This is another clawhammer banjo tune from my recent collaboration with fiddler, Esther Morgan-Ellis. We’ve been working for the last year on a group of new old-time tunes. We began performing them in a series of concerts beginning in Spring 2024, and we plan to release a recording of them soon. Here’s a performance of my tune “Stay Local” from our concert at the University of North Georgia, Dahlonega.
Here’s the tablature for the banjo part and a representative melody line.
Notes About This Tune
- “Stay Local” is a fast tune in A Dorian, played in Sawmill tuning (aEADE) using the clawhammer style.
- This is a slightly crooked tune. There’s no mixed meter, but the phrase lengths are a bit wonky: 11-bar phrases in the A section and 9-bar phrases in the B section.
- The A part phrases begin with the Galax Lick, a brush across the top four strings that lands on the 5th string played with the thumb.
- There’s an alternate string pull-off on in the second ending of the A part. This is a common technique in the Round Peak Banjo style and could be sprinkled throughout other parts of this tune.
- The drop thumb figures in the B part provide a nice rhythmic drive.
- The title of the tune refers to the stationary left hand position used throughout the tune. One thing I love about playing the banjo is the wide variety note choices available without having to move your fretting hand much. This is especially true given the many possible tunings for the instrument. You can do a lot on the instrument just by staying “home,” not traveling too far up the neck. Hence, “Stay Local.”
Give the tune a try, and let me know how you like it!