Today, I took a break from work on the forthcoming solo banjo album, created a new web site header which ties in with the album artwork, and moved much of this site’s content over to a new site at BenjiFlaming.com.
This change will enable me to post news items which are personal, geeky, or otherwise unrelated-to-solo-banjo music, without cluttering up this site. If you are reading this note on Facebook, be aware that there may be a few glitches as Facebook sorts out the importing of content.
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As promised a few hours ago, here’s the new video:
This is one of the new tunes written for the soon-to-be-released CD.
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Tagged: alternate tuning, banjo, benji flaming, contemplative, mellow, new age, solo, Solo banjo, video
I’m disappointed to say that the solo banjo CD isn’t quite ready today. The recording has been completed however, and the only thing holding up duplication is the completion of the cover artwork and liner notes – both of which will be finished this week. Allowing for duplication time, my hope is to release the disc on October 20th (which happens to be my birthday). It is possible, however, that the release may happen as late as November 1st. Regardless, the disc will be available soon.
In the meantime, I’ve recorded another solo banjo video, which I will be posting within the next couple of hours (pending the resolution of some software issues).
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With Monroe Crossing’s new CD, Heartache & Stone, set to release in a couple of weeks, I’m happy to announce that my solo banjo CD will following close behind. Specifically, my CD will be going on sale here at this web site shortly after midnight (Central Standard Time) on September 22nd, 2009.
The disc, which will be aptly (if unimaginatively) titled Solo banjo, is roughly half an hour in length, and contains 14 tracks, all of which are original solo banjo compositions. I’ve listened through the rough version several times with friends and family, and I’m very pleased with how the project is sounding.
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Tagged: alternate tuning, banjo, benji flaming, contemplative, Monroe Crossing, solo, Solo banjo
The year is off to a wonderful start! After a January/February tour of the warmer southern states, Monroe Crossing returned to MN for a week or two, before flying out to Tacoma, WA, for our first appearance at the Wintergrass festival (where I was introduced to a marvelously eclectic band called The Paperboys – who I’d highly recommend). We were also in-town this year to perform at Minnesota’s own Winter Bluegrass Weekend, which gave me a welcome opportunity to spend a bit of time with some of my very dear friends in the MN bluegrass community. Last weekend, the band was down in Rochester, performing the The World Beloved: A Bluegrass Mass three times with the fantastic Choral Arts Ensemble there.
The recording studio which my friend Todd and I have been working on for the last few years is tantalizingly close to being operational. A bit of paint, flooring, trim, and electrical finishing are all that separate us from a beautiful workspace. Then, of course, will come the task of convincing all of our equipment to cooperate after years of neglect. 
In February, with the practical challenges of recording in an apartment being what they were, and with a proper studio seeming so close to readiness, I decided to delay finishing my solo banjo CD. Over the last week or so, however, I’ve decided to push forward and finish the recording at home, impracticalities notwithstanding. I am now 2/3 of the way through the recording process, and I am optimistic about finishing within a week.
I realize that this news update has been a jumble of bland and disconnected paragraphs, and I’m quite grateful if you’ve read this far. I will attempt to avoid such ghastly writing in the future, by posting smaller updates with greater regularity and higher frequency. 
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With the weather in Minnesota being such as it is, I’m immensely grateful that Monroe Crossing is spending some time in warmer places. After a 2-week break in the beginning of January, we drove down to Florida, for our third time on the Bell Buckle Music Cruise. We’ll be getting off the ship (Carnival Cruise Line’s “Inspiration”) in just a few hours, after which we’ll continue with a series of southern shows – which will keep us out of Minnesota’s harsh winter until mid-February (by which time, one might hope, things may begin to warm up just a bit).
A warm greeting to any of my fellow passengers, who may have found their way to this news item because of my performance (or Monroe Crossing’s performance) during the ship’s “talent/variety show” on Monday night. As usual, I neglected to mention my web site, but I expect that anyone who is truly interested in the music will be able to find their way here somehow.
When I return home, I’ll resume recording my solo banjo CD – a process which is nearly halfway complete. It is my plan to finish the album artwork while I am still on the road, so that the CD can be duplicated and ready for full release in March (with limited prerelease copies being created by-hand in February). If nothing else, I’ll certainly be posting more videos to my YouTube channel over the next month.
Thanks for reading!
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I recorded this video about two weeks ago, but my laptop decided that it no longer liked my video camera, and so I was unable to transfer the footage into my editing software until today.
I’ve been performing this piece at each of the holiday shows with Monroe Crossing, and I feel that both the arrangement and my ability to perform it have matured considerably since this video was recorded, but I’ve no quick-and-easy way to record a new video at this point, and Christmas is just around the corner.
This is a more recent iteration of a solo banjo arrangement I originally developed and recorded on my first album, “For Brian”, back in 1995.
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Tagged: alternate tuning, banjo, bells, benji flaming, carol, Christmas, contemplative, mellow, Monroe Crossing, new age, solo, Solo banjo, video
An exercise in restraint. With the exception of the introduction and ending, this tune is composed from a palette of 9 harmonics.
For those of you who don’t play stringed instruments, perhaps I should explain that a “harmonic” (in this context) is a note which is played while lightly touching the string in one of several mathematically significant locations. The finger on the string prevents certain vibrations from occurring, while leaving other vibrations unobstructed. The result is that we hear a different pitch. If you want to know more, Google and Wikipedia are your friends.
The title of this tune is, of course, a reference to the queen of the fairies in Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”. And yes, this will be on my upcoming solo banjo CD.
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Tagged: alternate tuning, banjo, benji flaming, contemplative, harmonics, mellow, Monroe Crossing, new age, solo, Solo banjo, video
Last week found the band in Nashville, TN for the International Bluegrass Music Association’s annual World of Bluegrass week, which consists of a Monday-Thursday business conference, an award show on Thursday evening, and an indoor bluegrass festival over the weekend.
I’ve been attending this event each year since 1997, even during the many years when I wasn’t playing bluegrass music. One of many things which make the the bluegrass music industry so unique, is that it is populated almost entirely by good, honest, sincere people. I’ve made many very dear friends at IBMA, and I continue to make new ones each year. It becomes a bit like summer camp after the first couple of years.
This particular year was probably both the busiest and the best that I’ve experienced so far. Monroe Crossing had 10 “after-hours” showcases this year, which were consistently well-received. Many new doors seem to be opening for us, including the possibility of a European tour.
As always, please stop by Monroe Crossing’s schedule page and enter your zip code to see whether we’re going to be in your area any time soon.
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Tagged: IBMA, Monroe Crossing
Thanks so much for all the positive feedback on the first video! I’ll be posting videos at least once a month for the next year or so, so keep checking back for more (or consider subscribing to my YouTube channel).
This is my oldest solo banjo composition. I started writing it sometime in the ‘93 to ‘95 range. This video contains a number of embellishments not present in the original version, of course, but the core arrangement and melody have always remained the same.
As with most of the tunes I’ll be posting here, this will be on my forthcoming solo banjo CD.
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Tagged: alternate tuning, banjo, benji flaming, contemplative, double c, mellow, Monroe Crossing, new age, solo, Solo banjo, video
