Articles
IssueM Articles
Annie Savage
And the Free-Strings Curriculum Several weeks ago I received a press release from Turnberry Records announcing their launch of a new “Education Division.” The release explained that the first launch of the new division was called “Free Strings—Join The Jam.” They stated that in initiating this curriculum they were partnering with fiddler Annie Savage, veteran performer…
Losing Game
David Peterson, a bonafide purveyor of the bluegrass spirit, delivers just that in his latest work Losing Game. There are stories of heartbreak, the country life, and many other facets to this album. Within all those things we find Peterson giving a pure transmission of Monroe’s spirit paired with the essence Hank Williams, while the…
Hold Back The Dawn
IBMA 2022 Momentum Instrumentalist of the Year Nominee Anthony Howell from Mississippi is one of those versatile artists who can fulfill a variety of roles in a bluegrass setting. He released an independent recording in March 2023, which contains fourteen tracks. He plays all the instruments and wrote three instrumentals. If that isn’t enough, he…
Greensboro’s Bass Violin Shop
If you take an ailing bass fiddle into Bob Beerman’s shop for repairs, you feel as if you are entering an operating room. The instrument is gently laid upon a table in the back room then one employee examines the patient while another hovers with a clipboard jotting down its diagnosis. Beerman is the veteran…
Petersens
Photo by Aaron Clark Photography Some family musical partnerships are marked as much by personal conflict as by blood harmony. This is not the case with The Petersens, a family bluegrass band that has become a favorite in Branson, Missouri. With four siblings as the core of the band, anchored by their parents, both musicians,…
Crooked Tree
by Molly Tuttle and Melody Walker “It’s about embracing what makes us unique,” said Molly Tuttle of her hit song, “Crooked Tree,” which, among other accolades, is this year’s winner by a large margin in the Bluegrass Unlimited Reader’s Poll (Favorite New Song Category). Cowritten by Tuttle and Melody Walker (Front Country), “Crooked Tree” is the…