Antique Banjos

An aged and dusty banjo in need of some attention was recently delivered to the BRC workshop. The instrument had been in the owner`s family for decades but seldom played for many years. The blank peghead of the mystery banjo bore no identifying features. Upon closer inspection, the well-preserved instrument proved to be fascinating.

Inside the pot, the wooden strut rod bore an unmistakeable factory stamp that revealed the 4-stringer was an original Vega instrument manufactured in Boston, Massachusetts.

Serial numbers stamped on the strut rod of the instrument helped to confirm that the instrument was manufactured circa 1924.

These identical numbers also appeared on the inner pot rim documenting that the vintage banjo was still composed of its original factory matching parts.

Another stamp on the truss rod designated that the instrument was a Style N model.

For further background information on the rich history of the Vega banjo line, enter Vega in the BRC website search engine and tap Enter.

From the BRC: Enjoy your banjo heritage and the story it tells.

The 6 and 7 string antique zither musical instrument is sometimes called the “English banjo” compared to its 5 string American cousin.  In 1846, William Temlett designed a 6 string banjo with a short “thumb” string on the neck in his Brooklyn, NY, shop.  Temlett patented a 7-stringer in 1869 and named it his “zither-banjo” while claiming to be its inventor. The successful  American concert banjoist Alfred D. Cammeyer relocated to London in 1888 and popularized the zither banjo to eager British audiences. In 1893, the Essex & Cammeyer partnership began marketing their brand of zither banjos which were manufactured by the Temlett, Weaver, Wilhurst, and Windsor factories.

The BRC mailbox recently received a query from a musician in the US who just bought what he believed was a 7 string banjo from an acquaintance who had purchased the instrument years previously while living briefly in India. The mysterious instrument proved to be the English permutation of a 5 string American banjo. The peg head documented that the instrument was marketed by Robert J. Heath & Sons who were musical instrument sellers in Wales, UK. This family firm was listed in local trade directories from 1884 to 1967. Its shops were located at 51 Queen St. in Cardiff and at 70 Taff St. in Pontypridd. The multi-generational enterprise was affiliated with a musical instrument factory in London.

Boston banjo scholar Jim Bollman graciously examined several photos of the instrument and reported: Hi Barry- This is a British zither banjo, usually strung with wire and gut (nylon). There’s not a lot of interest in these in the US, probably worth a couple hundred bucks to a motivated buyer (who will be hard to find). They almost always have a closed back and a tunneled fifth string. Cheaper models used guitar tuners to save a few quid (one tuner left unused) – these were usually played as a regular five string. Best, Jim

Somewhere on its journey, this unique zither banjo had a geared guitar tuning peg installed on the neck at the fifth fret to fine-tune the 5th string. Adjacent to it on the fretboard is the original drilled entrance hole for the 5th string to traverse a tunnel inside the neck up to the slotted head-neck junction where the string would exit via another drill hole and be wrapped around a nearby tuning peg spool. The guitar style peg head configuration left one tuning peg unused in the conversion to a 5 string instrument.

With a little TLC repair work, this English gem could be restored to a playable zither treasure. For  further information on the 19th century evolution of Anglo-American  banjo design and the trans Atlantic travels of another not dissimilar antique instrument, please enter “journey” in the website search engine. For an historical note detailing the 17th century arrival of the African banjo in the Western Hemisphere, please enter “banza” in the website search engine.

From the BRC:  Many thanks to the musician who kindly shared his fascinating antique banjo with our readership.

A local jam session picker, who is a discerning estate sale browser, brought an antique 5-stringer to the BRC workshop recently for some minor work. The instrument proved to be an A.A. Farland circa 1915 “Black Beauty” banjo. Alfred A. Farland (1859-1954 ) was an innovative banjo designer and skillful musician who performed a classical repertoire to much acclaim. He was a teacher and a musically progressive thinker. Although his name on the peg head mother of pearl inlay had nearly worn away, his signature appears throughout the features of this instrument that was manufactured by Rettberg and Lange.

The dowel stick (below) in this open back 5-string antique bears the name of the model, the price tag, signature of the designer, and location of the manufacturer.

The interior of the pot offers a photo image of Farland and his explicit guarantee that no metal tone ring is present in the architecture of his endorsed instrument. He firmly preferred and advocated a woody banjo tone.

The tailpiece is embossed with the initials of Alfred A. Farland surmounting an undated and abbreviated patent (pending) stamp.

Farland cleverly devised an internal cable-pulley system, so he could mute his banjo in mid performance. This device was operated by a thumb lever inside the rim which is absent in the below photo. The mute pad located below the bridge area of the head is also missing, but its supporting metal pedestal is still present. A black thread traces the course of the cable. For more details on this unique muting system, please Google “disassembled AA Farland mute” for a posting on the Classic-Banjo.com website to observe the integral parts this curious Rube Goldberg apparatus.

Farland was a very successful performer and wore a tuxedo when on stage. Visit YouTube to listen to ancient recordings of  “A.A. Farland plays the Carnival of Venice” which reflect his virtuosity. One of the archival sound files is very scratchy but clearly demonstrates his skills. The other audio clip has better quality but was evidently recorded later in his career when age and hand problems affected his digital dexterity. He was renowned for his proficiency with tremolo phrasings.

From the BRC: Enjoy