The Frank C. Bradbury Methods

[Joel Hooks]

Following up on Jody's question about the different editions of Bradbury.

In 1926, Frank Bradbury published his first method book for regular banjo;

Bradbury Modern Method for the Banjo (Fingerstyle C Notation).  This is in the public domain and the copy was provided for me to scan by Marc Smith.

Bradbury also published a method for Plectrum which I do not have. (Does anyone have this?  I'll pay shipping both ways to scan it).

This is a great method, one of the best "period" methods in C notation, IMO.  When Marc first sent it to me, I found it intimidating.  Since then, I have worked through every page and find it excellent, but not quite as good as his later book(s).  The reason is that the later book is better graded with a more gradual introduction of skills and info. 

Nearly 50 years later, Bradbury retires from running the mailroom of an insurance company. In retirement he finishes up his second method, published by Mel Bay in 1967.

The Mel Bay Banjo Method (5 String) was published in two volumes. Volume one is pink, volume two is blue.  This seems to have been Mel Bay's scheme, he did this multi volume thing with his Modern Method for (plectrum) Guitar.  He put out a fantastic method for "Classic Guitar" (yep, that is "classic" not "classical") in 5 volumes... um, just kidding, actually three. (Volume one said "complete if 5 volumes" but it turned out that 3 was enough.) But seriously, if you want to learn fingerstyle Spanish guitar, this is a great method.

Back to the subject:

Both volumes are easy to find on ebay.  As of this post they go for around $5-$10 each plus shipping of about the same price.  Sometimes you can find them listed together.  And every now and then a lot is listed that also includes Walter Kaye Bauer's Jigs and Reels book (which I also recommend).

Each volume is 64 pages.

In 1992, Mel Bay reissued this method, combining the two volumes into one.  When they did this, they added a new title page and also messed with the order of the first few pages.  The results is that every subsequent page is one off (page 24 in Volume 1 is now page 25 in the combined version).  This now requires a page turn for any two page etude, exercise or musical number.

That is, until page 66.  I guess as they were setting the book, this is where someone said "ah, dang it, we messed up" and added a blank page that says "This page has been inserted to avoid awkward page turns".  I'm guessing that they did not really care about this book when they republished it.  They also, for some reason, put one of Bob Flesher's banjos on the cover with wire strings.

Mel Bay currently offers an "e book" version on their website for $20.  I bought this to have on my ipad and discovered it is just a scan (and not a great one) of the 1992 combined version... but they fixed the page order (meaning, if you print this the pages, front to back, are correctly ordered, with that blank page 66 removed).

Had I known this was just a scan, I would have scanned my originals and saved the $20.

I am just finishing up writing out a complete index of the Mel Bay method and will post to this discussion after I make sure it is correct. 

I have also been working on tracking down all of the source material that Bradbury ripped off for this later book.  It has been a fun exercise in detective work and had me doing some constant sight-reading.  I've tracked down most of the pieces and this list will be published in the 5 Stringer fairly soon.

[Jody Stecher]

Thank you, Joel. This is exactly what I was wanting to know.  I look forward to reading your 5 Stringer article to find out Bradbury's  sources. 

[Joel Hooks]

Quick correction... 41 years later. 

[Russ Chandler]

It's certainly a fantastic method in my opinion. When I wanted to improve my reading a couple of years back I got my local copy shop to print and spiral bind the original and went through it and it works really well.

I didn't know he worked in an insurance company. Extraordinary to think of musicians of the calibre of Bradbury and William Ball day jobbing in their mailrooms and warehouses.

[Richard William Ineson]

One aspect of banjo technique which, as far as I am aware, has never been covered in any banjo method is thumb tremolo on the fourth string with accompanying chords played on the treble strings. A fellow banjo enthusiast in the UK, discovered Hunter's unpublished treatise (two or three hand written pages) on this technique, inside a copy of one of Hunter's compositions, some years ago. We conjectured that it had been intended  to be included in Hunter's instruction book, but was probably rejected by the publisher as ' a step too far' and the cost of printing this material could not be justified, bearing in mind the limited appeal of this very difficult technique, to a very few potential customers.

[Jody Stecher]

Do you remember the technique and can you describe it?  Is this tremolo by the thumb alone with no participation by the index finger?

Richard William Ineson said:

One aspect of banjo technique which, as far as I am aware, has never been covered in any banjo method is thumb tremolo on the fourth string with accompanying chords played on the treble strings. A fellow banjo enthusiast in the UK, discovered Hunter's unpublished treatise (two or three hand written pages) on this technique, inside a copy of one of Hunter's compositions, some years ago. We conjectured that it had been intended  to be included in Hunter's instruction book, but was probably rejected by the publisher as ' a step too far' and the cost of printing this material could not be justified, bearing in mind the limited appeal of this very difficult technique, to a very few potential customers.

[Joel Hooks]

Very few banjoists in the US were able to make, or continue to make, a living with music alone.  Rarely were they able to have a family and continue with music as their primary occupation.  I've been keeping a list as I discover actual occupations of so called "professional banjoists".  Most of the names we know as banjoists paid their bills with regular jobs.

Some examples are:

George Gregory (composer of "L'Infanta March") worked in a music store, was accused of embezzlement or stealing, went on the run from the police, took his life with a revolver after being cornered by the police.

George Lansing worked as a clerk in a pharmacy and was also in the Army Reserves. 

A. D. Grover was an engineer (he met Lansing when filling a prescription-- Lansing was on break practicing banjo) and made his living designing coin operated vending machines and banjo related gizmos. 

E. M. Hall was a barber.

William Farmer was a plumber/pipe fitter.

Albert Bauer was a desk clerk at a hotel and then sold insurance for Western Union. Later was a Justice of the Peace.

Alex Magee was a plumber/pipe fitter.

John H. Lee was a shoemaker/cobbler.

Fred Van Eps made most of his living later in life making recording equipment as well as PA systems for US Navy ships.

Even Fred Bacon made his real money off of various inventions and patents including a horseshoe and lawn mower.  I think he also made horse buggy straps or buckles.

Bradbury went to work for the Connecticut General Life Insurance Company in 1941.  Back then, I've been told, there was something called a "pension".  Evidently this allowed one to stop working and do something called "retire" so that they could spend the last 10 to 20 years of their life slowly dieing of cigarette related illnesses.  I don't believe in such fairytales.  All I've ever known is something about pulling on bootstraps. 

[Joel Hooks]

The 1926 Bradbury method covers orthodox waggle tremolo, the 1967 method does not even mention it.

I've read accounts of Horace Weston doing the thumb tremolo thing, but that was the only one.  Interesting about Hunter.

The nice thing about the world we live in today is that "publishing" things is no trouble at all.  One could simply scan such documents and upload them here or on the Internet Archive. 

Or they could just sit on them with the very high chance that when they pass the documents will go right to the dump.

Richard William Ineson said:

One aspect of banjo technique which, as far as I am aware, has never been covered in any banjo method is thumb tremolo on the fourth string with accompanying chords played on the treble strings. A fellow banjo enthusiast in the UK, discovered Hunter's unpublished treatise (two or three hand written pages) on this technique, inside a copy of one of Hunter's compositions, some years ago. We conjectured that it had been intended  to be included in Hunter's instruction book, but was probably rejected by the publisher as ' a step too far' and the cost of printing this material could not be justified, bearing in mind the limited appeal of this very difficult technique, to a very few potential customers.

[Joel Hooks]

Here is an early article on Bradbury:

And this was from a Vega advertisement.  I think he is holding a M1903 Springfield, as cool as this image is, I believe his WW1 years were spent in a Marine Corps band playing a horn.

And this is a cartoon that was published in the Crescendo (if I remember correctly) of a scene taking place at the Guild convention. Bradbury and Lansing jamming... oh to be a spectator of that session! (Lansing is with the cigar-- I've read accounts that he was rarely without one in his mouth).

And here is likely the coolest record cover I've ever seen!  I want to reenact this image.

[Richard William Ineson]

It's a long time ago Jody, at the time I was pleased to see the Ms. and Hunter's handwriting, a connection with a really great banjoist from the past. The only other things I have seen like this are a Hunter Ms. of a banjo tune written whilst he was staying at Emery's Hotel in Brighton in the winter of 1903 and another unpublished complete solo, the name of which escapes me at the moment. As to the thumb tremolo, we didn't take it very seriously, but the instructions, as I recall, were to place the right forearm firmly on the rim of the banjo and arch the right hand over the strings, bringing the thumb into contact with the fourth string whilst moving it to and fro as rapidly as possible, and then playing the accompanying chords with the right hand fingers on the treble strings. We gave it half hearted try but did not pursue the technique. The tune used for this exercise was, I think 'Poor Old Joe'.

Jody Stecher said:

Do you remember the technique and can you describe it?  Is this tremolo by the thumb alone with no participation by the index finger?

Richard William Ineson said:

One aspect of banjo technique which, as far as I am aware, has never been covered in any banjo method is thumb tremolo on the fourth string with accompanying chords played on the treble strings. A fellow banjo enthusiast in the UK, discovered Hunter's unpublished treatise (two or three hand written pages) on this technique, inside a copy of one of Hunter's compositions, some years ago. We conjectured that it had been intended  to be included in Hunter's instruction book, but was probably rejected by the publisher as ' a step too far' and the cost of printing this material could not be justified, bearing in mind the limited appeal of this very difficult technique, to a very few potential customers.

[Jody Stecher]

Thanks!  And Yikes!  The only way I can get my thumb to do anything but flop around chaotically is to brace the ring finger perpendicularly on the vellum and wobble the thumb nearly parallel to the bracing finger.  That leaves the index and middle to make chords as the little 4th finger is now midair. I tried the suggested song and found it strange playing the entire melody on 14 frets of one string, although I know sitarists do this.  The results were so unsatisfactory that I got slightly better results playing tremolo with my index finger and plucking the chords with the 4th finger of the LEFT hand. 

Richard William Ineson said:

It's a long time ago Jody, at the time I was pleased to see the Ms. and Hunter's handwriting, a connection with a really great banjoist from the past. The only other things I have seen like this are a Hunter Ms. of a banjo tune written whilst he was staying at Emery's Hotel in Brighton in the winter of 1903 and another unpublished complete solo, the name of which escapes me at the moment. As to the thumb tremolo, we didn't take it very seriously, but the instructions, as I recall, were to place the right forearm firmly on the rim of the banjo and arch the right hand over the strings, bringing the thumb into contact with the fourth string whilst moving it to and fro as rapidly as possible, and then playing the accompanying chords with the right hand fingers on the treble strings. We gave it half hearted try but did not pursue the technique. The tune used for this exercise was, I think 'Poor Old Joe'.

Jody Stecher said:

Do you remember the technique and can you describe it?  Is this tremolo by the thumb alone with no participation by the index finger?

Richard William Ineson said:

One aspect of banjo technique which, as far as I am aware, has never been covered in any banjo method is thumb tremolo on the fourth string with accompanying chords played on the treble strings. A fellow banjo enthusiast in the UK, discovered Hunter's unpublished treatise (two or three hand written pages) on this technique, inside a copy of one of Hunter's compositions, some years ago. We conjectured that it had been intended  to be included in Hunter's instruction book, but was probably rejected by the publisher as ' a step too far' and the cost of printing this material could not be justified, bearing in mind the limited appeal of this very difficult technique, to a very few potential customers.

[Joel Hooks]

Continuing with Weston, not only are there accounts of him playing thumb tremolo, but there is one published piece that includes a variation that might be interpreted as such.

Frank Converse had this to say, "The narrow bridge also enabled him to execute a very novel, if not very musical, effect which he produced by rubbing the tip of his extended thumb rapidly to and fro across the strings, causing a buzzing sound which he would introduce ad libitum for various purposes".

[Joel Hooks]

Hmm, the meda embed does not seem to be working...

Here is the link to the Weston number. 

https://archive.org/details/142-horace-westons-home-sweet-home-stew...