The shrill din of teenage shrieks filling the Florida Strawberry Festival stadium Sunday night didn't sound much different from the one that might greet the Jonas Brothers. But the cheers were for Taylor Swift, and they were less adulation and more identification. ...more

March 2, 2009

A small group of musicians sat in the shade of a recreational vehicle Friday afternoon, picking, grinning, singing and talking as a stream of people entered the Thanksgiving Bluegrass Festival at Sertoma Youth Ranch. ...more

November 29, 2008

A small group of musicians sat in the shade of a recreational vehicle this afternoon, picking, grinning, singing and talking as a stream of people entered the Thanksgiving Bluegrass Festival at Sertoma Youth Ranch. Beside banjo player Bill Rich was his daughter, Amy, on fiddle, and son, Nathan, on acoustic guitar. Family friend Jim Waldeck joined on a second six-string. Bill and Nathan Rich and Waldeck are from West Palm Beach; Amy Rich lives in Nashville. The ensemble went from one song to the next with the relaxed precision of an experienced quartet. As a stream of people converged on the campground, they sang with gusto: "Well, somebody robbed the Glendale Train ...more

November 28, 2008

Not long after I started at the Tribune in 2002, I found myself interviewing a hearing-impaired banjo player. ...more

July 10, 2008

When Kelly Emerson was an 11-year-old growing up in Tiltonsville, Ohio, he joined a band with a few of his friends. ...more

June 14, 2008

It started with a high school graduation gift. 'I'd like a banjo,' Wally Meyer told his parents. They, being musicians themselves, were quite open to this idea. ...more

October 20, 2007