Okee Dokee BrothersSat, Sep 23rd | 11:00 AM & 1:30 PM
8-Week Classes: September 5 - October 29
Registration is Open Now! »
8-Week Classes: October 30 - December 23
Continuing student registration opens on September 12. »
Gift Certificates · Financial Aid · Class Policies
8-Week Classes: September 5 - October 29
Registration is Open Now! »
8-Week Classes: October 30 - December 23
Registration is Open Now! »
Gift Certificates · Financial Aid · Policies · Resource Center
Monday - Thursday 10:30 AM - 8:30 PM
Friday - Sunday 10:30 AM - 5:00 PM
4544 N. Lincoln Avenue: 773.751.3398
909 W. Armitage Avenue: 773.525.1506
Celebrating the rich variety of our musical community - jump on in!
Save the picks for the bluegrass class.
Clawhammer Banjo is used in old time music. The tunes are both easy and repetitive. It's exciting to build your way to playing in an old time band in which banjos, fiddles, mandolins, and guitars play with energy for cloggers and partner dancers. When you advance, you can branch out into more complex repertoire: French Canadian, Fiddle Tunes of the Midwest, and other specialty classes.
How is clawhammer played?
It is played by rhythmically rapping your right hand downward (as if knocking on a door) and plucking the string or strings along the way. Your right hand's index finger brushes against the strings and then the banjo head underneath the strings, and combined with your thumb catching the uppermost string, you get the trademark rhythmic sound of clawhammer.
 Introduction to the Banjo | Group ClassBeginner 80 minutes · Once a week for 8 weeks · $196 ($186 members) Tuesday or Thursday with Jonas Friddle or Matt Brown For anyone attracted to the 5-string banjo but not sure which style to try first, this is for you! Grouped with: Bluegrass · Country & Traditional · Old Time · Folk · Clawhammer | |
| 21st Century Banjo Repertoire | Group ClassAdvanced 80 minutes · Once a week for 8 weeks · $196 ($186 members) Tuesday with Matt Brown Learn to play some of your favorite contemporary songs on the banjo! Grouped with: Bluegrass · Clawhammer · Artist Specific · Two-Finger | |
| Clawhammer Banjo 1 | Group ClassBeginner 80 minutes · Once a week for 8 weeks · $196 ($186 members) Thursday with Steve Rosen Begin by using chords to strum simple songs with a technique known as frailing. Grouped with: Country & Traditional · Old Time · Folk · Clawhammer | |
| Clawhammer Banjo 2 | Group ClassIntermediate 80 minutes · Once a week for 8 weeks · $196 ($186 members) Tuesday with Dan Mulvihill Go beyond the basics with Clawhammer techniques such as drop-thumbing, while playing more challenging songs and fiddle tunes. Grouped with: Country & Traditional · Old Time · Folk · Clawhammer | |
| Clawhammer Banjo 3 | Group ClassAdvanced 80 minutes · Once a week for 8 weeks · $196 ($186 members) Tuesday or Thursday with Steve Rosen or Dan Mulvihill Develop stronger left and right hand techniques in frailing and drop-thumb using hammer-ons, pull-offs, and slides. Grouped with: Country & Traditional · Old Time · Folk · Clawhammer | |
| Clawhammer Banjo's World of Folk & Blues | Group ClassAdvanced 80 minutes · Once a week for 8 weeks · $196 ($186 members) Monday with Michael Miles Grouped with: Blues · World · Folk · Clawhammer | |
| Round Peak Clawhammer Banjo | WorkshopAdvanced 90 minutes · Once a week for 1 week · $25 ($24 members) Saturday with Matt Brown Grouped with: Musicianship · Clawhammer |
The Old Town School of Folk Music, Inc.
4544 N. Lincoln Avenue, Chicago IL 60625 • 773.728.6000
