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I picked the five-string fretless banjo because the name sounds cool. Mom surfed the web and got the directions. I used a pen, a pencil, and a ruler to make circles on the wood for the body of the banjo. I drilled two holes in the ruler. Then, I put the pen in one and the pencil in the other, and I made four circles. I cut the body of the banjo by using the chop saw, cut the two circles apart, and then I used the scroll saw and cut out the circles. Dad cut the neck by using the table saw. I put the body and the neck together by using nine flat-headed screws using an electric screwdriver and screwed in the screws. I sanded it by hand. I spray-painted it with purple spray paint, having everybody leave, and coated it lightly with paint. I had everybody leave so they did not get the poisons from the spray paint in their bodies. I could stay because I was wearing a special mask to keep the poisons from the spray paint out of my body. I made the tailpiece by drilling six holes in a 1-1/2 inch x 3/8 inch piece of metal. I attached the tailpiece by using one screw on the bottom middle of the tailpiece to the side of the body. Dad cut the drum head by using his pocketknife. Dad cut a coffee can rim off for my banjo. I put the coffee can underneath the drum head in the middle of the body. I screwed on the drumhead by using ten screws with washers and screwed them in with a hand screwdriver. I had to put the screws around the outside of the coffee can rim. I tried not to tension it too tight and also to keep it even. I put in the tuners by drilling five holes, putting in four circles and put the tuner parts in. Dad also made and attached the nut by cutting a piece of wire and hot-gluing it in the groove in the neck. Dad made the groove in the neck where the nut sits. Dad bought the parts by going to the music shop to get the banjo string. At Jay's Sporting Goods, dad got the fishing line. At Hafer Hardware Store, dad got the weed-whacking string, and Dad went to Home Depot to get the brads. I installed the strings by putting them through the tailpiece and then through the holes on the tuners, and then I twisted the tuners. I put in seven brads on the strings by carefully tapping in each brad. I took a 2-3/8 inch x 1/8 inch piece of wood, made five lines and took a file and made five grooves in it, one on each line. My dad, my mom and I made this project in 3-1/2 days. |
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To make the dynamics loud, I strum the strings harder. To make the dynamics softer, I strum it softer. When I use softer things like the palm of my hand or the flesh of my fingertips, the sound and dynamics are softer. When I use something harder like my fingernail or a pick, the sound is harsher and the dynamics are louder. To make the pitch higher, I put my finger on the strings close to the bottom of the neck, then I strum the strings above the drumhead, also known as the pot of the banjo. To make the pitch lower, I put my fingers toward the top of the neck on the strings and strum it above the pot. The thicker strings are at the top of the banjo. The pitch of these is lower than the ones on the bottom, which are thinner strings. I think the timber of my banjo is twangy when the pitch is high. I think the timber is metallic when the pitch is low. The timbre can change by what I use to strum the banjo strings. |