Explore every episode of the podcast Deering Live

In this episode of Deering Live we'd like to welcome back Deering Banjo artist Tray Wellington! Join us as Tray dives deep into the world of incorporating non-traditional tunes into your 5-string banjo playing. Tray is a master at pushing the boundaries of the banjo, and you won't want to miss his insights! Tray will also be discussing his latest album, 'Detour To the Moon,' which was just released on July 12th. Don't miss out what will be a fun and enlightening episode!

We're excited to feature longtime Deering Banjo Artist, Tony Trischka back on Deering Live. In this episode we are going to go deep into the creation of his new album, "Earl Jam: A Tribute To Earl Scruggs".  Listen to Tony play some tunes from the record and talk about the story of how it came to be.

Learn more about Tony's signature Deering Golden Clipper banjo that he is playing here: https://www.deeringbanjos.com/collections/deering-tony-trischka-model-banjos/products/tony-trischka-golden-clipper-banjo

We're delighted to welcome back the renowned melodic clawhammer banjoist Ken Perlman to Deering Live.

He'll be sharing insights and demonstrations on playing the vibrant fiddle tunes from Cape Breton and Prince Edward Island in the clawhammer style.

Additionally, we'll delve into Ken's latest book covering this fascinating subject.

http://kenperlman.com

Banjo player, singer, songwriter, percussive dancer, choreographer, and square-dance caller, Oakland, CA-based Evie Ladin returns to Deering Live to share tips and techniques for jams that may or may not be specific to old-time string band music.

https://evieladin.com

Dobro legend and ProPik player Jerry Douglas may not be known for playing banjo, but he is probably more qualified than most to talk about it. With an extensive resume to his name, Jerry has played with some of the greatest players to ever live.

In this episode, we get to pick the mind of a man who has seen and played with the creme de la creme.

Self-proclaimed Irish Bluegrass quartet JigJam is back on Deering Live to talk about their new album. 'Across the Pond', the songwriting process, and the unique Irish/Bluegrass crossover.

The band has also relocated to the US since their last appearance on the show, so we will find out all about it!

We are beyond excited to feature Bela Fleck on our next episode of Deering Live. Bela has taken the 5-string banjo to more musical landscapes than anyone else and always at the highest of levels. He has been nominated in more musical categories than anyone in Grammy history.

His latest project, released this past February, expands and explores George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue by paying homage to the legendary composer while redefining an American classic—just in time for its centennial.

Join us as we discuss Bela's artistic process, compositional approaches, his new recording Rhapsody In Blue, and more.

We are happy to welcome back Bennett Sullivan to Deering Live. Bennett is a fantastic bluegrass banjoist as well as great teacher. He is the founder of the online bluegrass banjo teaching side Daily Banjo Licks which delivers a new bluegrass banjo lick right to your inbox every day, with it broken down slowly and with tab in a video.

On today’s episode, Bennett will show us some of these licks and more so grab your banjo and watch the show!

https://banjolicks.com

Colton Crawford is the banjo player for high energy four-piece string band The Dead South. We catch up with him just before the release of the bands upcoming album to find out whats new, and to talk about his ever growing collection of banjos!

Hailing from Canada, The Dead South bring a sound, speeds like a train past that intentionally explores the grittier, rowdier spaces of the bluegrass world.

Colton is typically on the road with a Saratoga Star, White Lotus, or Good Time Two Deco!

Their original music spans 4 albums and multiple EP's and singles since 2013, with a new album to be released in February 2024.

Jayme Stone is a banjo player, composer, producer, and educator. On any given day, you might find him in his studio reworking a little-known hymn learned from a field recording, producing a session with musicians from Bamako or New York, creating experimental soundscapes.

Stone has developed a process of trawling for understudied sounds in the more arcane corners of the world to see how they’ll land in his musical universe. His many collaborators have included Margaret Glaspy, Moira Smiley, Tim O’Brien, Bruce Molsky, Julian Lage, Dom Flemons, Bassekou Kouyate, and more. Guided by his own aesthetic compass and a desire to let his collaborators “make the sounds that only they know how to make”.

Fellow musicians frequently seek Stone’s advice, keen to discover how he’s managed to craft a career that both hews closely to his creative vision and finds success in the world.

The always amazing Jens Kruger joins us to celebrate our 100th episode to answer your questions and to talk about anything and everything banjo!

We will also be inviting 3 guests to ask their questions to Jens live in the Deering Live studio, as well as hang out before the show goes live.

Deering Live is honored to host the Steve Martin Banjo Prize 2023!

Jamie and David from Deering Live will be joined by special guest Alison Brown as we reveal the 2023 Steve Martin Banjo Prize winners.

This episode of Deering Live is presented by the Freshgrass Foundation, The Steve Martin Charitable Foundation, and Compass Records.

Special thanks to Tom Adler ( @BanjoChief ) for the use of the Boone Creek video, originally filmed and broadcast by Kentucky Education Televion (KET). Filmed in 1977 at Diner's Playhouse, Lexington, KY, Thank you, Tom!

https://freshgrassfoundation.org

https://compassrecords.com

https://www.deeringbanjos.com/blogs/deering-live

Yasmin Williams hails from Virginia and is a multi-instrumentalist and film composer. She is best known on social media as @guitar.yaz where her 22,000 fans are constantly treated to beautiful and joyful renditions in her own unique style, often on her Goodtime Americana banjo.

Always smiling, Yasmin has received critical acclaim from numerous major publications including The New York Times, Pitchfork, Rolling Stone, and others. Yasmin was also listed as one of the “25 New and Rising Artists Shaping the Future of Music in 2023” by Pitchfork.

For more information https://www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com/biography.

Rex McGee is one of the most creative and technically able players of the 5-string banjo alive today, though his non-musical career as a pharmacist has kept him largely anonymous from a larger audience.

Rex McGee is known by 3-finger style banjo players all over the world as a leading innovator for the instrument. He holds a high reputation amongst his musical peers and this extends to other instruments including fiddle and guitar. His performance skills are complimented by his creative composing and sought-after teaching skills.

He has played a number of the most prestigious performing arts centers and festival stages in the country including Telluride and Merlefest, and festivals in Canada and Ireland.

There is a cult following for his 2001 record “24 Creations For Solo Banjo”. An incredible piece of work that is a must-listen for any fan of modern acoustic instrumental music and showcases what a solo 5-string banjo can really do.

Rex was a mentor for 3-finger banjo wiz Ryan Cavanaugh. Ryan says ”I wouldn’t be the player I am today if it weren’t for him.”

This week on Deering Live, we're excited to introduce you to the incredible talent of Gabe Hirshfeld, a prominent 5-string banjo player hailing from the Boston area.

Beyond his remarkable banjo performances in the Boston scene, Gabe is also renowned for his expertise in banjo setup and holds a profound knowledge of the instrument's history and intricacies.

Join us for a captivating conversation with Gabe, where you can bring your banjo-related inquiries, as he's sure to offer valuable insights and expertise.

This week we will be talking all things New Orleans tenor banjo with our very own Director of Marketing, David Bandrowski. We will talk about his beginnings as a tenor player in New Orleans, the role of the instrument in jazz, as well as other genres. We will even dig into a few fundamental lessons on the instrument.

David also has a phenomenal album out called French Onion Superman which is well worth checking out if you want to hear New Orleans jazz banjo in action.

So if you are interested in New Orleans Tenor Banjo and don’t know where to start…start here!

Head over to davidbrandrowski.com to learn more.

We are excited to feature Deering Banjo artist and 2023 IBMA Banjo Player Of the Year Kristin Scott Benson back on Deering Live to talk about Up The Neck backup playing.

Kristin is one of the best straight-ahead bluegrass banjo players that has ever played the instrument and she is a fantastic teacher so don’t miss out on this opportunity to listen to her play and talk about what she does.

In this week’s show we’ll be talking with Chris Coole about some clawhammer banjo techniques to bring your playing to another level. 

These techniques will help you create and play different rhythms other than the standard bump-ditty rhythm. We’ll also be talking about the new recording that is coming out from his band the Lonesome Ace Stringband. Be sure to tune in!

This week on Deering Live we are featuring Graham Sharp from the Steep Canyon Rangers. We will be diving into ways to use the 5-string banjo to enhance/support a song. The 5-string banjo is too often focused on being a lead instrument but it also can provide a great texture for a singer or other lead instrument to play on top of. Be sure to watch and pick up some great ideas!

This week on Deering Live we're really happy to feature Chris Pandolfi. Chris is a founding member of the Infamous Stringdusters, a group that has been bringing music that features bluegrass music instrumentation to audiences far beyond the confines of traditional bluegrass, and who won the Grammy award in 2018 for Bluegrass Album Of The Year. As well as playing in the Stringdusters, Chris is busy with his solo musical projects, producing other bands, and hosts a fantastic podcast "Inside The Musician's Brain" (of which Deering is a proud sponsor). Chris has also written extensively on the state of bluegrass and in 2011 he delivered a keynote speech at the IBMA World Of Bluegrass. Chris is also a proud endorsing artist of our ProPik Heritage picks!

With the Americana Folk gathering just around the corner, we invite George Grove, Jens Kruger, and our very own Greg Deering to talk about this year's event.

During the conversation, we will undoubtedly have great fun sharing stories, memories of previous camps, as well as discussing the 2023 camp and the Kruger Brothers concert that Greg Deering will be hosting!

Click here for more info! https://blog.deeringbanjos.com/kruger-brothers-americana-folk-gathering-concert

This week we are excited to feature award winning banjoist and Compass Records founder Alison Brown on Deering Live. In this episode Alison will demonstrate different ways to play blues tunes on the banjo with different soloing and comping ideas. We’ll also be talking about Alison’s new record that came out this past May called “On Banjo” and more! Be sure to tune in!

Cory Walker, banjoist for East Nash Grass—their new album Last Chance to Win is coming August 18th via Mountain Fever.

East Nash Grass is a supergroup of sorts... a supergroup of young side players for some of the most notable names in bluegrass.

The lineup includes bassist Jeff Picker (Ricky Skaggs, Sarah Jarosz, Nickel Creek), Harry Clark on mandolin (The Dan Tyminski Band, The Wooks) who received IBMA's Momentum Instrumentalist of the Year Award last September, Cory Walker on banjo (David Grier, Tim O’Brien, Jason Carter), vocalist James Kee (longtime host of the American Legion's Bluegrass Wednesdays), dobro player Gaven Largent (Dailey & Vincent, Michael Cleveland & Flamekeeper) and fiddle player Maddie Denton (2016 Grand Master Fiddle Champion + State Champion of 14 States.)

Ashley Campbell and Thor Jensen form a unique meeting of musical genres as the duo Campbell/Jensen. This week, they join us to talk about their new self-produced album, the joys of making stripped-back music together, and how their musical differences intertwine to create a beautiful sound.

Campbell/Jensen is currently fundraising for the costs of producing the album via IndieGoGo. If you like what you hear, please consider helping them out!

Mark Johnson is the creator of the Clawgrass style of playing clawhammer banjo which allows him to play in the clawhammer style in other genres than old time, such as bluegrass and more.

In this episode, Mark will play some tunes and discuss incorporating triplets and other licks in double tunings such as double C, D, and E. Be sure to tune in!

Ketch Secor is a founding member of the Grammy Award-winning Old Crow Medicine Show. Ketch is a multi-instrumentalist whose first instrument was a banjo but is also a fantastic fiddler, harmonica player, and more!

He has a deep understanding of American folk, country, and old-time music and is a dynamic entertainer. Among his many accomplishments, he might be best known for co-writing the hit song "Wagon Wheel".

https://www.crowmedicine.com

https://www.deeringbanjos.com/collections/goodtime-americana-banjos/products/goodtime-americana

International Banjo Champion Kyle Tuttle is shredding his way through the jamgrass scene. Since moving to Nashville in 2012 Kyle has shared the stage with many epic performers, most notably as a member of the Jeff Austin Band for 3 years.

Kyle has also worked closely with Jamgrass legends Larry Keel, Travelin’ McCourys, Leftover Salmon, Greensky Bluegrass, Billy Strings, and Railroad Earth. In addition to being seen around the jamgrass circuit, Kyle is a studio musician in Nashville, and recently produced the Chain Station album ‘Backroads’. Currently on tour with Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway!

Evie Ladin’s polyrhythmic clawhammer banjo style, resonant voice, and percussive dance have been heard from A Prairie Home Companion to Celtic Connections, Lincoln Center to Hardly Strictly Bluegrass. Known as a driving force behind San Francisco’s Stairwell Sisters, Evie has four solo CDs that feature her banjo playing and songwriting. Raised on fiddlers’ conventions and square dances, Evie’s playing is firmly grounded in tradition, while taking the instrument into new territory.

A popular instructor at many music camps, Evie is also a clawhammer banjo instructor for Peghead Nation . Join us this week on Deering Live to listen to Evie play, talk about her process, and to learn some fantastic clawhammer banjo tips!

We are happy to have songwriter, singer, 5-string banjo player, and banjo uke player Valerie June back on Deering Live. Valerie recently wrote a children's book that is published by Third Man Books called "Somebody To Love: The Story Of Valerie June's Sweet Little Baby Banjolele". Valerie will play some tunes on her banjolele, read some from the book, and talk about it's creation.

Joining her on Deering Live will be Marcela Avelar who created the illustrations in the book. Marcela is a fantastic artist, designer, and more. Her work can be seen in advertisements as well as album covers for musicians like Special K’s, Aloysius 3, So Brown, Wes Hutchinson, and Norah Jones. She also designed the stage for Norah Jones’ 2017 Day Breaks World Tour.

Valerie's energy has some of the most positive vibes you'll ever meet and listening to her play and talk about her book will send you back into the world with a smile on your face.

valeriejune.com

marcelavelar.com

We're happy to welcome Catherine BB Bowness, from the band Mile Twelve, back to Deering Live to give where she is going teach us about "Movable Harmonic Shapes" on the 5-string banjo.

These are shapes such as chord positions or intervals that you can move all the way up the neck of the banjo, thus opening up the entire fingerboard for you.

We will also talk about Mile Twelve's new upcoming release "Close Enough To Hear".

Be sure to tune in to watch this Steve Martin Banjo Award winner play and talk about the 5-string banjo!

Check out BB online - catherinebowness.com

Michael Miles is back on Deering Live to demonstrate and teach us about how rhythmically versatile the clawhammer style of playing the 5-string banjo can be and how this style can be utilized to play many different genres of music. Michael is a master clawhammer player and well-versed in many musical styles so be sure to tune in and learn.

During the conversation, Micheal discusses Latin rhythms and refers to a chart. To download the chart, please go to https://tinyurl.com/u6pjx9we

To learn more about Michael Miles, please visit https://milesmusic.org

Jake Blount is an award-winning musician and scholar. He is a recipient of the prestigious Steve Martin Banjo Prize, and a two-time winner of the Appalachian String Band Music Festival (better known as Clifftop).

He is a specialist in the early folk music of Black Americans, and his latest record, The New Faith, was released on September 23, 2022 as part of Smithsonian Folkways Recordings' African American Legacy Series, in collaboration with the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

“On top of being wildly intelligent and knowledgeable, he's also a killer musician and it's an incredible combo.” - Rhiannon Giddens

For more information about Jake, please visit jakeblount.com.

On this episode of Deering Live we will dig into the life and music of 5-string bluegrass banjoist Rudy Lyle. Rudy Lyle played banjo with Bill Monroe's Bluegrass Boys and made major contributions to bluegrass banjo but has largely been forgotten. Banjoist and member of Peter Rowan's Bluegrass Band, Max Wareham decided to help change this and wrote a book that talks about Rudy's career and banjo style and includes easy to read banjo tab of Rudy's playing.

Deering Live is honored to host the Steve Martin Banjo Prize 2022! Jamie and David from Deering Live will be joined by special guest Alison Brown as we reveal the 2022 Steve Martin Banjo Prize winners.

This episode of Deering Live is presented by the Freshgrass Foundation and Compass Records.

Larry Bellorín hails from Monagas, Venezuela, and is a legend of Llanera music. Meanwhile, North Carolina-based Joe Troop is a GRAMMY-nominated bluegrass and old-time musician.

Currently based in the Triangle of North Carolina, both men are versatile multi-instrumentalists and singer-songwriters on a mission to show that music has no borders. As a duo, they perform a fusion of Venezuelan and Appalachian folk music on the harp, banjo, cuatro, fiddle, maracas, guitar, upright bass, and whatever else they decide to throw in the van.

Deering Live's own David Bandrowski writes, "When recently attending the Bela Fleck's Blueridge Banjo Camp, Joe and Larry were invited to give a workshop and play finale concert. They blew away the audience, camp attendees, and camp instructors.

Mark is most well known for being one of the most in-demand bass players in bluegrass but he is also an outstanding clawhammer banjoist! In 2021 Mark put out a fantastic new recording with fellow old-time musician Bryan McDowell entitled GRIT & POLISH.

Listen to Mark and Bryan play and talk about working together, the differences between old time music and bluegrass, and more.

Enda Scahill is the primary banjo player with We Banjo 3. He is a fantastic Irish tenor banjo player and highly respected teacher of the tenor banjo. Enda offers a wonderful series of lessons on playing the Irish tenor banjo on his Patreon page, which we encourage you to check out.

Colton Crawford is the banjo player from Canadian roots music four-piece, The Dead South - A rock band without a drummer, a bluegrass band without a fiddler. Their sound, built on a taut configuration of cello, mandolin, banjo, and guitar, speeds like a train past polite definitions of acoustic music into the grittier, rowdier spaces of the bluegrass world.

Colton is a Deering Artist who plays both clawhammer and three-finger style, using a Vega Little Wonder and Saratoga Star as his main tools.

Colton can also be found regularly on Twitch, where he can be found covering metal songs on banjo. Who doesn't love that?

Making her long-awaited debut on Deering Live, Mean Mary James joins us to talk about her new album 'Portrait of a Woman (Part 1)'

Mary has a truly fascinating story and as well as being a fantastic banjo player also boasts guitar and fiddle in her resume and is equally skilled on all three.

This promises to be a truly entertaining episode!

We welcome back the 2018 Steve Martin Banjo Award winner, banjo player for the Grammy-nominated Grascals, our good friend Kristin Scott-Benson!

Kristin will be talking about what she looks for in a bluegrass banjo and the journey of tone that she considers when playing different banjos.

And we will have a special announcement at the top of the show!

Jake Sawicki is the banjo player for the self-described thrash grass band, The Native Howl who hail from Leonard, MI. Their 2016 release of "Thrash Grass" unleashed the newly-coined genre of the same name, combining the aggressiveness and intensity of thrash metal with the melodicism and precision of bluegrass.

Jake is here to talk about pushing the boundaries of how a banjo can be used, appearing on the TV Show "No Cover" and spending the last few months touring with shock rockers GWAR.

We're very excited to feature the longtime banjoist for Alison Kraus & Union Station, Ron Block, on Deering Live. When it comes to bluegrass banjo, Ron is simply one of the best in the business. His feel, tone, and timing drive the music that is rooted deeply in tradition but continues to push it into the future.

Ron has a new album coming out July 1st with Irish tenor banjo master Damien O'Kane called Banjophonics. We'll be talking about this album as well as digging deep into how he achieves his sound on the banjo.

Don't miss this episode of Deering Live. Listen to a true master of the 5-string bluegrass banjo play and talk about his style.

British clawhammer virtuoso Dan Walsh joins us on Deering Live to talk about his unique take on clawhammer playing, and whether clawhammer should be regarded as a technique or a genre.

Dan is a long-time Deering artist and if you are not familiar with him, he has a fascinating approach to playing banjo. This episode will be well worth tuning in for!

Trajan "Tray" Wellington joins us on Deering Live on the eve of his greatly anticipated solo effort, "Black Banjo".

In this episode, Tray talks to us about the inspiration behind "Black Banjo", and discusses his own experiences as a black banjo player in bluegrass music.

Michael J Miles is a composer and musician who grew up in the heart of urban Chicago and teaches at the infamous Old Town School of Music. His inner jukebox spins with 500 years of pop songs on late night radio, infused with conversations about poetry, politics, and singing around the piano with his Irish family. These songs turn into setlists, and compositions and as they say, the rest is history.

To quote his own site, "There are those who represent the American Songbook or one particular style of music. Michael J. Miles and his insatiable banjo cover the world songbook, and many musical styles. Recognized for his virtuosity and musical prowess, he calls it curiosity. Curiosity drives the day. The music he writes or arranges spins right out of the questions he asks."

Michael is an electrifying performer, educator, and bender of genres. You simply have to hear him play.

Deemed a "banjo virtuoso" by the Washington Post, Adam Hurt has fused several traditional old-time idioms to create his own elegantly innovative clawhammer banjo style, having been introduced to the instrument at age eleven in his native Minnesota.

A respected performer and teacher of traditional music, Adam has played at the Kennedy Center, conducted banjo and fiddle workshops at many venues around the country and abroad, and been featured on the cover of Banjo Newsletter. Since moving south in 2002, Adam has placed in or won most of the major old-time banjo competitions, including three first-place finishes at Clifftop, and he has claimed several state banjo and fiddle championships.

Max Allard is a gifted young 5-string banjoist in the 3 fingerstyle. He has been the winner of the 2018 RockyGrass Banjo Competition and the 2019 FreshGrass Banjo Award. He performs as a solo artist, in a duo with his brother Otto Allard, and has toured the midwest with the Minneapolis-based progressive bluegrass band Barbaro.

Max has a new album out called "Odes / Codes" that was produced by banjoist Jayme Stone. He is an extremely good young banjo player. He is currently studying composition at the prestigious Oberlin Conservatory.

"A new mature and poetic voice on the 5 string banjo. Beautiful compositions and a very nice touch.” — Béla Fleck

Our good friend Hank Smith returns to Deering Live this week, where we will discuss composing non-bluegrass music on 5 string banjo and tonality.

Hank is a Deering artist and plays a Deering Maple Blossom. He also puts the "Hank" into 'Hank, Patty & the Current', who are one of our favorite bands!

Detroit Brooks is one of New Orleans' top session and touring guitar and banjo players on the scene. He has toured around the world and recorded or played musicians such as Dr. John, Dr. Lonnie Smith, Donald Harrison, Charmaine Neville, and many more.

Detroit is deeply concerned with keeping the traditional music of New Orleans alive. He created the Danny Barker Festival which celebrates the music of Danny Barker and brings groups into the schools of New Orleans to teach about the banjo in New Orleans music.

This week we're featuring Tony Furtado on Deering Live. Tony has been away from the banjo scene for a while but in 2021 he came storming back with his banjo-focused release Decembering. Tony is a monster 3-finger style banjo player and has recorded with Alison Kraus and many others.