The Sound
Tunefox
The Future of Tablature Photo by Ryan Leach Learning to read music outside of the realm of classical or jazz music on instruments such as guitar, mandolin, banjo and Dobro, more often than not, involves learning how to read tablature. Tablature is a written notation where the lines on the page represent the strings of…
Everybody’s Got A Line
Deeply relatable in lyric yet firmly fun in its delivery, “Everybody’s Got a Line,” written by Chris Jones and recorded by Chris Jones and The Night Drivers (Make Each Second Last, 2021), is a standout relationship song in today’s endless sea of relationship songs. Written early in 2021, the song became a milestone for Chris…
Aleyas Mandolins
A Gem From Coal Country’s Deep Heart Photo by Callie Thomas In today’s hyper-competitive custom luthier marketplace, excellence is only the price of admission for new mandolin builders. For an emerging luthier, getting noticed under the blinding luminescence of top-tier builders like Heiden, Kimble, Ellis, McClanahan and more means building instruments early in your career…
Oh, Me Of Little Faith
In my continuous journey to find and highlight exceptional songwriting, I arrived this month on “Oh, Me Of Little Faith,” a song written for the contemporary Christian genre and successfully introduced to bluegrass fans by the husband-and-wife team of Wayne Benson (Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out) and Kristin Scott Benson (The Grascals) as part…
RBR Entertainment Rises Like A Phoenix
A new record label launched by longtime songwriting collaborators Billy Droze and Chris Myers is turning heads in the bluegrass music industry. RBR Entertainment is churning out hits on bluegrass radio these days by an ever-growing roster of talented newcomers and established veterans. Droze is the label’s creative director and founder who produces projects at…
Learning By Ear Course
Learning how to play a musical instrument by ear is a skill that is vital to your development as a musician in traditional genres of music. While reading music can also be a valuable skill, in most forms of traditional music—folk, old-time, bluegrass, Celtic, blues—the music is historically handed down aurally. Musicians who participate in…