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BANJO IN AMERICA SHOW DATES

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"Whelpley's Jig and Buckley's Jig"

From "Buckley's New Banjo Method" by James Buckley, 1860. An example of minstrel style banjo, played on a Boucher reproduction banjo built by George Wunderlich. Minstrel is similar to clawhammer in its right hand technique, although, as you can hear, the sounds and rhythms are something different entirely.



"Kansas Jig"

Tony Trischka plays lead banjo (left channel); Bill Evans is second banjo (right channel). A parlor banjo song from the turn of the twentieth century, played in three finger style without picks. Bill uses a Bart Reiter banjo, Tony a Deering John Hartford model banjo. Both are strung with nylon strings. More tunes and videos.

BILL EVANS — THE BANJO IN AMERICA

“Bill is able to reach into the banjo's past to make a sublime statement of its future...to create a sound firmly rooted in tradition but still fresh and vital.” —Tim Bond, Bluegrass Now

Bill Evans is well-known within the bluegrass music community not only as a great musician, but also as a teacher, writer and scholar. The Banjo in America brings together these interests in a unique presentation designed for general audiences and the concert stage.

Bill Evans, The Banjo in America

In The Banjo in America, Bill takes the listener on a musical adventure, following the banjo from its West African roots to the New World, performing musical examples from the 1700’s to the present day on vintage instruments. From an 18th century African dance tune to the music of the Civil War, and from early 20th century ragtime to folk and bluegrass banjo styles to Bill’s own incredible original music, The Banjo in America illuminates as well as entertains, exposing audiences to over 250 years of American music.

Bill has presented The Banjo In America all over the United States, Canada and Japan. Performance highlights include A Prairie Home Companion with Garrison Keillor; the San Francisco Symphony; FreshGrass, Massachusetts; Stanford University, CA; Fairfield College, MN; Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, San Francisco; IBMA Wide Open Bluegrass, NC; and Wintergrass, WA.

To contact Bill, email or phone 510-520-7005 (Pacific Time Zone).

Bill Evans Tells the History of the Banjo in 14 Minutes from fretboardjournal on Vimeo.

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