiddles
Fiddles used during the Civil War would not have been fitted with either a chin rest or a shoulder rest (not invented yet), yet one sees both used by some re-enactors. The images below show an actual Civil War fiddle in the National Museum of Music and one of the finest Civil War re-enactor fiddlers on Earth, Troy Parker of the 1st NC Volunteers (we’ll allow him the indulgence of fine-tuners on his otherwise perfectly set-up fiddle and great skill in the period playing styles)
Click on the thumbnail images for full-size views.
Cigar Box and Related Fiddles
Fiddles made from cigar boxes and other found objects were also used by Civil War soldiers. The genuine cigar box fiddles of the Civil War era would have been bare Spanish cedar, etched or imprinted with the cigar manufacturers name…not the boxes with pasted on artwork, which did not appear until the 1890s. One of the few contemporary images of a cigar box fiddle being played
Guitars and Mandolins
Perhaps the greatest deviations from historical reality are seen in the types of mandolins and guitars one sees in re-enactment encampments. One is much more likely to see A-type, F-type and flat iron style mandolins (all 20th Century inventions) than the historically correct “bowl back” (a.k.a. “tater bug”) mandolins.
Mandolins
20th Century Mandolin Types (click on thumbnail images for full-size views)
The Type of Mandolin Actually Played During the Civil War (click on thumbnail images for full-size views)
Guitars
And then there are all of those Dreadnaught and jumbo-bodied guitars used by many re-enactors instead of the small-bodied guitars (similar to a parlor guitar) that were actually played by Civil War soldiers. The Dreadnaught and jumbo-bodied guitars are both 20th Century developments.
Actual Civil War Era Guitars (click on thumbnail images for full-size views)
Modern Parlor Guitar that is Pretty Darn Close to the 1860s Guitars
We will soon be re-establishing a special section within the Adventurous Muse Online Store dedicated to supplying 18th, 19th and early 20th century re-enactor musicians with reproductions of authentic period instruments and accessories.
Traditional Irish Music is almost a misnomer, as it is such a wonderful LIVING tradition, adopting new instruments all the time. We talk about traditional Irish Bouzoukis and Octave Mandolins. Fact is, it was Andy Irvine, I believe in the Irish band Planxty at the time, who starting playing a bouzouki he obtained in Greece, retuned and set up for traditonal Irish tunes...about 35 years ago.
The Irish "Cittern", later more properly called the Octave Mandolin quickly followed, as Irish luthiers quickly noticed the trend of players using a mandolin-like instrument tuned an octave lower...and re-purposed bouzoukis were REALLY unweidy, with the longest neck length to body ratio you have ever seen...and the bowl back of the bouzouki makes it a real pain to hold.
My brother, Bobby Rickert, artist/maker, noted Irish tenor banjo, mandolin, bouzouki, tenor guitar and Irish cittern player and luthier, modified a number of Greek bouzoukis for use in Irish music, shortening their necks by as much as 8 inches. Bobby was known for sawing parts off of instruments' necks the minute he got to his shop with a new acquisition (we won't talk about the fact that some of these instruments were rented!).
The surprises of evolution are such that we now have Irish Bouzoukis, Irish Octave Mandolins as distinct instruments. Some would say that the Irish Cittern is distinct, but it is usually used as another name for the Irish octave mandolin: See the images below of some of the finest examples of an octave mandolin by Gold Tone and an Irish bouzouki by Trinity College. See the images below. You can click on them for full-size.
See our online store if you are intersted in muciscal instuments (in additon to fiddles, of course) for traditional Irish music.
You should also read our next post about Cello Banjos in traditional Irish music.
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.
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.
According to none other than the acknowledged expert on Irish Banjo, Dr. Mick Maloney ( see The Banjo: A Short History by Mick Maloney), in the 15 or 20 years prior to the introduction of the Tenor Banjo, many banjo players, including Irish players, used either a 5-string banjo with the 5th string removed or its commercialized form, the Plectrum Banjo. At some point early on, tuning these former 5-string banjos or Plectrum banjos in 5ths became common practice for melodic playing, regardless of the nationality of the player.
See and hear Mick Maloney play tenor banjo with two fiddles and guitar
The Tenor Banjo in Irish Traditional Music From About 1915 to the 1960s
During this period, tenor banjos used in Irish Traditional music were generally tuned to the standard c g d' a' tenor banjo tuning (exactly like a viola, a 5th lower than the fiddle) or d a e' b', the later of which could also be accomplished by a capo on the second fret. The point is that tenor banjos in Irish Traditional music were tuned much higher than what one is accustomed to today.
The 1960s and Later
According to Mick Maloney, it was the popularity of the traditional music group, the Dubliners, that ultimately led to the different "Irish" tuning (G d a e') for tenor banjos, which is an octave lower than the fiddle. Barney McKenna, the tenor banjo player of The Dubliners, tuned his banjo in G d a e'. Maloney argues that it was the great popularity of The Dubliners AND the popularity of McKenna himself that led the new generation of tenor banjo players in Irish Traditional music to string their banjos with heavier gauge strings in the G d a e' octave tuning.
See and hear Barney McKenna on Tenor Banjo
By the 1980s, the octave tuning had become the de facto tuning for playing Irish Traditional music; however, Maloney and others are quick to point out that there are still "old-school" Irish tenor banjo players who favor the old high-pitched tuning.
Not all Irish tenor banjo players use a plectrum. See and hear Gordon Johnston demonstrating fingerstyle tenor banjo.
The Short (17 fret) Neck Story
The heavier-gauge strings required for the G d a e' tuning are more difficult to play fast, plain and simple. In order to enhance ease of playing complex melodies fast, many, but certainly not all, tenor banjo players in Irish Traditional music adopted the practice of tuning their 19 fret banjos a whole step lower (F C g d) and then placing a capo on the second fret, resulting in G d a e'.
This practice of placing a capo on the second fret of a 19 fret standard tenor banjo, in effect, creates a 17 fret short neck. Observing this common practice, used by all of the tenor banjo players I have ever played with (including my brother, Bob Rickert), some clever person (or committee) recently came up with the idea of a 17 fret necked tenor banjo tuned to G d a e' and calling it the "Irish Tenor Banjo." Bottom line is that the short-neck "Irish Tenor Banjo" is clever marketing idea of the banjo manufacturers designed to sell tenor banjos. The fact is that the 17 fret tenor banjo is simply a short-scale tenor banjo. There is nothing particularly Irish about it, although many Irish Traditional players use short-scale tenor banjos, including Mick Maloney on occassion.
Tenor Banjo Setup for Irish Traditional Music
Don Rickert Lutherie provides setup and refurbishment services for vintage and new tenor banjos to be used for Irish Traditional Music. See Tenor Banjo Setup for Irish Traditional Music
Conclusion
There are similar stories behind other instruments, such as the "Irish Bouzouki", "Irish Cittern" and the "Irish Octave Mandolin". I shall tackle the origins of these other instruments with fake pedigrees at some point in the future.
It is a common belief that the Irish Tenor Banjo (4 strings, tuned in 5ths) is somehow different from a Tenor Banjo, which was introduced around 1915 in America and was also known as the "Tango Banjo". The tenor banjo generally had 19 frets; however, shorter 17-fret necks were available.
The Second Myth: There is Special Type of Tenor Banjo Called the "Irish Tenor Banjo"
It is a common belief that the Irish Tenor Banjo (4 strings, tuned in 5ths) is somehow different from a Tenor Banjo, which was introduced around 1915 in America and was also known as the "Tango Banjo". The tenor banjo generally had 19 frets; however, shorter 17-fret necks were available.
According to none other than the acknowledged expert on Irish Banjo, Dr. Mick Maloney ( see The Banjo: A Short History by Mick Maloney), in the 15 or 20 years prior to the introduction of the Tenor Banjo, many banjo players, including Irish players, used either a 5-string banjo with the 5th string removed or its commercialized form, the Plectrum Banjo. At some point early on, tuning these former 5-string banjos or Plectrum banjos in 5ths became common practice for melodic playing, regardless of the nationality of the player.
See and hear Mick Maloney play tenor banjo with two fiddles and guitar
The Tenor Banjo in Irish Traditional Music From About 1915 to the 1960s
During this period, tenor banjos used in Irish Traditional music were generally tuned to the standard c g d' a' tenor banjo tuning (exactly like a viola, a 5th lower than the fiddle) or d a e' b', the later of which could also be accomplished by a capo on the second fret. The point is that tenor banjos in Irish Traditional music were tuned much higher than what one is accustomed to today.
The 1960s and Later
According to Mick Maloney, it was the popularity of the traditional music group, the Dubliners, that ultimately led to the different "Irish" tuning (G d a e') for tenor banjos, which is an octave lower than the fiddle. Barney McKenna, the tenor banjo player of The Dubliners, tuned his banjo in G d a e'. Maloney argues that it was the great popularity of The Dubliners AND the popularity of McKenna himself that led the new generation of tenor banjo players in Irish Traditional music to string their banjos with heavier gauge strings in the G d a e' octave tuning.
See and hear Barney McKenna on Tenor Banjo
By the 1980s, the octave tuning had become the de facto tuning for playing Irish Traditional music; however, Maloney and others are quick to point out that there are still "old-school" Irish tenor banjo players who favor the old high-pitched tuning.
Not all Irish tenor banjo players use a plectrum. See and hear Gordon Johnston demonstrating fingerstyle tenor banjo.
The Short (17 fret) Neck Story
The heavier-gauge strings required for the G d a e' tuning are more difficult to play fast, plain and simple. In order to enhance ease of playing complex melodies fast, many, but certainly not all, tenor banjo players in Irish Traditional music adopted the practice of tuning their 19 fret banjos a whole step lower (F C g d) and then placing a capo on the second fret, resulting in G d a e'.
This practice of placing a capo on the second fret of a 19 fret standard tenor banjo, in effect, creates a 17 fret short neck. Observing this common practice, used by all of the tenor banjo players I have ever played with (including my brother, Bob Rickert), some clever person (or committee) recently came up with the idea of a 17 fret necked tenor banjo tuned to G d a e' and calling it the "Irish Tenor Banjo." Bottom line is that the short-neck "Irish Tenor Banjo" is clever marketing idea of the banjo manufacturers designed to sell tenor banjos. The fact is that the 17 fret tenor banjo is simply a short-scale tenor banjo. There is nothing particularly Irish about it, although many Irish Traditional players use short-scale tenor banjos, including Mick Maloney on occassion.
Tenor Banjo Setup for Irish Traditional Music
Don Rickert Lutherie provides setup and refurbishment services for vintage and new tenor banjos to be used for Irish Traditional Music. See Tenor Banjo Setup for Irish Traditional Music
Conclusion
There are similar stories behind other instruments, such as the "Irish Bouzouki", "Irish Cittern" and the "Irish Octave Mandolin". I shall tackle the origins of these other instruments with fake pedigrees at some point in the future.
There are many myths about the banjo in traditional Irish music. It is commonly believed that a special type of tenor banjo (a 17 fret, 4-string banjo tuned in 5ths to G d a e' ), called the "Irish Tenor Banjo", has been part of Traditional Irish Music since at least the 19th Century. There are several myths implied by this notion.
The First Myth:
The idea that a tenor banjo, "Irish" or otherwise, has always been part of Irish traditional music could not be further from reality. It was most likely the American Minstrel Banjo, introduced to Ireland and England in the 1840s, that was first adopted for use in Irish Traditional music.
The Minstrel Banjo, the fretless precursor of the modern 5-string banjo, had evolved from the early gourd banjos (originally with 4 strings) invented by Black slaves centuries earlier in America, inspired by, but not copied from, similar instruments in Africa. Most banjo historians agree that what we know as the banjo was invented in America, by descendants of Africans (i.e. slaves). This is but one of a multitude of inventions by African Americans.
The fretless Minstrel Banjos were probably used mostly for simple accompaniment in Irish Traditional Music. Upon the introduction of the modern fretted banjo in the late 1870s by Dobson (a famous banjo manufacturer), this newer type of banjo became the type of banjo used in Irish Traditional Music.
The simple Minstrel style of playing evolved into the more elaborate "clawhammer" style. Not much is known about how widespread melodic clawhammer style playing became in Irish Traditional Music in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries. Melodic Irish banjo playing of the time might have sounded like the examples of Cooley's Reel and The Congress Reel by clawhammer banjo magician Cathy Moore (www.BanjoMeetsWorld.com) below.
See Cathy Moore play an outrageously great medley of these Irish tunes on YouTube (see player below)
While it is doubtful that there were many 5-string banjo players in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries who could play melodies as well as Cathy Moore in the video, hopefully I conveyed the point.
The tenor banjo in Irish Traditional music would not come until well into the 20th Century. Part 2 of this article will address the tenor banjo in Irish music and the mythology surrounding it.
In the 19th Century, all three of the banjo types listed below were being played, but the tackhead banjo became more popular than the gourd banjo. The tackhead was probably the most popular among Civil War soldiers; therefore a favorite of re-enactors. Tackhead banjos could made in camp and were light in weight.
The more state-of-the-art Minstrel Banjo, introduced in the early 1800s, had tensioning hardware (i.e. brackets) and are the precursor to the modern banjo. They were a more expensive instrument played by professional musicians or amateurs with some money to spend for a "store-bought" banjo.
These precursors to the modern banjo generally DID NOT have frets. If they did, they were more likely to be tied gut (like a lute or viola da gamba) rather than inset metal frets.
From left to right, a Gourd Banjo, a Tackhead Banjo and a Minstrel Banjo, all made by Master Banjo Maker, Jeff Menzies
Here are some really nice recordings of a gourd banjo (played by Jeff Menzies) and a tackhead banjo (played by Donald Zepp):
In the second half of the 19th Century there began to appear factory-made early versions of modern banjos with metal frets. Many of these new banjos had spun aluminum (a very expensive commodity at the time) pots. We have some actual photos of one of these early modern banjos dated to somewhere in the the 1860s or 1870s. It probably had fewer brackets when it was new, and upgraded at a later unknown date.
That Extra Hole in the Peg Head?
Note in the last photo the extra peg hole in the middle of the peg head. You cannot see the extra hole from the front because it is covered by a large diamond-shaped inlay, installed later in the life of this banjo.
What was this 5th peg hole for? The answer is...a fifth peg. Six-string banjos (5 main strings with a 6th drone string) were popular in the 19th Century. This type of six-string banjo is not to be confused with the guitar-tuned banjos that available today.
An example of how this new type of fretted gut-strung banjo would sound playing along with reproduction of an 1860s Style Cigar Box Fiddle
Our metal rim open-back banjo is quite versatile. With the standard modern planetary tuners, coordinator rod and metail strings to meet the needs of the contemporary Old-Time banjo claw-hammer banjo player. Replacing the tuners with violin-type tuners, the coordinator rod with a wooden dowel stick and the strings with Nylgut, you have a 19th Century banjo! All of these retro-setup modifications are options that we will do if you order them...You DO NOT have to do any of these mods yourself!
We can even get rid of the truss rod (not needed for gut or Nylgut strings) and the tell-tail truss rod cover on the peg head.
