Premier banjo player Béla Fleck is considered one of the most innovative pickers in the world and has done much to demonstrate the versatility of his instrument, which he uses to play everything from traditional bluegrass to progressive jazz. He was named after composer Béla Bartok and was born in New York City. Around age 15, Fleck became... [+] Read More

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CEILÍ MOSS is an acoustic folk-rock band from Belgium. We have often been described by the press or by fans as acoustic Pogues. “Crazier than Perry Rose, not as orthodox as Shantalla, more eccentric than MacRahl”, a concert review once said. Another frequently heard comparison is Ambrozijn. We like to define ourselves as... [+] Read More

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One of the most melodic guitarists in Celtic music, Dan Ar Bras has recorded as a soloist and with innovative Celtic harp, bagpipe and flute player Alan Stivell. A pioneer of electric folk in the early 1970s, Ar Bras has continued to explore the textural possibilities of electric and acoustic guitar.

Ar Bras hooked up with Stivell... [+] Read More

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David Grisman is normally associated with the bluegrass wing of country music, but his music owes almost as much to jazz as it does to traditional American folk influences. Because he couldn't think of what to call his unique, highly intricate, harmonically advanced hybrid of acoustic bluegrass, folk, and jazz without leaning toward one idiom or... [+] Read More

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Although he is proficient with a variety of stringed instruments, Norman Blake is famous for his acoustic guitar skills -- he was one of the major bluegrass guitarists of the '70s. Blake came into view in the late '60s, when he began performing as a sideman with artists as diverse as June Carter and Bob Dylan. During the '70s, he began a solo... [+] Read More

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In the liner notes of his 1994 debut album, Nahoo, Scotland-born and Brazil-based keyboardist, vocalist, and composer Paul Mounsey explained his musical approach: "I have always been struck by the inherent groove in many Scottish folk tunes. Nahoo is an attempt to present this folk tradition using contemporary pop styles other than conventional... [+] Read More

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French guitarist Sylvain Luc has honed his jazz improvisations since the 1980s, when he first discovered jazz as a teenager. He studied at the prestigious Academy de Bayonne as a child, mastering the guitar, cello, violin, and mandolin, but jazz shed a different light on Luc's musical ambitions. He spent time with the Bubble Quartet, discovering... [+] Read More

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One of the most influential bluegrass acts of the '70s -- as well as one of that decade's most popular country artists in Europe -- Country Gazette blended bluegrass with country-rock and, in the process, sowed the seeds for the newgrass movement of the '80s. The Los Angeles-based band was originally formed in 1971 by fiddler Byron Berline,... [+] Read More

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Formed in 1973, the original lineup of the Lost & Found bluegrass band consisted of bass fiddler Allen Mills, banjo player Gene Parker, mandolin player Dempsey Young and guitarist Roger Handy. The band became quite popular playing bluegrass festivals, with Mills' exceptional songwriting contributing much to the group's fame; "Love of the... [+] Read More

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The McPeak Brothers were a popular bluegrass trio from Wytheville, VA, comprised of banjo/guitar player Dewey, bassist/guitarist Larry and guitarist/lead vocalist Mike. Their older brother Udell broke into music first when he joined the Lonesome Pine Fiddlers during the 1950s. In 1963, he, Dewey and Larry formed the first version of the McPeak... [+] Read More

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Tony Rice is one of bluegrass' most inventive flatpicking guitar players. Although he's displayed a mastery of the genre's traditions, Rice set the standard for more contemporary styles. A former member of the Bluegrass Alliance, the David Grisman Quintet, J.D. Crowe's New South, and the Bluegrass Album Band, Rice has continued to reflect his... [+] Read More

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