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Joseph Wilson

Music of the Mountains


A view of Apple Orchard Mountain in Virginia from the south

Perhaps the quintessence of American folk music, bluegrass has gone on to inspire countless musical genres in the United states and abroad. Characterized by the presence of fiddles, banjos, mandolins, along with upright bases and other instruments; bluegrass blends the musical styles of several American subcultures both immigrant and indigenous into a single musical art form unique to Appalachia- the region of Eastern North America defined by the Appalachian Mountains.

Apart from melodic elements, lyrics and choral arrangements play a major role in the genre with songs telling stories of heartbreak, loss, happiness, and thanksgiving to God. Ballads- songs that tell stories, sometimes fictional and sometimes historical- were common throughout the history of the genre and gave identity to the people who sang them as a means of recording their history from farmers to coal miners to railroad workers.

It's hard to say exactly where bluegrass came from or when it came into being because of the complex diversity of cultures who contributed to its birth. The Scotch-Irish (rebellion border residents from the frontiers of Scotland and England given land in Northern Ireland to combat growing Catholic rebellions there) immigrated to Appalachia early in American history and brought their instruments and ballad-style songs with them; but many of them also brought slaves from West and Central Africa.

Ralph Stanley performs April 20, 2008.

In fact, it's very likely the banjo itself- essential to the identity of bluegrass music- came from West Africa where storytellers and historians kept records of West African history through songs and melodies played on the instrument (and others like it). As the genre spread west-first to the Ozarks (a region on the border of Arkansas and Missouri) and later into the Great Plains, bluegrass music evolved into a multi-regional series of genres.

From this expansion, other cultures added their influence to the genre including Native American musicians in places like Oklahoma and Hispanic-Americans in places like Texas and New Mexico. Even immigrants from China and other parts of East Asia to states like California, Oregon, and Washington would have a hand in evolving bluegrass music to reflect the growing diversity of the United States.

As folk rock became popular in the 1960's, rock musicians began following the trend of country music stars in utilizing bluegrass elements in their sound; reviving bluegrass as a major musical genre but at the international stage. Since the 1960's; bands from as far away as the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand show their clear bluegrass influences- showing just how far the genre has come from the foothills of the Appalachians.

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