Work out your own arrangements and improvisations, and how to...

Learn without frustration...

    Through teaching methods that have been successfully employed in private and class instruction for over 40 years. It's an approach that shows you how to teach yourself, and how to play intelligently and creatively with other musicians - without frustration...and without having to rely on other musicians for figuring out songs, chords, and licks from recordings, sheet music, or tablature. You'll not only see and hear numerous songs, licks, and patterns presented in a variety of styles, but you'll see and hear music theory applied to improvising and arranging.

.Step by Step...

     Everything in Banjo II is explained and demonstrated step by step - you'll learn how songs evolve from basic to finished arrangements. Even if you're a "first-year"banjo player, you'll find most of the arrangements in the first few lessons of Banjo II easy to play. From there, as the arrangements gradually become more complex, you'll discover that your ability to play them will be improving as well.

.Just like private instruction...

     You'll find studying and learning with Banjo II is almost like having an instructor (in this case, the author) sitting in front of you, except better, because you can review any topic as often as you wish, always proceeding at your own rate, and feeling confident every area is thoroughly covered.

Play along with full accompaniment...

    All songs and techniques in the course are demonstrated in several ways. Best of all, you'll find the real fun is in playing along with the recorded songs. They were recorded with your participation in mind to help you learn to apply everything you learn about developing your own arrangements and improvisations, by playing along with the many accompaniment backgrounds consisting of guitar, bass, mandolin, and banjo that are included in the course. While learning in the privacy of your own home, you'll gain the knowledge and confidence that are necessary for playing with others.

Play backup to lead arrangements...

     Most of the songs in Banjo II include backup sections for you to play along with the recorded portion. Written in tablature, all backup sections are demonstrated and discussed, including detailed discussions of the techniques required for playing each section. In fact, by the time you complete Banjo II, you'll have learned most of the backup treatments the professionals play, and have learned how to apply them to other situations. Best of all, every recorded arrangement in Banjo II is designed to allow you to alternate between backup and lead without missing a beat - as if you were playing in a band.

The equivalent of over 60 private lessons...

     Banjo II is presented in a smooth, logical order of graduated sections that build from basic to complex, beginning to end. Each section consists of three to five lessons - depending on subject length, with, each lesson being the equivalent of three private lessons. Included with each lesson is all written material; sheet music, tablature, and diagrams...plus a 60 to 90-minute recording of narration and demonstration, including full accompaniment arrangements.

First Section:

    Scruggs style is regarded by most banjo players as the foundation for all 3-finger picking styles, and that's just where Banjo II begins - by showing you how to work out your own Scruggs style arrangements and breaks on lower neck.

Second Section:

    Following the lower neck Scruggs style section, you'll learn how to work out a variety of fiddle tunes in melodic style; reels, jigs, and hornpipes, in a variety of keys and tunings - all over the neck.

Third Section:

     Then, you'll change back to Scruggs style, this time focusing on developing tasteful upper neck breaks and arrangements.

Fourth Section:

    Next, you'll learn how to combine the features of Scruggs and melodic styles to best advantage to help you create even more interesting melody arrangements melody and breaks - this time, focusing on the entire neck.

Remaining Sections:

    These sections show you how to simplify complex melodies ("Banjoizing"), how to make simple melodies more interesting and complex ("Fiddlizing"), how to improvise in all music forms in Scruggs and melodic style, and how to create Chord/Melody arrangements.

How do you learn to do all this?...

    Through dozens of examples, explanations, and demonstrations of techniques for just about every song situation imaginable. Every arrangement in Banjo II is discussed at length in terms of problem areas and conclusions that lead to the results. Your first lesson, for example, contains all of the important rules and guidelines for creating interesting and effective Scruggs style arrangements on lower neck - including detailed examples of how to put it all to use in other songs. In addition, each lesson ends with a tune for you to work out, which is followed by an analysis of my version in the next lesson for you to compare to your version.

Two free introductory CDs with your first lesson...

     Included FREE with your first lesson are two CDs containing an overview of Banjo II plus valuable information on:

    When ordering the complete Banjo II course with CDs, please add:

$24.00 for shipping and handling (priority mail)    U.S.A.
$26.00 for shipping and handling (airmail rate)    Canada
$45.00 for shipping and handling (airmail rate)    European Countries
$55.00 for shipping and handling (airmail rate)    Australia and all other countries.