The banjo can feel overwhelming due to the number of tunings players are expected to learn. Unlike piano, saxophone, and to some extent guitar, the banjo utilizes well over 50 different tunings. One of the reasons we use different tunings is because of the 5th string drone, or ‘chanterelle’. This string colors and limits what is possible in a single tuning. To get around this, banjo players have cleverly developed tunings of every different mood and cast. When you learn the banjo, it’s like playing 50 instruments in one.

Imagine a living atlas that maps any banjo tuning imaginable. What if it were online and available on all devices: desktop, mobile or tablet? What if it also showed you how scales are built? Maybe it could also show you all of your diatonic chords in any tuning and key. That is what Banjonomicon is: a banjo fretboard visualization tool I built from scratch.

The Problem: