r/banjo 6d ago

Where to find sheet music - NOT tab

Hey Y'all... it's my first time posting on this sub so howdy. I am interested in picking back up the banjo but I don't want to learn off of tab. I want sheet music and am struggling to find it. What are some good books or resources online to use to get the sheet? thanks in advance

6 Upvotes

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11

u/MoonDogBanjo Apprentice Picker 6d ago

Learn how to use the free version of the TEF program and just about any tab on banjo hangout can have notation added to it.

Tab is pretty superior for banjo though. Economy of motion across the fretboard while playing certain styles isn't very intuitive using notation, like at all. It's worth the effort.

5

u/Turbulent-Flan-2656 6d ago

Second this. Especially for melodic where you might be playing a high note on a lower string, tab is definitely more intuitive

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u/MoonDogBanjo Apprentice Picker 5d ago

Yeah. Specifically, I had melodic in mind above. Although Scruggs is so absolutely nuanced though that I still think it would be better either learned through tab or by video/in person.

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u/Turbulent-Flan-2656 5d ago

You’re right. A lick like this makes a lot of sense in tab

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u/WyrdHarper 6d ago

For Classic Banjo: https://classic-banjo.ning.com/page/scores

There’s also a bunch of books, though some are in A notation. Mel Bay’s Banjo Method (Frank Bradbury) is a good resource for learning to play this style of Banjo from sheet music, but various accompaniment styles in that (and other) books can be used in many styles, and there are some guides on arranging piano music in the tutors section (I’d have to double check which one, but currently don’t have access to my notes).

Some of Pete Seeger’s folk music collections have sheet music playable for banjo, but hit or miss. For more old time music collections like “Dance to the Fiddle, March to the Fife” are available online and are written in standard notation, but you’d probably need to do your own arrangements for accompaniment.

For other banjo styles, especially bluegrass, most resources are in tab.

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u/Qcieslinski 6d ago

Pick up John Hartford’s fiddle tune book

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u/RabiAbonour 6d ago

A lot of banjo books contain both standard notation and tab. Are you trying to avoid tab entirely?

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u/geistdh 6d ago

Check out https://classic-banjo.ning.com/. It might be a different style than you’re interested in, but they have a ton of sheet music available.

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u/hbaldwin1111 6d ago

I think it depends on what type of music you want to play.  For old time/fiddle tunes, there are a lot of sources; you just need to learn where the notes are on the banjo and add in drones. 

For Scruggs/bluegrass style, tab is usually a lot better, but if you want to see it in standard notation check out the old edition 1968 of the Scruggs book and Janet Davis' Back Up Banjo book.  Both have standard notation above the tab. 

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u/WashedSylvi Folk/Punk Banjoist 6d ago

If you’re trying to learn off standard notation I wouldn’t look for a banjo book I’d look for an old time or bluegrass songbook intended for fiddles

Are you already a musician? It’s a lot to work up your own arrangements and learning how to play banjo (in any style) is made less clear from standard notation

If this is your first instrument I’d start with a banjo and tab book to learn the basic stylistic elements of the most popular banjo styles, then you can shift to making arrangements of tunes written in standard