I had a great trip up to Ohio and met with Don Gardner, who made me this really nice 1860s era fretless minstrel Banjo. Here are a few pictures of his Shop and a clip of him playing it.

Hey everybody, I’m Zach. I’ve been playing music most of my life — banjo, guitar, bass, mandolin, and a few others along the way — and Bluegrass has always been the music that moves me the most. I built this community because I believe one thing absolutely: everybody in here knows something I don’t know. Maybe you’ve been playing 40 years and have licks I’ve never heard. Maybe you just learned your first roll last week and figured out a fingering that finally made it click. Either way, that knowledge belongs to all of us. This is not a place where one person stands at the front of the room and talks at you. This is a woodshed — and in the woodshed everybody works. Here’s what we’re building together: Members are encouraged to post songs, breaks, licks, solos, and anything else worth sharing. Students can find teachers and teachers can find students. Instrument builds are coming — we’re going to build a banjo and a fiddle from scratch and document every step. Theory and performance lessons for players at every level. And eventually we’ll hit the road reviewing instrument shops across Appalachia and beyond. Pull up a stump. The fire’s going. — Zach