Practise Irish reels on tenor banjo: a short routine

Choose one setting and listen through it

Open Drowsy Maggie, select Tenor Banjo and listen to both parts. The example below refers to this specific setting. Other players may use different notes or ornaments.

Pick one short passage to improve. Start with the opening if the tune is new, or choose the join where the pulse slips. The learn-by-ear guide explains how to listen, sing and find a phrase before checking the tab.

Settle the picking hand on one string

Try one bar of eight even notes on the open A string. Alternate down and up while counting 1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and. The diagram is an exercise for continuous quavers; held notes and rests in the tune keep their written lengths.

As a starting exercise, set the metronome to 60 clicks per minute and play two notes per click. Each click counts a quarter-note beat here. Lower the number if the pick catches or the forearm tightens. This tempo is a suggested starting point for the exercise.

Practise the phrase at a comfortable speed

Use the tune player’s Speed control to slow the written setting without changing its pitch. Tap a note to hear the passage from that point, then pause when the phrase ends. Replay that passage manually. The player’s Loop control repeats the whole tune.

In the opening bar of this Drowsy Maggie setting, the E lasts for two quaver lengths. Play it once and keep counting before B, E, D, E, B, E. Let the held note ring for its written length.

Try the passage twice with steady timing and relaxed picking. If the same crossing catches each time, practise the notes on either side of it together. The picking guide has direction diagrams and further examples.

Connect the ending to the next phrase

Add the next bar, including the join between them. Start before the troublesome note so the picking hand learns how to arrive there. Return to the shorter passage whenever the ending becomes rushed.

Pause the player and try the joined passage from memory. Then listen again and check one uncertain note or rhythm against the notation. Increase Speed a little when the passage stays steady; return to the previous setting if it becomes tense.

Leave ornaments for a later pass. TradTab’s generated playback follows the written notation. Listen to a teacher or an experienced player for phrasing, lift and ornament choices. Comhaltas education resources provide further tune-type lessons and listening material.

Leave a clear task for the next session

Finish with one specific task, such as “join bars 1 and 2 without rushing the held E”. Note the player speed that felt comfortable. On the next practice, sing or play that phrase before opening the tab, then use playback to check it.

The tune page’s Save control keeps the setting in your account after sign-in. Open My tabs to return to saved tunes and converter tabs. A saved tune is a bookmark; practice notes and progress tracking are not stored by this feature.

Keep one familiar tune in the session alongside the passage being learned. When this reel feels comfortable, choose another from the reel library or follow the five-tune learning sequence.