Notes & Queries – February 2026

Q: I love seeing the old black & white archival photos of bluegrass from the days of old. In the early 1980s, while living in Los Angeles, I met and befriended Marshall Freedland, and we shared our love of bluegrass music and artists. He told me he had a wealth of photos that he took, starting in the 1960s. He sent me extraordinary photos that he took, a few of which I framed and hung up. I lost track of him, but often wondered if his photo archive went somewhere public (hoping it did). I also wonder if you know him and if Bluegrass Unlimited has ever used his photos, or did a story on him. Paul Kovac, via email. Marshall Freedland, a Philadelphia native and early bluegrass proponent in Vermont, pictured alongside his photographs of mandolin legends Jesse McReynolds (top) and Bill Monroe (bottom). Freedland’s photos of McReynolds and Monroe were taken in 1980 at an undisclosed festival and are shared courtesy of Mark Greenberg. The photo of Freedland, dating back to the late 1