Existing comment:
Banjo, about 1850-1875
The banjo is a uniquely American musical instrument with African origins.
The banjo is an adaptation of several West African instruments, featuring a skin head and a hollow body. Early American banjos were constructed with gourd bodies and four gut or vine strings. The addition of a wooden rim and a fifth string in the mid-nineteenth century altered the way the banjo was played and the sound it made -- familiar today in bluegrass and country music. |