Articles

Q: The very first time I ever saw Dr. Ralph Stanley, it was late ‘60s to early ‘70s at a German club in Dover, New Jersey: Germania Park. There is NO info on this in ANY history. I would like to know what the date was if anyone has it. I did talk to Ralph…

Iowa’s Oldest and Largest Bluegrass Festival In Northeast Iowa, around 4 miles south of a small town called Strawberry Point (home of the World’s Largest Strawberry) and a few miles north of Backbone State Park, lies a picturesque 20-acre wooded site. During the last full weekend of July, this beautiful location is full of campers…

Rick Faris is a well-known, award-winning singer-songwriter. He spent 11 years as a member of Special Consensus, and his own Rick Faris Trio has traveled the US, Europe, the UK, and Canada. He recently opened his Faris Guitar Co. in Owensboro, Kentucky, where he focuses on his business and continues writing and recording.  This new…

The name Wayne C. Henderson is synonymous with the finest guitar construction in the world. Henderson has received many accolades over the years, and having a school of arts named after him is only befitting for a man of his caliber. The Wayne C. Henderson School of Appalachian Arts (The Henderson), in Marion, Virginia, is…

In early August, I accompanied my wife to Minneapolis, where she was planning to attend a family reunion. I remembered that Adam Granger lived in the area, so I decided to try to book a guitar lesson from him. Although I have been a flatpicker for many years, I have never been satisfied with my…

This is the sixth project from this Athens, Georgia-based duo of Jason Cade and Rob McMaken. Cade plays fiddle, and McMaken plays lap dulcimer and mandolin. Since forming in 2013, the two players have combined their love of Appalachian old-time music traditions with the historical contributions of many of the area’s older fiddle masters. To…