whodathought
Verified buyer
06/02/26
Great repertoire
Good selection of tunes in different styles. Very good instruction.
Banjo Brew
Fuse Traditional and Contemporary Styles to Unleash Your Creative Freedom
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About this course
Bluegrass-style banjo, with its three-finger picking technique and syncopated forward roll pattern, has become synonymous with traditional bluegrass music. On the other hand, melodic-style banjo utilizes scales to create melodies, and you’ll hear it played in more contemporary forms of music such as newgrass and progressive bluegrass.
The key to creative freedom and the development of your own sound is learning vocabulary from both styles. Bennett Sullivan’s Banjo Brew unlocks the door to that combined vocabulary and lights up your creativity.
”You’ll play your way through Banjo Brew learning two versions of 8 popular bluegrass songs. The first version is played using traditional banjo techniques. The second version is arranged in a contemporary style.
By comparing the arrangements, you’ll better understand how licks and phrases from both styles work within the context of bluegrass tunes, and you’ll be armed with ample vocabulary and creative inspiration for your next gig or jam.”
Bennett has performed with Judy Collins, Maria Muldaur, John Sebastian, Jim Kweskin and Willie Nelson on stage and in the studio. Bennett was featured in the company of “Bright Star,” a musical theatre phenomenon written by Steve Martin and Edie Brickell and has appeared on ‘The Late Night Show with Jimmy Fallon’, ‘Good Morning America’, and ‘Last Week Tonight with John Oliver’. Fortunately, he’s also a passionate and articulate his educator, which you’ll very quickly discover for yourself as you dig deep into Banjo Brew curriculum.
You’ll have all of TrueFire’s advanced learning tools at your finger tips to personalize your workspace and learn at your own pace.
You can loop, slow down, or speed up any section of a lesson. Plus, all of the tab and notation is synced to the videos for the optimal learning experience. You’ll also get tab and standard notation files to print out, Guitar Pro files, and all of the backing tracks to practice with.
Grab your banjo, and let’s dig in with Bennett Sullivan!
The key to creative freedom and the development of your own sound is learning vocabulary from both styles. Bennett Sullivan’s Banjo Brew unlocks the door to that combined vocabulary and lights up your creativity.
”You’ll play your way through Banjo Brew learning two versions of 8 popular bluegrass songs. The first version is played using traditional banjo techniques. The second version is arranged in a contemporary style.
By comparing the arrangements, you’ll better understand how licks and phrases from both styles work within the context of bluegrass tunes, and you’ll be armed with ample vocabulary and creative inspiration for your next gig or jam.”
Bennett has performed with Judy Collins, Maria Muldaur, John Sebastian, Jim Kweskin and Willie Nelson on stage and in the studio. Bennett was featured in the company of “Bright Star,” a musical theatre phenomenon written by Steve Martin and Edie Brickell and has appeared on ‘The Late Night Show with Jimmy Fallon’, ‘Good Morning America’, and ‘Last Week Tonight with John Oliver’. Fortunately, he’s also a passionate and articulate his educator, which you’ll very quickly discover for yourself as you dig deep into Banjo Brew curriculum.
You’ll have all of TrueFire’s advanced learning tools at your finger tips to personalize your workspace and learn at your own pace.
You can loop, slow down, or speed up any section of a lesson. Plus, all of the tab and notation is synced to the videos for the optimal learning experience. You’ll also get tab and standard notation files to print out, Guitar Pro files, and all of the backing tracks to practice with.
Grab your banjo, and let’s dig in with Bennett Sullivan!
What you'll learn
- Execute dissonant half-step intervals characteristic of melodic banjo style
- Play a contemporary melodic-style arrangement of Old Joe Clark
- Perform forward and backward rolls in melodic context
- Apply tension and resolution concepts in melodic arrangements
- Develop creative freedom by learning vocabulary from multiple banjo styles
Release date: 05/04/2023 • 1h 43m runtime
Sample lessons
Before We Begin
Course Primer
Blackberry Blossom
Overview
Blackberry Blossom: Standard
Performance
Blackberry Blossom: Standard
Breakdown
What's included
43 lessons • 16 charts • 8 Jam Tracks
Banjo Brew
Hey I’m Bennett Sullivan. Bluegrass style banjo, with its three-finger picking technique and syncopated forward roll pattern, has become synonymous with traditional bluegrass music.
Melodic style, on the other hand, utilizes scales to create melodies, and you’ll hear it played in more contemporary forms of music such as newgrass and progressive bluegrass.
The key to creative freedom and ultimately coming up with your own style, is to learn vocabulary from both.
In this course we’ll work through 8 popular bluegrass songs, each with both a traditional and a contemporary style banjo arrangement.
By comparing the arrangements, you’ll better understand how licks and phrases from both styles work within the context of bluegrass tunes, and you’ll be armed with more inspiration for your next jam.
Grab your banjo and let’s dive in!
Melodic style, on the other hand, utilizes scales to create melodies, and you’ll hear it played in more contemporary forms of music such as newgrass and progressive bluegrass.
The key to creative freedom and ultimately coming up with your own style, is to learn vocabulary from both.
In this course we’ll work through 8 popular bluegrass songs, each with both a traditional and a contemporary style banjo arrangement.
By comparing the arrangements, you’ll better understand how licks and phrases from both styles work within the context of bluegrass tunes, and you’ll be armed with more inspiration for your next jam.
Grab your banjo and let’s dive in!
Before We Begin
As we delve into the songs of this course, allow me to share my concept that I developed a while back. Essentially, it involves taking a basic melody or arrangement of a song, as played by Earl Scruggs or other bluegrass masters, and transforming it into a more contemporary style. So, let's explore how we can take these songs to new heights!
New River Train
Let's begin with "New River Train," the first song on our list. Like all the other songs, you will receive two arrangements for it. The first standard arrangement contains only the melody with a few instances of chromaticism as we move from one C position to the next. We'll be playing this tune in the key of C, but it's worth noting that you can use a capo to adjust the key up to the second fret for D or up to the third or fourth frets for E flat or E, respectively. However, we'll be sticking to the C position for this course. The basic melody is quite simple, without any curveballs.
In the contemporary arrangement, I've added many melodic, ascending and descending patterns, as well as some seventh chords to fill the space and enhance the melody. It's a fun arrangement with lots of variations, and I hope you'll enjoy playing it. Let's get started!
In the contemporary arrangement, I've added many melodic, ascending and descending patterns, as well as some seventh chords to fill the space and enhance the melody. It's a fun arrangement with lots of variations, and I hope you'll enjoy playing it. Let's get started!
New River Train: Standard
Let's begin with "New River Train," the first song on our list. Like all the other songs, you will receive two arrangements for it. The first standard arrangement contains only the melody with a few instances of chromaticism as we move from one C position to the next. We'll be playing this tune in the key of C, but it's worth noting that you can use a capo to adjust the key up to the second fret for D or up to the third or fourth frets for E flat or E, respectively. However, we'll be sticking to the C position for this course. The basic melody is quite simple, without any curveballs.
In the contemporary arrangement, I've added many melodic, ascending and descending patterns, as well as some seventh chords to fill the space and enhance the melody. It's a fun arrangement with lots of variations, and I hope you'll enjoy playing it. Let's get started!
In the contemporary arrangement, I've added many melodic, ascending and descending patterns, as well as some seventh chords to fill the space and enhance the melody. It's a fun arrangement with lots of variations, and I hope you'll enjoy playing it. Let's get started!
New River Train: Standard
Let's begin with "New River Train," the first song on our list. Like all the other songs, you will receive two arrangements for it. The first standard arrangement contains only the melody with a few instances of chromaticism as we move from one C position to the next. We'll be playing this tune in the key of C, but it's worth noting that you can use a capo to adjust the key up to the second fret for D or up to the third or fourth frets for E flat or E, respectively. However, we'll be sticking to the C position for this course. The basic melody is quite simple, without any curveballs.
In the contemporary arrangement, I've added many melodic, ascending and descending patterns, as well as some seventh chords to fill the space and enhance the melody. It's a fun arrangement with lots of variations, and I hope you'll enjoy playing it. Let's get started!
In the contemporary arrangement, I've added many melodic, ascending and descending patterns, as well as some seventh chords to fill the space and enhance the melody. It's a fun arrangement with lots of variations, and I hope you'll enjoy playing it. Let's get started!
New River Train: Contemporary
Let's begin with "New River Train," the first song on our list. Like all the other songs, you will receive two arrangements for it. The first standard arrangement contains only the melody with a few instances of chromaticism as we move from one C position to the next. We'll be playing this tune in the key of C, but it's worth noting that you can use a capo to adjust the key up to the second fret for D or up to the third or fourth frets for E flat or E, respectively. However, we'll be sticking to the C position for this course. The basic melody is quite simple, without any curveballs.
In the contemporary arrangement, I've added many melodic, ascending and descending patterns, as well as some seventh chords to fill the space and enhance the melody. It's a fun arrangement with lots of variations, and I hope you'll enjoy playing it. Let's get started!
In the contemporary arrangement, I've added many melodic, ascending and descending patterns, as well as some seventh chords to fill the space and enhance the melody. It's a fun arrangement with lots of variations, and I hope you'll enjoy playing it. Let's get started!
New River Train: Contemporary
Let's begin with "New River Train," the first song on our list. Like all the other songs, you will receive two arrangements for it. The first standard arrangement contains only the melody with a few instances of chromaticism as we move from one C position to the next. We'll be playing this tune in the key of C, but it's worth noting that you can use a capo to adjust the key up to the second fret for D or up to the third or fourth frets for E flat or E, respectively. However, we'll be sticking to the C position for this course. The basic melody is quite simple, without any curveballs.
In the contemporary arrangement, I've added many melodic, ascending and descending patterns, as well as some seventh chords to fill the space and enhance the melody. It's a fun arrangement with lots of variations, and I hope you'll enjoy playing it. Let's get started!
In the contemporary arrangement, I've added many melodic, ascending and descending patterns, as well as some seventh chords to fill the space and enhance the melody. It's a fun arrangement with lots of variations, and I hope you'll enjoy playing it. Let's get started!
+ 36 more lessons
Reviews
3 results
Grobi112
Verified buyer
05/26/25
Good course, as always.
Great musician and a lot of stuff to learn.
BillSwick
Verified buyer
05/22/23
Excellent Course
Banjo Brew lays it out. You can go the simple route, the complex route, or somewhere in between. Combines traditional with modern and is great for taking the banjo to the next level. It does help to have some skill and understanding of chords before jumping in.
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