Awesome work UlfjagforsGreat video. :)Much love Kat

Blacks were considered not worth more than a dog. So I'd ahve to disagree with them being treated as bad on the same level. Its not even close.

This video is great! I found out not too long ago about the origin of the banjo. I knew it was, for the most part, built by African slaves in America that were basically recreating the African gourd instruments with which they were familiar. But this video really gives you the fascinating details to the backstory.

The New World banjo with African influenced music was spread to eastern USA during the first decades of the 18th century. The first written acount in US is from 1732 if I do not remember the exact year wrong.Mandolins came into the Amrican music life at the end of the 1900 century by the large influx of italian immigrants. Already in the beginning of the 1890´s the banjo makers offered banjo mandolins in contrast to the original Italian egg shaped all wooden mandolins. Ulf Jagfors

By no means the Irish had anything to do with BG mandolins or banjos. The banjo is an New World invention based on constructions both from African skin head lutes and Europen, mostly Portuguese and Spanish small lutes. That happend in the late 1700 century in mostly the Carribian regions. Ulf Jagfors

No. no ,no.You have got it very wrong. I urge you to make a little bit more study on all information on the net about American music history. The Irish indeed contributed a lot to the development of the minstrel and old-time music during the mid 1900 century that were the forrunner to the BlueGrass music. BG music was more or less single handed invented by Bill Monroe when he established the now standard BG setting in his band Bluegrassboys around 1946.Ulf Jagfors

i have to also add to my last comment that the Ulster Irish were in America by the 1600's and they brought blue grass banjo ,mandolin

i would have to disagree on it being brought over by african slaves,have you done research on the irish slaves? the South is connected with ulster Ireland and the speech music and everything! they still play bluegrass music there....im not trying to take anything away from the Blacks but i dont wont anything taken away from the Irish either! after all we were treated poorly as bad as the blacks by the English

Wow I am very impressed on how a White Man actualy told true history onAfrican Culture experience in America pertaining to the Musical heiritage in this Country Wow.

This is something special. I learned a lot about a subject I thought I knew all about. Thanks for putting it up.

Scott Didlake was a talented man. I worked with him on the Choctaw Reservation in Mississippi. He introducted me to the Macintosh in 1986. He did some work on hyper linking documents.

love this

Hi Ulf - I want to thank you for posting this amazing video.Barbara

There are many sources for gourds in USA.I think there is also a gourd society. Google on key word GourdUlf

Scot talked about growing gourds for banjos. Is there any information available on that? Where would one find that? This is such an amazing video.

In my colletion of African string instruments I have both samples of Ngoni, Huddo, Molo and Xhalam lutes. They are in principle (number of strings can differ)the same instruments and also have to a certain degree the same repertoire. Xhalam playing can be seen in one of my youtube clips. I have also meet many times, last time one month ago, in US Cheik Hamal Diabate, a very skilled Malien Ngoni and gourd banjo lute player. I bought my Ngoni from Mali by him.Ulf

Nkoni from Mali and other regions of West Africa is a stringed instrument you should check out !!!Bassekou Kouyate are a really good new group touring who have 4 Nkoni players.They are hot

Scott was a passionate artist and researcher. He is already part of the history of North American folk. You don't have to like it, believe it or admit it. It is a fact. By the way, both of the words you wrote are misspelled, so what are you? A scholar?

Sinful Tunes and Spirituals by Dena J.Epstein, ISBN: 0-252-00520-1 1977

Where can I find the Deena epson book he refers to