We are absolutely ecstatic to announce that our newest course, “On Banjo with Alison Brown,” is officially here! As of 9 am PT, the course is officially live and open to all students.

As one of the most multi-faceted minds on today’s roots music scene, every one of Alison’s endeavors is marked by innovation, intelligence, and grace. As a banjo player, she has thrown out the textbook when it comes to how the banjo is played, and the result is a sound that blends the rugged drive of bluegrass with the harmonic sensibilities of jazz, earning vast acclaim and a GRAMMY award in the process.

Alison took an unusual path to becoming an internationally recognized banjoist. After completing her undergraduate studies at Harvard University and receiving an MBA from UCLA, she pursued a career in investment banking. But, she missed the bluegrass music she’d grown up playing in Southern California so much that when Alison Krauss called looking for a banjo player, she made the decision to give up her Wall Street career to pursue music. She toured with Alison Krauss and Union Station, and Michelle Shocked before forming her own group, The Alison Brown Quartet, in 1993.

Since that time, Alison and her band have been winning over traditionalists and mainstream music fans alike with her unique style. They have toured extensively throughout the US and abroad with stops at some of music’s most prestigious venues including The Kennedy Center, Newport Folk Festival, Telluride Bluegrass Festival, MerleFest, New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, Philadelphia Folk Festival, FreshGrass, The Cambridge Folk Festival (England), Celtic Connections (Scotland), Dublin National Concert Hall (Ireland), Galway Arts Festival (Ireland), and Verbier Music Festival (Switzerland). The band has also traveled to Central and South America at the invitation of the US Information Agency and to Japan as Friendship Ambassadors on behalf of the Nashville Mayor’s office to celebrate a new sister city relationship between Kamakura, Japan and Music City.

Alison has recorded 12 critically-acclaimed solo albums and has received a GRAMMY and multiple GRAMMY nominations. She has also received the USA Artists Fellowship in Music and a Distinguished Achievement Award from the International Bluegrass Music Association. Alison has been featured on CBS Sunday Morning, NPR’s All Things Considered, and in the pages of the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times, among many other publications.

Alison is also the co-founder of the internationally recognized roots music label Compass Records Group, which Billboard Magazine has called “one of the greatest independent labels of the last decade.” Compass Records Group oversees a catalog of nearly 1,000 releases across multiple label imprints, including Red House Records, Green Linnet, and Mulligan Records. Alison currently serves on the Board of the Nashville Chapter of the Recording Academy, on the adjunct faculty of Vanderbilt’s Blair School of Music, and as co-chair of the Steve Martin Banjo Prize.

Through her online banjo lessons here at ArtistWorks, you’ll learn the ins and outs of Alison’s distinct approach to the instrument and the intricate methods that define her one-of-a-kind sound and style. Alison has drawn from her extensive knowledge as both a professional banjoist and educator to create a comprehensive course of banjo lessons online designed to teach players of all levels how to play.

So, whether you're starting from scratch or you’re an experienced player looking to break new ground, learn with Alison and get an intimate look into her unique approach and style. Grow as a banjo player while simultaneously furthering yourself as a musician, and get direct guidance from Alison at every step of your musical journey.

SIGN UP NOW to gain access to Alison’s library of online banjo lessons, as well as our patented Video Exchange Learning® platform. Alison reviews each submission and records a video response, offering specific guidance to take your playing to the next level.

ABOUT ARTISTWORKS:

ArtistWorks online music lessons are recorded and taught by more than 40 world-renowned master musicians who not only have rich musical legacies but have a deep passion for teaching and sharing their knowledge.

Through the ArtistWorks platform, students have the unique opportunity to both learn at their own pace and also interact with and receive feedback from our faculty of master teachers in the form of Video Exchanges. ArtistWorks' patented Video Exchange Learning® platform allows students to submit questions to our master faculty in the form of a video, and our instructors then create personal video responses full of guidance, encouragement, and critical next steps to facilitate improvement.

Our teachers also provide notation, tablature, backing tracks, and other amazing supplemental materials to round out their holistic curricula in each course. Students can learn anything from acoustic and electric guitar to banjo, piano, mandolin, fiddle, saxophone, ukulele, how to sing—just about any instrument you can think of. And, our esteemed faculty can teach you how to play everything from bluegrass to jazz to rock to blues to classical and beyond.

Sample some free music lessons here and see what makes ArtistWorks courses some of the best online music lessons around!