There was a very interesting thread on the thesession.org's discussion forum last week that posed the question “Who was the first woman to release an Irish tenor banjo album?” It was a nice, friendly discussion and I think consensus was that Angelina Carberry’s 2005 “An Traidisiún Beo” was the first. However, there were a bunch of other great players named who had appeared on far earlier recordings, including Annette Caulfield, who had a solo feature on a 1982 Comhaltas LP “Gems of Ireland,” and Christine Considine, who had one on the 1978 Comhaltas LP “The Ships are Sailing.”
Fascinated, I dug a bit deeper and learned that Considine had in fact made an even earlier EP with the outstanding button accordionist John Whelan called “Traditional Music Of Ireland. It had come out in 1974 but escaped the thread’s attention. Another that escaped attention was Gail Mulvihill’s solo work on The Martin Mulvihill School’s 1977 LP “Irish Music: The Living Tradition.” In fact, there were a fair number of banjo playing women in the 1970s and ’80s and I look forward to becoming better acquainted with all these brilliant players.
One banjo driver that folks in the thread were very excited to talk about was Theresa O’Grady. Grady, a student, in fact, of Annette Caulfield’s, made an album in 2004 with her band the Border Collies called “Unleashed” and then, in 2018, she released her own solo album, “BANJO’ista,” which was superb. I wrote about “BANJO’ista” when it came out it here and talked about how “I love[d] the crispness of her ornamentation, the nuance in her phrasing, the expressiveness in her delivery, and the strong lilt in her delivery,” adding that “these are things every banjoist could benefit from hearing.”
The notion that people could “benefit” from O’Grady’s playing is a timely one to return to. When her album came out, she wasn’t just a front-line player, she was building a reputation as an important teacher, an idea reinforced by the fact that for years she’s co-led the banjo classes (with Muireann Banks) at the Willie Clancy Summer School. However, she made teaching her full time gig in 2020 and since that time has attracted a full stable of students who have been reaping the benefits of her balanced guidance.
This past December, O’Grady launched banjoista.com, a website that expands the scope of her teaching practice and gives players who love her music the opportunity to learn directly from her.
From Luton, England, but based in Sligo since 1997, O’Grady is a wonderful player with a very traditional approach to teaching. Everything’s done by ear, which puts students in a position that encourages engagement with not only the notes but with their expression as well. It’s a wonderful method that folks interested in really getting a feel for the music can take a lot away from.
I got to dig into O’Grady’s website this week and was very impressed with what’s there so far. The site’s centerpiece at the moment is its “Irish Banjo Tune Library.” It contains recordings of tunes, arranged into type (jigs, reels, and hornpipes) and when you click on a title, the page that opens includes an audio file embedded in a player that allows users both to adjust the recording’s tempo and to create loopable sections. These features help make difficult passages easier to work through thus facilitating improved retention.
In addition to an incredible tune selection, what I like is how naturally O’Grady plays through each tune. She goes each tune at least twice, each time adding a subtle ornament or small variation that gives the tune character. In addition to providing insight into O’Grady’s personal style, these touches help students eventually become better aware of how their ideas might be mobilized in other tunes and incorporated into one’s own style. Confident students will have no problem learning tunes from this resource, which as of this writing includes over 250 tunes, but O’Grady adds 10 tunes each week, so expect this number to increase.
However, the site’s audio-only situation changes on April 20 when O’Grady launches a video library. This new section will be arranged into three parts, “Tunes,” which teaches tunes by ear, broken down into small portions; “Technique,” in which O’Grady helps students better understand the physical nuances of the craft; and “Tips,” in which she gives students ideas about practicing, exercises, etc. The tune videos will be on the long side, running 10-15 minutes in length each, while the technique and tips videos generally run about 5-10 minutes.
I previewed some of the forthcoming video content and found it all extremely engaging. O’Grady has a clear way of explaining the finer points of banjo playing, giving guiding principles rather than dogmatic rules. She does this with a natural ease that feels very attuned to the needs of a student’s developing skill. While I think her audio library is very well done and extremely useful, I believe the addition of the video library will be a major attraction for prospective students because seeing her play will allow them to access the nuances of O’Grady’s playing more directly. For example, watching her describe a concept, like her approach to picking efficiency, and then having it incorporated into her teaching process makes it a hardwired and thus more natural part of the pedagogical process. Further, watching her give tips about things like how to play the high “B” were effective, because her visual cues and pointers help her defuse the sort of anxiety many younger players bring to this particular note.
O’Grady is a world-class banjo player and any banjoist looking for an effective online resource should give her site a good, hard look. I love her tunes and technique, but what I think I appreciate most about the site so far is how well she’s integrated a more traditional approach to learning with contemporary technology. It’s got a great feel and puts the focus is on the musical experience, which is right where it should be. Folks interested in an enhanced experience should note that she also offers one-on-one lessons online via Zoom. Great stuff! For more information and subscription rates, visit https://banjoista.com/.
