The Glory-Beaming Banjo

Usually, at this time of year, this space is reserved for looking back at the past 12 months. Frankly, there's not a heckuva lot to look back upon. This was a down year when it comes to playing music. Typically, I would offer self-flagellating remarks about not being able to find the time and hoping to do better next go-round. However, some reader comments from earlier this year have inspired me to just stop worrying about it.  So, here is a brief list of highlights:  My fondest memory was volunteering at the Lake Erie Folk Fest .  My most successful post was about a podcast from September 2024.  My favorite post was about buying some 78 rpm records in South Carolina.  My  playing goals  ... well, let's not talk about those.  I didn't reach my goals this year — not the end of the world. I went a few months without touching my instruments at all, but it turned out I didn't forget everything I knew when I got back to them. On the positive side, I...

Sometime in 2008, I read Outliers: The Story of Success , by Malcolm Gladwell. The main premise of the book is it takes 10,000 hours to master a skill. This was the year I started playing banjo, and I was struggling to keep up with practice. My New Year's resolution for 2009 was to rededicate myself to the banjo by learning clawhammer. I also started tracking my playing time to stay accountable and measure my progress toward that 10,000-goal. When I started playing the fiddle , I began tracking that too. And before we go any further, yes, I know Gladwell's theory has been debunked , but it still seems like a pretty good goal to get me somewhere in the neighborhood of competent on the banjo and fiddle. Each year, I set a goal for the amount of hours of playing time I want to log. My spreadsheet helps me stay on track. This year, I'm aiming for 230 hours combined. At the end of January, I hit a snag. A mix of family and work obligations forced me to miss several d...