In February 1995 we published the results of our Reader's Survey.

26% who've played for over one year
10% who've played for over 5 years
21% who've played for over 10 years
18% who've played for over 20 years
8% who've played for over 30 years
1% who've played for over 40 years

After fifty years of playing banjo your picks bond permanently to your fingers, making it difficult to fill out surveys. Some people started as children, others in their fifties and sixties. Several mentioned a long hiatus, sometimes as long as twenty years - but the important thing is, they picked it up again. So if your banjo is gathering dust in the closet, take heart. It may be years before you find the time to pay again, but try to stay in touch with the music world, buy lots of records, and above all Don't Let Your Subscription to Banjo Newsletter lapse!

Three-finger players ........................ 72%
Clawhammer players ....................... 12%
Both styles .................................. 16%

OK, there are a lot more three-finger pickers out there than clawhammer pickers, and a few of them are pretty militant about silencing the minority, but guess who's got more banjos? Those clawhammer players are hoarders. They're out to give Akira Tsumura a run for his money!

Instructional books ....... 85%
Teachers ................... 54%
Tapes ...................... 42%
Videos ..................... 29%

The most popular method was the instructional book in conjunction with a teacher, though many had used all four methods. The relatively low number of video users may be the reflection of the higher cost rather than of any inherent problem in the method.

1. J.D. Crowe
2. Bela Fleck
3. Alan Minde
4. Tony Trischka
5. Ralph Stanley
6. Sonny Osborne
7. Don Reno
8. Pete Wernick
9. Tom Adams
10. Bill Keith
11. Alison Brown
12. Allan Shelton & Tony Furtado (tied)

1. Janet Davis - Back Up
2. Jack Hatfield - Beginner's Corner
3. Robert Piekiel - Earl's Way
4. Harold Streeter - Arrangement Development
5. Murphy Henry - On The Road
6. John Wright - Clinch Mountain Banjo

1.........28%
2.........35%
3.........17%
4-9......11%
10.........3%
12-15.....4%
30-60.....1%
61-100....1%

Gibsons: (combined).... 37.5%

Mastertones
Scruggs model........... 11%
RB 250.................... 5%
Grandda................... 5%
RB 3....................... 4%

all others Combined .....12%

Various Stelling Models............. 13%
Various Deering Models............. 10%

Homemade............................. 4%
Goldstar................................ 3%
Whyte Laydie.......................... 3%
Ome .................................... 3%
Wildwood.............................. 2%
Tubaphone..............................1%
Bart Reiter..............................1%
Fender ..................................1%
Stew-Mac .............................. 1%

Those are the big vote-getters, although there is hardly a banjo imaginable that is not somebody's pride and joy. We heard of a lot of small scale builders; the trade is thriving and appreciated.

Guitar .......... 69%
Mandolin ...... 26
Fiddle ..........18
Autoharp .......13
Keyboard ......12
Bass ............10
Dobro ...........7
Ukelele ......... 2
Trumpet ........ 2
Tin Whistle .... 2
Dulcimer .......11
Harmonica .....10

There were Banjo-ukes and Banjo-mandolins, harpsichords, tin whistles and didjeridus, one accordian, balalika, can-jo, one "59 Bug-Eye Sprite?, two bodrhans, a MIDI, a guitjo, several tenor and plectrum banjos, a walzzitter, an omnichord, a kalimba, two fifes, an oboe, an ocarina -- you get the idea. The list goes on and on.

GHS............... 37.5%
D'addario......... 20
Vega...............15
Gibson............. 6
John Pearse ....... 3
Stelling ........... 3
Bill Keith ......... 2
Martin ............. 2
5 Star ............. 2

Snuffy Smith ............19%
Grover ...................15
came with Banjo ........15
Standard 5/8" ...........12
5/8"Compensated ....... 4
Custom Made ........... 4
Moon Bridge ............ 3.5
Shubb 5/8"............... 2

Dunlop .................. 46%
National ................. 32
Kyser ..................... 7
Ernie Ball .................7
Golden Gate .............. 3
Roy's Own ................ 2
Dobro Thumbpicks ....... 2

The National/thumb, Dunlop/finger combo was by far the most popular. One person uses an acrylic nail coating, and some of the clawhammer players, as I said before, were offended by the very question.