Hi. I'd love to help you with your project. I'm a stay-at-home dad experienced in copywriting and editing.
Writing samples from my banjo instruction book follow; (these are in the chatty, informal style that you requested.)
Choosing a Banjo
OK, so we’re ready to go banjo shopping! If you’re on a budget, you can check area pawn shops for a good deal. Always ask what the cash price is before you buy; they will always come down a little. If you’re unfamiliar with things like neck angle, action and so forth, you may want to take a guitar playing buddy with you. The main thing is to make sure you can push the strings down at the 12th fret and higher with some degree of comfort. Proper setup can sometimes fix minor problems in this area.
A somewhat safer bet would be to go to your local music store. They at least should be able to tell if a used instrument is going to be playable. They may even have an in-house repairman who can look it over and make necessary adjustments before you buy. Some of the higher-end banjo makers are offering some pretty good new entry-level banjos also.
If you want to go for volume and tone, check the weight of the instrument. If it’s pretty heavy, chances are it’s got a fairly decent tone ring inside. Lighter banjos are likely to have a tone ring made of pot metal or aluminum. A good brass tone ring will give you the projection you need to be heard over a band. If you just want to sit in the living room and irritate the cat, then it doesn’t matter as much. Oh, and make sure it’s a 5-string.
Other Stuff You’ll Need
Picks – You’ll need one plastic thumb pick and two metal fingerpicks. I don’t care if the plastic fingerpicks feel better – they’re no good. Try to get finger picks that don’t have kinks in them. This is sometimes tough, because music store guys tend to want to bend them as they stock them. When you get them home, Use needle nose pliers to carefully curve the band so that it fits snug around your finger. The bottom part should curve upward following the curve of your fingertip. They do NOT go on so that they cover your fingernails. That’s backwards. If you’ve got an old 35mm film container, they work well for storing your picks to help keep their shape.
Capo – A capo is a clamp type device that changes your tuning to a different key. It’s not a necessity unless you want to be able to play easily in different keys to accommodate fiddle players, vocalists and such.
Tuner – You’ll probably want to pick up an electronic tuner. The chromatic ones will cover all the necessary notes for banjo. You can also tune to a piano, guitar, pitch pipe, or tuning fork. These methods will be covered later.
Strap – If you want to play standing up. It should be adjusted so that the banjo is the same height that it would be if you were sitting and holding it in your lap.
Holding It
Sit up straight with both feet on the floor and your knees slightly apart. If it feels like a comfortable sitting position, then you’re doing it right. The body of the banjo should rest on both inner thighs with the back resting on your stomach. Your right forearm should rest just heavily enough on the rim or armrest to hold the banjo neck parallel to the floor. This will free up your left hand so that you can use it for playing rather than using it to prop up the neck. When using your left hand on the neck, the elbow should be relaxed and not held tight against your body.
Tuning It
The standard tuning for 5-string banjo is G, D, G, B, D. When holding the banjo in proper playing position, the string closest to your head is considered the 5th string. This is the shortest and the highest in pitch – your high “G” string. The third string is also a “G”, but an octave lower. The 4th string is your low “D”, and the 1st is your high “D”. That leaves the second string which is tuned to a “B”.
The 2nd, 3rd, and 4th strings are tuned like the corresponding strings on a guitar. If you can dial these in to your buddy’s flat-top, just tune your octaves and you’re ready to go.