The Rebirth of Bluegrass: How Younger Generations are Influencing This Genre

Bluegrass gained its name and traditional format in the 1940s and 1950s through the work of such pioneers as Bill Monroe and the Stanley Brothers, but--as with so much American music--its roots extend deeper into the past. Like country music and rock-n'-roll, it emerged from older traditions of folk and string-band music, drawing from that tremendous cultural reservoir of the Appalachians. From that rich and fertile stew, bluegrass carved its own niche with dexterous interplay of acoustic guitar, mandolin, banjo, and fiddle, and layered, “high lonesome” harmonies.