Articles

Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine June 1984, Volume 18, Number 12 Good as Gold and fine as diamonds, worth its weight in waiting for …” The sounds that ring through the capacity-filled hall are familiar to the cheering fans. The sounds have been produced, recorded, and enjoyed for over 26 years. There have been several…

Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine January 1986, Volume 20, Number 7  He’s rarely played in public over the past two decades, and he’s not on many records, but Porter Church remains among the most eloquent of five-string banjo players. I may as well say it: in my opinion, when it comes to “golden era” bluegrass…

Reprinted from Bluegrass Unlimited Magazine January 1980, Volume 14, Number 7 The family band is a noble, long-standing tradition in bluegrass and traditional country music, extending back even further than the Carter Family, quite possibly as far back as the beginning of the string band itself. Today, the family unit is as strong as ever…

Published by MOC Press Mark O’Connor has written an emotional detailed account of his experience as a child musician. He first started on guitar as a six year old and began learning fiddle at age eleven.  He was a quick learner and at age twelve he won first place in the Junior Division at The…

Photos By Chris A. Courogen Paul Beard hasn’t always made squareneck resonator guitars. It just sort of seems that way to him after almost 40 years doing it.  “I’ve been doing this for so long,” says Beard, who built his first one in 1985, after a peak at the insides of the second hand OMI…

The phrase suggests a mystical or wizardly sort, surrounded by banjos and the tools used to bring them closer to the ideal. Marc Horowitz is THE Banjo Whisperer. While researching this story about Marc, everyone I approached (banjo players, designers, builders, and musical contemporaries) quickly responded with effusive praise. Marc’s daughter Leah Horowitz (an accomplished…