Banjo · Chapter 11 of 23

Clawhammer: The Bum-Ditty

Clawhammer is all downstrokes. The hand falls, the fingernail strikes, and the thumb catches the 5th string on the way back up: bum, dit-ty.

Clawhammer (also called frailing) is the oldest way of playing the banjo, and the sound of old-time music. Put the picks away: the back of one fingernail and the side of your thumb do all the work.

The hand

  • Curl your picking hand loosely, like a relaxed claw or a gentle fist that isn’t closed.
  • Let the middle finger (or the index, if that feels more natural) stand a little forward of the others. Its fingernail is your pick.
  • The thumb sticks out to the side and rests on the 5th string.
  • Hold your hand over the end of the fingerboard, where the strings are a little looser. That spot gives the round, warm clawhammer sound.

The motion comes from the wrist and forearm, as if you were shaking water off your fingers or knocking lightly on a door. The finger stays fairly firm; it doesn’t flick.

Bum, dit-ty

Bum (S)

On the beat, the hand drops and the back of the nail strikes one string, usually a melody note. It lasts a quarter note.

Dit (D)

On the next beat the hand drops again and brushes down across the top two or three strings.

Ty (T)

As the hand lifts, the thumb, already resting on the 5th string, pushes off it and sounds it, half a beat after the brush.

Count it “1, 2 and”: strike on 1, brush on 2, thumb on “and”. Two of those make a bar of 4/4.

Step by step

First the strike alone: four even strikes on the 1st string, one a beat. Then add the brush and the thumb.

In the last bar the strike moves to the 2nd string, then the 3rd. Aim the falling hand at the string you want; the brush and thumb don’t change.

With the chords

Hold each chord for a bar and keep the bum-ditty going. The strike plays a string of the chord; the brush plays its top strings.

Try it. Say “bum, dit-ty” out loud as you play the last exercise, slowly, until the thumb catches the 5th string every time without your thinking about it. That moment usually comes suddenly, after a few days of slow practice. Don’t speed up before it does.

Common trouble. If the thumb misses the 5th string, check that it is resting on the string as the hand falls, not hovering above it. If the strike sounds harsh, aim nearer the neck and let the wrist do the work. If your forearm tires, you’re gripping: shake it out and loosen up.

Check each one when it feels natural.

  • My hand stays curled; the motion comes from the wrist and forearm.
  • The back of my fingernail strikes one string cleanly (bum).
  • My brush catches two or three strings (dit), and my thumb catches the 5th string (ty).
  • I can play bum-ditty on G, C and D7 without stopping.

Remember

  • Loose claw, fingernail forward, thumb on the 5th string; play over the end of the fingerboard.
  • Bum (strike, S) on the beat, dit (brush, D) on the next beat, ty (thumb, T) on the “and”.
  • The motion comes from the wrist and forearm. Slow and steady comes first.
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