Noel Booth completes "Sympathy for the Banjo" project

Noel was awarded a North Carolina Regional Artist Grant in 2007 to build his design of a "Sympathetic" banjo. Completed in December 2007, this new instrument, a "sympathetic banjo”, will expand the instrument’s sympathetic voice. A traditional banjo derives some of its unique sound from its natural sympathetic vibrations. Noel's sympathetic banjo design has 7 sympathetic strings in addition to the standard 5 stings that are played on the banjo. The 5th string travels through the neck and has its tuner on the headstock. The sympathetic strings travel over a Jiwari bridge and through a tunnel in the neck emerging over their own nut in the headstock. The use of a Jiwari bridge broadens the tonal qualities into the spectrum of Indian music. These changes to the traditional banjo provide an opportunity to experiment with the blending of musical styles and posed new challenges in design and construction. The use of sympathetic strings is not new to the stringed instrument world but certainly new to Old Fiddle Road Banjo Works and the banjo! We look forward to sharing this instrument with other musicians and hearing them explore new musical styles on the banjo.

Listen to Banjo sound clips of this new instrument!

Complete Story (link to Asheville Citizen Times)

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Noel helps NC teachers learn about banjo design and construction.

In September 2007 Noel conducted a workshop as part of a two day seminar for the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching about the history and evolution of banjo design and construction.

To learn more about this workshop go to www.smokymountainnews.com/issues/09_07/09_26_07/fr_africa_banjo.html

If you are interested in having banjo history workshops brought to your Arts Council programming or public school, please contact us! 

Noel Booth awarded North Carolina Regional Artist Grant to build a new "Sympathetic" banjo.

A traditional banjo derives some of its unique sound from its natural sympathetic vibrations.  My prototype banjo design has 8 sympathetic strings in addition to the standard 5 stings that are played on the banjo.   This new instrument, “Sympathy for the banjo”, will expand the instrument’s sympathetic voice.  The use of a Jawarri bridge will broaden the tonal qualities into the spectrum of Indian music.  These changes to the traditional banjo provide an opportunity to experiment with the blending of musical styles and pose new challenges in design and construction.  The use of sympathetic strings is not new to the stringed instrument world but certainly new to Old Fiddle Road Banjo Works and the banjo!  We look forward to having this banjo completed by early fall 2007.

Complete Story in Asheville Citizen-times.

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Kabosy prototype completed

We build more than just banjos here at Old Fiddle Road Banjo Works. Our Kabosy prototype is completed and now we get to figure out how to play it!. Yes, it can baffle even the best of musicians and provide hours of entertainment. The Kabosy is a traditional instrument from the island of Madacascar. It's unique fret pattern combines elements of the diatonic scale (think mountain dulcimer pattern) but has additional frets filling in intervals for some of the strings. It has all the notes you need for Malagasy music but also for Appalachian tunes as well. Cool huh? Will the Kabosy be in our production? It's uncertain at the moment. This one's already reserved, so who knows?