its not easy finding a good banjo teacher, very few even exist around dallas. i was taught a few songs by my grandad when i was a kid. i have been taught 3 finger style and how to read tab. i have only had a few lessons so far with jim but i am impressed. jim is a pro musician who has played with lyle lovett, robert earl keen and the front porch boys and other known groups around texas. he is a bluegrass teacher/player primarily but i told him i wanted to learn to play like my grandad, which was 2 finger Appalachin picking and frailing. luckily i have a cd made from a '60s recording of my grandad. jim didnt hesitate. and he was good at it right off the bat trying to figure out what strings/frets my grandad was playing at such a fast speed with varying styles in one single song. and showed me a cool frailing style that, once you get the hang of it, is easier for me than the "standard" frailing technique. he took the 24 song cd and is listening to and tabbing the old songs just the way my grandad played them. we are doing this bc alot of these old songs werent published but rather passed down from former slaves that were still alive around the turn of the century when my grandad was a young boy and i didnt want that work to disappear. he doesnt waste time talking like alot of teachers do, gets to right to it after a quick hello. also he can do lessons via skype which can be really helpful to those with busy schedules. give him a shot, he's good read more
