Comment by Joel Hooks on January 23, 2016 at 17:53

I love a good "minor jig."

Comment by thereallyniceman on January 23, 2016 at 18:28

Great stuff Carrie. You produce a haunting, yet snappy sound in the piece. The tone you are getting from the "Special" just gets better and better. A+++++

It is also good to see that you are wearing your lucky banjo hat... I must get one. :-)

Comment by Trapdoor2 on January 23, 2016 at 19:19

Most excellent! Every time I think Ellis hasn't got much to offer...there's another good one trotted out. I'm another fan of the "minor jig".

Comment by carrie horgan on January 24, 2016 at 8:31

Thank you chaps.  

Ian, I had to ditch the mittens - any mistakes are due to having 'hands of ice' :)

Comment by Jody Stecher on January 25, 2016 at 5:40

You started out good and keep getting gooder. You really brought this one to life. 

Comment by marc dalmasso on January 25, 2016 at 16:52

Do you play with medium strings , Carrie ?

Comment by carrie horgan on January 25, 2016 at 17:56

Thanks Jody.

Yes, Marc, I am using medium nylon 'Chris Sands' strings.  I wonder if I could improve my tone by adjusting my hand position - I am used to playing in a 'bluegrass' position with an arched wrist so it's difficult to change after many years.  

Comment by Jody Stecher on January 25, 2016 at 18:40

Why do you want to improve your tone? It sounds great. You could get a little more bottom end and hum by moving a half an inch towards the fingerboard. There's always a perfect spot and it differs according to the banjo and the strings. Too close to the fingerboard and you lose Ping factor. So just a slight move is all that's needed. Arch wrist gives the best tone on any string on any instrument. I can't do it myself. It hurts. But it objectively works.  That said, your wrist looks no more arched than mine. It's arched *some*.  Where's the problem?

Comment by thereallyniceman on January 25, 2016 at 18:59

I agree with Jody. Your tone is good and your wrist shape looks good too. The only slight change would be to keep the fingers close together. This allow much faster arpeggios, runs of notes with minimal movement. With open fingers you have to move them more when picking...  look at the way I was taught at 3 minutes 48 seconds into this: 

I hope it helps.. but it all looks and sounds fine as is. 

Comment by Trapdoor2 on January 25, 2016 at 19:23

Maybe you need a pair of "tone mittens".

I'm in the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" camp. Don't fall into the 'tone trap', your ears are the best and ultimate judge of what you like (and that is always "subject to change without notice"). You'll never sound like Jody or Ian or, god forbid, me. You're going to sound like Carrie. Frankly, I think you have that part spot on.

Mechanically, I do like fingers that are kept in close...less total movement, more efficient. Wrist arch is going to be one of those things that are particular to each individual. COMFORT is key...whatever the wrist and finger positions are.

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