September 2022 Issue

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The Tradition

Tom Mindte with his first mandolin (age 8)

Tom Mindte

By Tom Knowles

Bluegrass Musician And Recording Impresario I have known Tom Mindte since the mid-1970s when he…

The Artists

Photo by madison thorn

Greg Davis

By Chris Thiessen

Many skilled musicians just skirt the forefront of the listening public’s immediate recognition. But these…

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photo by Sandlin Gaither courtesy of Mountain Home Music Company

Bluegrass Power Couple

By Derek Halsey

The award-winning banjo picker Kristin Scott Benson and her husband, mandolin great Wayne Benson, are…

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Frank Poindexter // Photo by Katie Kidd

It’s The Music

By Sandy Hatley

Those lyrics were penned and recorded by North Carolina resophonic guitarist, Frank Poindexter, in 2004…

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Photo By kim brantley

Aynsley Porchak

By Wayne Erbsen

Any dyed-in-the wool fan of bluegrass fiddling will instantly recognize the names of such legendary…

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The Sound

Andrew Collins and the Isolationist’s Guide To Mandolin

By Dan Miller

Prior to the COVID lockdown, Canadian mandolin player Andrew Collins had spent the majority of…

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The Martin guitar after Neil Kendrick’s restoration. Inset: The Martin before restoration.

Kempa Guitars

By David McCarty

A New Guitar Brand From China Kepma Guitars is a Chinese company fresh to the…

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The Steeldrivers (left to right): Brent Truitt, Richard Bailey, Tammy Rogers, Matt Dame, and Mike Fleming.

The Falling Man

By Casey L. Penn

By Liz Hengber, Tammy Rogers, Jerry Salley Some songs demand to be written. That was…

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 A Martin Lost & Found

By Chuck Dunlop

It’s every picker’s nightmare scenario: having a treasured instrument stolen. That happened to me back…

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The Venue

The Band Kelly performing (pre-pandemic) in the John C. Campbell Folk School’s Festival Barn. Photo Courtesy of John C. Campbell Folk School.

John C. Campbell Folk School

By Vicki Dean

SCENIC NORTH CAROLINA CAMPUS STRIVES TO KEEP APPALACHIAN MUSIC, DANCE AND CULTURE ALIVE IN BRASSTOWN,…

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Photo by Bonnie Trogdon Dreamcatcher Photography

Little NC Towns Hosting Big Stars

By Sandy Hatley

For Dewey and Leslie Brown, seven is a lucky number. They wed in 2007. After…

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