The banjo has become synonymous with country, folk and bluegrass music; however, its roots lie deep within sub-Saharan West Africa.
In the 19th century, blackface minstrel performers popularized the banjo among white audiences and it quickly became an integral part of American culture and household entertainment. This article serves to give an introduction to its history.
Origins
The banjo has its roots in African music. First appearing as an instrument in the Caribbean during the early 1700s and eventually making its way around the globe by around 1830 (when it reached North America). Once established as part of mento music (a precursor to reggae and calypso music in Jamaica and Trinidad-Tobago respectively) or calypso music in Trinidad-Tobago and elsewhere within Afro-Caribbean communities it quickly spread throughout this musical genre.
Slave Africans may have brought instruments from their homeland with them when they arrived in America and these later evolved into what we now recognize as the banjo. An early gourd-shaped instrument, constructed with hide stretched over body and head, a fretless neck, floating bridge and short drone string played by thumb is believed to be related to what became the modern banjo; possibly deriving from an African folk lute such as an Akonting (from Jola tribe Gambia). Other similar West African instruments may include Senegambia Axalam or even Ngoni (from Mali Guinea Ivory Coast).
European outsiders initially referred to these new musical styles with terms like bangie, banza, bonjaw and banjer (Banjul is named for Mandinka term for rope fiber) but over time these terms became combined to form the word “banjo.”
Emile Berliner’s Gramophone of 1904 enabled people to listen to acoustic versions of these new instruments for the first time; Banjo players among them made early recordings.
By the turn of the 20th century, America had fully adopted this new style. At that point, banjo was being widely utilized in minstrel shows featuring white performers dressed up like Black people; these shows became hugely popular, becoming associated with White Americana music styles that featured blackface performers who caricatured Black people. These minstrel shows also made popular the banjo as a form of entertainment and eventually made its way into minstrel performances themselves – further cementing its place within American culture and society as a result.
By the 1930s, banjo had made itself part of American life through bluegrass music. This genre combines traditional ballads, gospel songs and old-time country tunes with electric guitar accompaniment; banjo became a key element in this style and is considered to be its signature sound today.
Construction
The banjo is a five-string plucked spike-lute chordophone which originated in West African slave culture and later adopted by American minstrelsy and rural white folk music. From there it found its way into bluegrass music, old time music, ragtime and Dixieland jazz; eventually being part of the revival movement in 20th century folk music revivalist movement.
The banjo can trace its lineage back to various West African plucked spike-lutes with distinctive necks that pass over or through their bodies and are played using plectra (pick).
Traditional banjo necks are constructed from one solid piece of wood and feature a pegblock and spike made from it, along with four strings running their entire length and ending at an adjustable tuning peg located on either side of the neck, creating an exceptionally unique sound. Open G is often the preferred tuning type.
Early banjos had four gut strings; by the 1890s, metal stringed models became increasingly popular. At this same time, an acoustic phonograph was invented, which enabled people to hear recordings of banjo players for the first time ever – Thomas Edison and Emile Berliner made several recordings featuring blackface entertainers playing ragtime and other minstrel songs on a banjo for Thomas Edison and Emile Berliner to listen back to later on acoustic recordings.
As soon as banjos became part of mainstream society, their popularity quickly skyrocketed and became associated with racist stereotypes. This association was further solidified when minstrel shows used the instrument as part of an entertaining form by assigning performers the role of an uncaring, shiftless Jim Crow character.
The qin is a stringed instrument closely related to the banjo in terms of construction and sound. Like its cousin, the banjo also features a moveable bridge with five strings; however, unlike its counterpart it features plucked stringed flute and offers much more melodious tones.
Sound
A banjo has its own distinct sound; twangy and bright, unlike its more familiar cousin the guitar which may produce warmer tones. Commonly found in bluegrass, country and folk music styles alike; its sound stems from how its construction and playability.
The type of wood used in its neck and body plays a huge role in how well banjos sound. Maple features tight grain structures, making it perfect for sharp and clear banjos; mahogany offers smoother tones.
Other elements that contribute to a banjo’s sound include its tuning and type of string it is strung on. An open tuning banjo features strings tuned to chords which vibrate together when plucked, making this tuning popular in minstrel music and parlor banjos; however, jazz musicians should opt for another tuning due to complex chord structures being too challenging for this banjo type.
In the 1920s, ragtime became increasingly popular. This style of music combined elements from African American, European and white folk traditions; this was an early predecessor of jazz. Banjo players were popular choice because ragtime required more sophisticated playing than simple minstrel songs – although its open tuning and high-pitched sounds made it less than ideal choice for this new genre.
Modern banjos feature four, five or six strings. Players may use fingernail or pick to play it acoustically or amplified for maximum sound output; tuning to either chord or melody tunings; solid body electric/acoustic versions available, made from brass/bronze alloy metal and/or mahogany wood can also be found among modern versions.
Acoustic banjo can be played using various techniques, including arpeggiated picking and muting. Furthermore, an acoustic banjo may also be played using a plectrum attached to its bottom pot for greater pitch control and sound similar to what would be produced by a guitar.
Tuning
The banjo is a stringed instrument with a separate neck from its body that shares design features and playing techniques with several West African plucked spike lutes known as gourd or skinned-back banjos – these instruments had an extendible membrane made from animal skin stretched over their neck to amplify sound when struck or plucked, known as gourd banjos.
Joel Sweeney is widely recognized as the inventor of the modern five-string banjo. A five-string banjo features conventional four strings with one shorter than usual beginning midway up the neck; this short fifth string gives rise to its unique tuning that cannot be found elsewhere on stringed musical instruments.
As banjo popularity increased during the first decade of the 20th century, other innovations started to occur. Metal parts and exotic woods were utilized to further amplify its sound while different tunings such as reentrant tuning were developed; one significant tuning being where string pitches do not advance from lowest to highest along a fingerboard, but rather move up and down as well as side to side.
This tuning allows the playing of melodies with a banjo that more closely resembles string bass than guitar or mandolin, as well as rolls and drones (right hand accompanimental fingering patterns, as well as drone notes played on the fifth string that characterize bluegrass music).
As well as its more common reentrant tuning, other banjo tunings exist and often correspond with specific genres of music. For instance, the banjo plays an essential part in American jazz and Dixieland as well as Caribbean styles like biguine, calypso and mento.
The banjo has long been associated with traditional American music styles; however, in reality it can be played across almost any genre. Recently its popularity has skyrocketed thanks to electric amplification technology; musicians like Bela Fleck have helped spread this instrument among younger mainstream audiences.