Our Instructors
Alan Munde
Bluegrass
Alan Munde first made an impact on the traditional bluegrass scene in the late 1960s. He worked for a time in a band led by guitarist Jimmy Martin and was also in demand for record sessions, earning a reputation for both strong musicianship and professionalism.
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His technical skills, along with his deep knowledge of the form, drew the attention of the Los Angeles-based bluegrass band Country Gazette. When the band lost Herb Pedersen, Munde replaced him and remained an important member until the group’s eventual dissolution in 1988. Along the way, he appeared on their 1972 debut, Traitor In Our Midst. During this period, Munde also worked concurrently with another Los Angeles band, the Flying Burrito Brothers, including a 1972 tour in Europe.
Munde also developed an interest in contemporary bluegrass, a style well suited to his exceptional technique. His own-name albums, including three released on Ridge Runner Records, showcase his abilities with exciting and, at times, breathtaking instrumental audacity. Through the 1990s, he continued to perform and record with artists such as Sam Bush, Jerry Douglas, and Roland White, bringing the bluegrass tradition to new audiences and demonstrating the lasting strength of the music in both classic and evolving forms.
Matt Maydew
Bluegrass
Matthew Maydew, affectionately known as “Gunther” to the band and many others, is a mandolin player for CFB, Potters Wheel, Emalee Flatness, and Stringed Union. He makes his home in Republic, Missouri and is no stranger to performance and success.
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Part of the winning band in the SPGMA International Band Contest of 2001, Matt began playing at age nine and by thirteen was performing alongside the Shepherd of the Hills Weekend Bluegrass band. His favorite musical influence is Dempsey Young, and while his favorite style is jazz mandolin, he consistently keeps spectators engaged through his musicianship and stage presence.
Gary Cook
Bluegrass
Gary Cook has been surrounded by music from the very beginning. He has been singing since he could talk, and his first stage appearance came at age three at a local hootenanny. As a kid, he was drawn to the bass, and before he owned one, he even pretended by playing the door facings. At age nine, Gary began playing bass for real, using a step stool because the instrument was bigger than he was, and he has never looked back.
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Gary played for several years in his grandfather’s band, Downhome Bluegrass, performing shows across the Midwest. During that time, he was nominated three times for SPBGMA Midwest Bass Player of the Year, and the group won Instrumental Group of the Year in 2001. He credits those years as a meaningful time of learning alongside his grandfather and the other members of the band. After his grandfather’s passing, Gary helped establish Spur of the Moment Bluegrass in 2011, which played throughout the region for several years.
Gary is also a founding member of Spillwater Drive, formed in early 2019, and he says he is loving every minute of it, especially being surrounded by a group of talented musicians who push him to improve while keeping it fun. Outside of bluegrass, Gary has worked for thirteen years as a high school social studies and speech/debate teacher, coaching numerous state champions and national finalists, and is transitioning to teaching at the community college level this fall. He is active in his church, spends too much time on social media, follows his nephews’ sports teams, and looks forward to working with Ozark Mountain Music Association to share his unique take on the music and the bass with camp attendees this summer.
David Maravilla
Bluegrass
David Maravilla has been involved with bluegrass since the late 1970s, playing guitar with various Missouri-based bands. He began with Dub Crouch (uncle of Tim and Dennis Crouch), then joined Frank Ray and the Cedar Hill Grass. In the 1980s, he helped start the band Second Wind, whose personnel included Rhonda Vincent and later Alison Krauss.
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David was later invited to join Alison in her band, an early edition of Union Station, to compete in the 1988 SPBGMA International Band Contest in Nashville, which they won. In 1997, David became a founding member of Lonesome Road, who also won the SPBGMA contest in 1999. He remains with Lonesome Road and serves the Greater Ozarks Bluegrass Society as president.
John Meyer
Bluegrass
Raised in Southwest Missouri, John Meyer first picked up his father’s guitar around age ten and later began playing a banjo his mother found at a yard sale. Those early beginnings helped launch a musical path that would soon take him onto stages across the region.
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John performed in the Youth in Bluegrass Contest in 2009, 2010, and 2011, and has toured extensively with various bluegrass and country music artists. He also enjoys songwriting, leading music at his church, traditional muzzleloading, and woodworking. John lives near Seymour, Missouri with his wife Kourtney and their two children, Lilly and Zane.
Crystal McCool
Bluegrass & Old Time
Crystal McCool has been playing music since she was a small child, traveling with her family band Springhill Bluegrass. She plays bass for many bands in her area and has been a contracted musician for 20 years at the Ozark Folk Center.
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Crystal teaches bass and enjoys sharing her love of bluegrass and old-time music with beginning musicians. She is also passionate about coaching young bands, and her students have earned awards including the Rising Legend Award, State Fair Talent, Ozark Folk Center Youth Band of the Year, Arkansas Country Music Award Bluegrass Band of the Year nominations, the KSMU and Silver Dollar City Youth in Bluegrass Band Competition, and many others.
Isaac McCutchens
Bluegrass & Old Time
Isaac McCutchens studied mandolin under the legendary Ozark musician Sam Coffee and Bill Monroe at his camp in Nashville. He has played with several bands including the Mountain Bloomers, Greenland Station, Dogwood Canyon, and Southern Strings, a group that placed in the top five in the Youth in Bluegrass Competition at Silver Dollar City.
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Isaac teaches mandolin lessons in and around Harrison, Arkansas.
Jeff Michel
Old Time & Bluegrass
Jeff Michel is a longtime native of the Ozarks and serves as President of the Board of the Mountain Grove School House Jam. His expertise in old-time fiddle music has been passed down from the previous generation of Ozark fiddle players. He is known as an expert in Taney County history and also serves on the Board for the Society of Ozarkian Hillcrofters.
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Jeff is the owner and operator of Michel Electric. He is married to Heather Michel, and they have three daughters.
Mary Parker
Bluegrass & Old Time
Mary Parker is from Mountain View, Arkansas and has been playing the fiddle and performing for over half of her life. Her performance background spans bluegrass, old-time, and Texas style fiddling, and she currently holds nine state fiddle championship titles.
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Mary was nominated for Young Artist of the Year in the ACMA Awards in 2019. She performs with several bands in the Ozarks area and is proficient in six instruments in addition to the fiddle.
Justus Ross
Bluegrass
Justus Ross has been playing guitar since he was six years old. His mentors and instructors include O.D. Mitchell, Jake Workman, and Rodley and Bobby Lewis, who taught him the fundamentals of bluegrass music, and he grew up traveling and playing with his family in the Ross Family Bluegrass Band.
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Justus is currently a member of Po”Anna, a band made up of his closest friends. He has dedicated a large part of his life to bluegrass and is excited to pass on his knowledge to others.
Charity Harmon
Bluegrass
Charity Harman makes her home in Florissant, Missouri and currently serves as a preschool teacher at North County Christian School. She has been singing since she was a little girl and began learning instruments around age ten, starting with banjo, guitar, and piano before picking up the fiddle around age 12.
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She grew up playing in The Ross Family and later played upright bass with Po Anna for a time. Charity currently plays fiddle and sings in the Harman and Ruble Band. She enjoys sharing her passion for singing and music, and she loves watching others grow in their own musical journey and succeed.
Matt Tomlinson
Bluegrass
Matt Tomlinson’s first memories are of bluegrass music and of listening to his dad play banjo with a constant stream of musicians passing through their home. He received his first guitar at age ten and has been committed to music ever since.
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Matt has played several genres professionally, but he always found his way back to bluegrass. He often says the music, the people who make it, and the people who enjoy it are unmatched, and that it feels like a family he is honored to be part of. Matt has played with bands including Taylor Bluegrass, Strawberry Hill Express, John Phil and Matt, Slightly Bluegrass, Brenna and the Red Hot, and Greenland Station Bluegrass.
Sophia Wright
Bluegrass & Old Time
Sophia Wright grew up in the Ozarks, jamming at the Mountain Grove schoolhouse from age eight, where she learned to play guitar and fiddle. At fifteen, she formed a band called Southern Strings to compete in the KSMU Youth in Bluegrass Contest at Silver Dollar City, and the group played together for five years around the Ozarks and at Silver Dollar City.
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Sophia attended Bethel University in Tennessee on a Bluegrass Scholarship, where she played with the Bethel Bluegrass Band and earned a Bachelor of Science in Music Business and a Master’s degree in Business. She currently serves as Director of Student Engagement at Bethel University. Sophia is a band coach and instructor at Ozark Mountain Music Bluegrass Camp and a fiddle teacher at Old Time Music and Dance Camp in Mountain View, Arkansas. She also serves as Secretary and Treasurer on the Board of Ozark Mountain Music Association.
Joel Hinds
Old Time
Joel Hinds began playing guitar and banjo when he was eight years old. In 2015, he served as an apprentice in the Missouri Folk Arts Program, learning old-time fiddle under Howell County fiddler Cliff Bryan.
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A sixth-generation native of Howell County, Joel lives on the family farm with his wife Casey and their six children. He also serves as headmaster of a Christian school in Willow Springs.
Aaron Albrecht
Old Time
Aaron Albrecht is an accomplished old-time fiddler from Springfield, Illinois. He began playing fiddle at age five and learned the tradition from some of Missouri’s finest fiddlers, including Dr. Howard W. Marshall, John White, Vesta Johnson, Charlie Walden, and Geoff Seitz. Aaron apprenticed under master fiddler Charlie Walden through the Illinois Arts Council’s Folk Arts Program.
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Aaron won first place in both of Illinois’ premier old-time fiddling competitions, including the Annual Illinois Old Time Fiddle Championship (2023) and the Illinois State Fair Old Time Fiddle and Banjo Contest (2019), and has placed in many other contests throughout Missouri and the Midwest. He has taught traditional fiddling at the Folk School in St. Louis, serves as a judge for the Illinois State Fair Old Time Fiddle and Banjo Contest, plays old-time dances, and presents on traditional fiddling across Illinois and the region. Aaron is also a passionate amateur folklorist who makes field recordings of the traditional artists he plays with so the art can be preserved and passed on to the next generation.
Samantha Williamson
Bluegrass & Old Time
Samantha Williamson is a 23-year-old fiddle player, singer-songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist from Bartlesville, Oklahoma. Ever since she can remember, her life has been filled with the joy of making music. At age nine, she began rigorous classical studies on violin, and before long she developed a deep love for roots music, especially bluegrass.
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Her first bluegrass mentor and greatest influence is world-class fiddle player Byron Berline. Growing up, she spent many years in his fiddle shop in Guthrie, Oklahoma, learning from him and hearing stories from his years with Bill Monroe and many other world-class musicians. Watching Byron invest in young fiddlers left a lasting impact on her, and after his passing in 2020, she hopes to continue his legacy by becoming the kind of mentor he was to her and so many others. Samantha’s influences also include Stuart Duncan, Alison Krauss, Tim Crouch, Aubrey Haynie, and Michael Cleveland. She enjoys many roots styles, including Cape Breton Canadian fiddling, Irish, Scottish, old-time, Texas Swing, and contest fiddling. She is an Oklahoma State Junior fiddle champion and an Oklahoma International Bluegrass Festival fiddle champion. Samantha is a member of her family band, Pearlgrace and Co., and loves traveling and spreading the joy of the Lord through music. Her hope is to instill in others a love for Christ and a love for beautiful music.
Jeff Kamps
Old Time
Jeff Kamps has been playing and singing traditional music in the Hardy area since moving there in 1978. He is well-known for his old-time clawhammer banjo playing and is a two-time Arkansas State Senior Clawhammer Banjo Champion.
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Jeff is a retired luthier and businessman who owned and operated the Flat Creek Dulcimer Shop in Hardy from 1988 to 2016, building and selling a variety of traditional instruments. He even built one of the banjos he regularly plays.
Wyatt Harmon
Bluegrass
Wyatt Harman lives in Florissant, Missouri and teaches history at North County Christian School for grades seven through twelve. As Wyatt says, he has grown up in bluegrass music, even though he did not start playing until he was fifteen. Since then, he has performed with Bull Harman and Bull’s Eye, The Pickin’ Chicks, and Kentucky Drive.
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For five consecutive years from 2016 to 2020, Wyatt was named SPBGMA Midwest Bass Player of the Year. In 2013 he formed a youth side band named Mashtag, and the group won the SPBGMA International Bluegrass Championship in Nashville in 2017. He was also a member of That Dalton Gang from 2017 to 2023. In early 2023, Wyatt and his best friend and bandmate formed the band Harman and Ruble. Although his friend is no longer with us, Wyatt continues the band in his memory. A major honor came in December 2023 when Wyatt made his Grand Ole Opry debut with Rhonda Vincent and The Rage. Wyatt says, “I love working with the kids at music camp.”
Evan Anderegg
Bluegrass
Evan first visited a bluegrass festival in 2010, and that experience sparked a love for bluegrass music that has continued ever since. He has always loved to sing, and at age 12 he began taking guitar lessons to build his musicianship.
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Evan and his siblings started playing together in their band in 2016, and they have performed throughout the Midwest since that time. He and his family competed in the Youth in Bluegrass competition in 2021 and 2022. Evan lives in Strawberry Point, Iowa and works as a finish carpenter.
Aaron Link
Bluegrass
Aaron Link has played music for over 18 years across the country with multiple groups. He specializes in guitar and vocals, but over the years he also became a bassist and drummer out of necessity, building versatility through real-world performance experience.
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Aaron currently plays in Dawson Hollow with his four siblings, performs with The Wild Bills as an acoustic improv group, and also does solo shows throughout the Midwest.
Hannah Johnson
Old Time Music & Dance
Hannah Johnson hails from the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. She fell in love with old-time music as a teenager while attending fiddlers’ conventions in the region and soon began learning fiddle, banjo, and guitar from local old-timers and musicians near and far. Her passion for music and her long-standing love of dancing led her to begin calling square dances.
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Hannah’s calling style is strongly influenced by friends and mentors Ellen and Eugene Ratcliffe of Highland County, Virginia, with whom she apprenticed through the Virginia Folklife Program. She calls traditional Highland County big circle dances featuring playful figures like Birdie in the Cage and Chase the Rabbit, Chase the Squirrel, along with four-couple square dances common in other parts of Appalachia. Hannah still lives on her family farm nestled between the Blue Ridge and Appalachian Mountains, remains dedicated to her local traditions, and has traveled the world playing in old-time bands, swapping tunes, dances, and songs along the way.
Carrie Baker
Bluegrass & Gospel
Carrie Baker is a bass and guitar player from south-central Missouri and the mother of four children. In 2013, her family began traveling as The Baker Family, sharing their love of bluegrass, gospel, and classic country music with audiences across the United States.
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Over the years, bluegrass music has taken the band to many remarkable places and festivals, and their journey includes achievements such as: Season 12 of America’s Got Talent, RFD-TV’s The Bluegrass Trail, PBS Great American Bluegrass, the 2016 International Country Gospel Music Association Bluegrass Band of the Year award, first place at the KSMU Silver Dollar City Youth in Bluegrass Band Contest, first place at the Oklahoma State Band Championship in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017, first place at the 2013 Pickin in the Pines Flagstaff, Arizona Band Championship, SPBGMA Midwest Album of the Year for Walking a Straight Path, and SPBGMA Midwest Entertainers of the Year. Carrie continues to perform with gratitude and remains a steady anchor in the band’s sound and stage presence.
Joel Hinds
Old Time
Joel Hinds began playing guitar and banjo at the age of eight, developing an early love for traditional string music. In 2015, he continued his musical journey as an apprentice in the Missouri Folk Arts Program, studying old-time fiddle under renowned Howell County fiddler, Cliff Bryan.
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A sixth-generation native of Howell County, Joel carries on his family’s deep local roots both in life and in music. He and his wife, Casey, live on their family farm, where they raise their six children and keep their home filled with music. Outside of performing, Joel serves as the headmaster of a Christian school in Willow Springs, where he continues to share his passion for learning, tradition, and community.
Koltyn West
Bluegrass & Country
Koltyn West, from Bruner, Missouri, has been singing since he could talk and began playing guitar at the age of seven. His love for bluegrass and country music sparked after seeing a banjo played up close—a moment that set him on a lifelong musical path.
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For the past eight years, Koltyn has performed with his family band, Lost Creek, sharing his passion for heartfelt, roots-driven music. He now plays and sings with the Renaissance Bluegrass Band at Bethel University in McKenzie, Tennessee, where he is pursuing a degree in sound production on a Bluegrass Scholarship. In addition to guitar and vocals, Koltyn enjoys playing piano and writing songs, continuing to grow as both a performer and a songwriter.
Robert Mackey
Old Time
Robert Mackey is an acoustic guitar player and singer-songwriter from Mexico, Missouri. He specializes in rhythm guitar accompaniment for traditional old-time fiddle tunes, bringing a steady groove and authentic feel to the music he loves.
Inspired by his father, Arlie, Robert began playing guitar at the age of fifteen and went on to apprentice with Kenny Applebee through the Missouri Folk Arts Program. Known for his solid timing and supportive style, Robert now shares his passion for old-time music by teaching backup guitar at music camps and events throughout the year.
Pete Howard
Old Time
Pete Howard found his way to old-time fiddling while playing bass, fiddle, and banjo with the old-time string band The Skirtlifters during the 1990s. In his twenties and thirties, he explored fiddling across a wide range of styles before turning his focus toward traditional Ozark music. He began learning tunes from influential Ozark fiddlers such as Bob Holt, Jim Lansford, Fred Stoneking, and David Scrivner, shaping his approach through deep study of regional traditions.
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In the 2000s, Pete played fiddle with Shout Lulu, alongside Paul McGowen and Seth Shumate, drawing inspiration from vintage recordings of old-time string band music and master fiddlers representing a variety of regional styles. He has taught fiddle for many years at the Bethel Missouri Youth Fiddle Camp, which emphasizes fiddling traditions from the Missouri Valley and the Ozarks.
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Today, Pete continues to share his passion for old-time music by teaching fiddle lessons, leading old-time jam sessions, and hosting square dances twice a month at Ozark Folkways and the Fayetteville Folk School. His dedication to preserving and passing on regional fiddle traditions remains at the heart of his music and teaching.
Sam Coffey
Bluegrass
Sam Coffey was raised in the Ozarks and began learning music at a young age from his father, Lynn. He started playing at Dogpatch USA, Silver Dollar City, and music shows in Branson, building early performance experience in the region’s live music scene.
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Later, Sam and his brother Kent formed The Coffey Brothers Bluegrass Band. Together they played festivals and performed on the morning show with Mac Wiseman in Branson. Today, Sam performs with Greenland Station Bluegrass Band, The Smooth Jaspers, The Tennessee Gentleman, The Missouri Boatride Bluegrass Band, and also plays with a family band that includes his wife Tammy, son Dalton, sister-in-law Kay Oldfather, and brother-in-law Steven Barnhart in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
Sam plays several stringed instruments, but the five-string banjo is his favorite. He currently lives in Boone County, Arkansas with his wife Tammy, attends The Stone Church in Omaha, and is a member of the South Dakota Legends of Country Music Hall of Fame.
Emily Garoutte
Old Time & Bluegrass
Emily Garoutte has been fiddling for eight years. She spent two years training classically before discovering the world of old-time and bluegrass music. In 2017, she attended her first Ozark Mountain Music Association camp, where she learned to play by ear for the first time and fell in love with the style, creativity of the music, and the community that formed around it.
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Since then, she has helped form the bluegrass group Missouri 65 and fiddles for another traditional bluegrass group, the Ozark Mountain Five. She is also passionate about preserving local old-time tunes. Beginning in 2022, Emily participated as an apprentice in the Missouri Folk Arts Program studying Ozarks square dance fiddling, and she hopes to pass the music on to her peers and to the next generation.
Sharry Lovan
Bluegrass
Sharry Lovan is from Willow Springs, Missouri and has been in the music business for many years. She serves as Vice President of HOBA (Heart of the Ozarks Bluegrass Association) in West Plains, Missouri, and since 2014 has operated a bluegrass show in Willow Springs called “Bluegrass at its Finest” at the Star Theatre, which continues to thrive.
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Sharry is the bass player and band leader for Stringed Union, and the band performed at Bluegrass and Barbeque in 2019. She has been married to Jack Lovan for 33 years, and she loves playing music and singing. She gives God all the glory for the talent He has given her!
Wayne Massengale
Bluegrass
Wayne Massengale became the Arkansas State Fiddle Champion at age 17 and is a founding charter member of the Arkansas Fiddlers Convention. He has also hosted many fiddle contests and is widely recognized for his long-standing contributions to the region’s fiddle and bluegrass community.
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Wayne has been a legendary fiddle player in the Branson show industry for 37 years, including performances with Roy Clark, Country Tonite, and Grand Country, where he has been a featured performer since 2005.
Nathan McAlister
Old Time
Nathan McAlister has spent the last 25 years studying traditional fiddle and banjo styles and is on the leading edge of old-time square dance music in the Ozarks. He blends a repertory of traditional Ozark fiddle tunes with an energetic, raw approach to southern American fiddle and banjo music.
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Nathan currently teaches fiddle and banjo at the Acoustic Shoppe in Springfield, Missouri.
Lillyanne McCool
Bluegrass & Old Time
Lillyanne McCool is a 20-year-old banjo player from Mountain View, Arkansas, with one foot planted in old-time music and the other in bluegrass. She is especially accomplished in clawhammer style, having won four state championships and the coveted National Old Time Banjo title in 2018 at age 15.
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She is best known in the old-time world for her work with the award-winning Twang All Girl String Band and also performs with her family string band, The UpJumpers. Lillyanne shares an equal passion for bluegrass and three-finger banjo and released her first solo CD, Back To The Ozarks, in December 2020, featuring both bluegrass and old-time music as well as her songwriting. She enjoys teaching banjo and loves watching her students fall in love with the banjo and the music of the mountains she calls home.
Emalee Flatness Combs
Old Time & Bluegrass
Emalee Flatness has been playing in bluegrass bands since she was fourteen years old. Her first band was Po Anna, where she played fiddle and sang for eight years. She now sings and performs with various groups in the Ozarks, including the Honkytonk Renovators, the Emalee Flatness Band, and High Sierra.
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In December 2023, Emalee graduated from Missouri State University with a Bachelor’s degree in History and a minor in Ozarks Studies. She is currently employed by Missouri State University Libraries, interviewing Ozarks musicians for a YouTube program titled Songs of the Ozarks. During the summer months, she can be found acting and singing in the Shepherd of the Hills Outdoor Drama and performing at Silver Dollar City.
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Stephen Mougin
Bluegrass
Stephen “Mojo” Mougin is a musician who wears many hats. He is best known as a member of the Sam Bush Band and as a sought-after instructor, but he is also an award-winning producer and engineer, a label head, mentor, songwriter, band coach, and more.
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Mojo’s commitment to high standards and his dedication to everything he works on have made him an in-demand partner and collaborator in the world of acoustic music. He is known for helping develop artists from emerging talent to professional-quality performers and for shepherding artistic visions through the full creative process. If a new bluegrass band has caught your ear in recent years, or if a new song has given you goosebumps, there is a strong chance Mojo played a part in bringing it to life.
Dennis Pritchard
Old Time & Bluegrass
Dennis Pritchard is a traditional old-time fiddler who began playing at age 13 after learning that his maternal grandfather, Foster Barnes, played the fiddle. Foster had already passed by the time Dennis was born, but the family connection inspired him to begin learning the tradition.
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Learning to play by ear, Dennis listened to records and attended local jams. He has performed with Table Rock Opry, Apple Town Barleen Family Country Music Show, Spring Creek Boys, Missouri Boatride, and at Shepherd of the Hills Outdoor Drama as Fiddlin Jake. He is also proud to have shared the stage with Dean Webb, Carl and Pearl Butler, Red Sovine, Vernon Oxford, and Billy Grammer. Dennis credits his parents, Efton and Gertie Pritchard, for supporting his efforts, along with mentors Eddie Asher, J.R. McNeil, and Louis Holt. As a traditional old-time fiddler, he has played many hours at round and square dances, an experience he has truly enjoyed.
David Scrivner
Old Time
David Scrivner is one of the Ozarks’ premier fiddle players with more than 30 years of experience. His repertoire includes more than 400 fiddle tunes, with a focus on Missouri and Ozarks fiddling traditions.
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The Missouri Folk Arts Program recognizes David as a Master Fiddler for its Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program.
Shelly Smith
Bluegrass
Shelly Smith grew up in a musical family and has been performing since she was very young. As a teenager, she spent eight years as a vocalist and instrumentalist on the Denny Hilton Show at Lake of the Ozarks.
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After college, she became more involved in bluegrass when she and her husband helped start the band Swift Kick. Later, in 1997, she became a founding member of Lonesome Road, and she still performs with the band today as bassist and vocalist. Shelly lives in Ponce de Leon with her husband, Don, and their son, Ison.
Bob Zuellig
Old Time
Bob Zuellig is OMMA’s lead caller and old-time community dance instructor at the Old Time Music and Dance Camp in Mountain View, Arkansas. By day, Bob is a stream biologist, and by night he is a fiddler, dance caller, and sound engineer. Originally from Missouri, he carries a love for the natural world shaped among the streams, rivers, and forests of the Ozarks.
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Over the last dozen years, Bob has studied Ozarks and Missouri Valley fiddling, along with square dance traditions from Missouri, Kentucky, and West Virginia. His fiddling, calling, and teaching style is lively, straightforward, and to the point. By the end of the week, Bob will have you dancing with confidence to basic figures and regional gems. For those interested, he will have you calling your own dances from within the square, empowering you to carry this part of the tradition into the future.
Bob currently resides with his family in Fort Collins, Colorado, where he co-founded the Central Rockies Old-time Music Association, organizes and supports monthly dances, and directs the Rocky Mountain Old-time Music Festival (www.thecroma.org).
Kailee Spickes- Jestice
Old Time & Bluegrass
Kailee Spickes-Jestice is the current Arkansas Old Time Fiddle Grand Champion. She has been playing fiddle for 13 years and also plays numerous other instruments.
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Kailee loves old-time music and is passionate about teaching and preserving old-time traditions.
Katie Geer Hutson
Bluegrass
Lindley Creek’s Katie Greer began her bluegrass career early. She first picked up a mandolin at age eight, while her love of singing began four years earlier when her family started jamming together in the living room. As she grew as a musician, she became the band’s full-time mandolin player at age 11. Katie often jokes that she always wanted to sing, but in a bluegrass band, you have to learn to play an instrument.
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The band went full time in 2010 and continues to travel today. Now 26, Katie is an accomplished mandolin player and a standout vocalist. She was nominated for the Momentum Vocalist of the Year award by the International Bluegrass Music Association in 2021 and has led Lindley Creek through two charting albums and tours across the United States and Canada. Katie also leads the band’s social media campaigns, pitches to streaming playlists, and serves on the creative team for the band’s concept videos, including the number one bluegrass video “Too Bad You’re No Good.” She is passionate about passing music on to the next generation and has joined the Ozark Mountain Music Association to help promote the organization on social media platforms.
Duane Porterfield
Old Time
Duane Porterfield is a musician with a passion for old-time music, folk instruments, and the traditions surrounding them. He is a former Kansas and Arkansas state old-time banjo champion, a former state, regional, and national mountain dulcimer champion, and has received several additional awards and acknowledgements.
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Duane retired from a 32-year career with the Kansas City, Kansas Police Department in 2013. He and his wife, Cindi, then moved to Mountain View, Arkansas, where he stays busy in the area’s rich music heritage. When not performing or instructing workshops, he can often be found at the Dulcimer Shoppe among the luthiers creating the McSpadden Mountain Dulcimer.
Ashley Dawn
Bluegrass
Ashley Dawn is a seasoned vocalist with country, bluegrass, and southern gospel roots. Based in Missouri’s Ozarks, she was named Female Vocalist of the Year at Branson’s Terry Music Awards in 2022 and has been a main vocalist on Branson’s Famous Baldknobbers show for five years.
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Ashley landed a Nashville record deal at age 17 and toured with her brother and sister in the southern gospel trio The Praters, charting in the top 100. She was later contracted as the lead vocalist for the 135th Army Band, Aftershock. In fall 2023, she joined Nashville recording artist Shane Vancamp to form the duo Outer Limits.
Debbie Kamps
Old Time
Debbie Kamps plays old-time back-up rhythm guitar and banjo and sings many of the “old songs” of the local area and the Ozarks. After seeing Jean Ritchie perform live, Debbie developed a love for ballad singing and the mountain dulcimer.
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Jeff built his first mountain dulcimer for her, and she soon began a long path of singing and performing. Debbie retired from teaching English and history in 2015. Jeff, Debbie, and family were also performers at the Arkansas Traveler Dinner Theater in Hardy for many years.
Cathy Bumgarner Day
Bluegrass
Cathy is a multi-instrumentalist from Connecticut with family roots in Western North Carolina. She began performing throughout the Northeast United States as a child with her family band in the 1980s. As a teen, she arranged and taught harmonies to her band, taught fiddle, bass, and dobro, and produced a solo cassette playing six instruments and singing all vocal parts. During college, she performed with the acclaimed all-girl bluegrass band Sassy Grass.
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Cathy is a long-time instructor at Bluegrass Kids Academies around New England and leads workshops for Tony Watt’s Bluegrass University and JamVal. She serves as a point person for the Connecticut Bluegrass Association and organizes jams and shows around the state. Cathy has a special heart for kids and holds Kid Jams in her home. She currently performs in a Western Swing band called Keegan Day and The String Busters with both of her sons, and in the 1950s-style bluegrass band The Hosmer Mountain Boys with her oldest son.
Sadie Russell
Bluegrass
Sadie Russell grew up playing music with her family from a young age. Music was a required part of their homeschool curriculum, and all seven siblings began their musical journey on fiddle. Sadie is 23 years old and has been teaching fiddle and piano for eight years. Irish music was her first love.
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After moving to Guthrie, Oklahoma, her family became connected to the bluegrass community, where Sadie met and learned from Byron Berline and other bluegrass musicians. Her family band, Russellclan, performed at Irish and bluegrass festivals including the North Texas Irish Festival, Guthrie International Bluegrass Festival, and Silver Dollar City. With a strong musical foundation, Sadie loves introducing her students to traditional Americana music, broadening their musical tastes and giving them opportunities to play with people of all ages.
Steve Green
Old Time Dance
Steve Green grew up on a hill country farm in the Arkansas Ozark Mountains, with early memories of old-time American square dances alongside German polkas and schottisches in his grandfather’s front room. Southern mountain music, square dance calling, ballad singing, storytelling, and old-time flatfoot and buck dancing are central parts of his life.
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In 2015, Steve won first place at the US National Buck Dance competition, along with wins at the Clifftop flatfoot dance competition and the Augusta Heritage Center flatfoot dance competition. He often performs at the Ozark Folk Center in Mountain View, Arkansas, and has performed and taught traditional percussive dance and old-time square dances by invitation at festivals in Ireland, Scotland, England, and several states. Together with his wife, Joanie, he enjoys teaching traditional couple dancing including waltzes, two-steps, polkas, and schottisches, and he calls square dances around his home region and neighboring states.
www.ozarkfootsong.com
Carina Baker
Classic Country & Bluegrass
Carina Baker is a vocalist and multi-instrumentalist from southern Missouri who has been singing for as long as she can remember. Surrounded by classic country and bluegrass music, she developed a deep love for traditional sounds and heartfelt storytelling through song.
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For more than ten years, Carina has traveled across the United States performing with her family band, The Baker Family, appearing on stages both large and small. The group’s journey included an appearance on Season 12 of America’s Got Talent, bringing national recognition to their energetic performances and authentic style. Carina has received four Female Vocalist of the Year awards and also plays mandolin, fiddle, and guitar, adding rich harmonies and instrumental depth to every performance.
Gerald Jones
Old Time & Bluegrass
Gerald Jones, 68, is originally from Terre Haute, Indiana and now lives in Salem, Missouri with his wife, Tina. He is known for that “high lonesome” sound of a bluegrass fiddle. Gerald cut his teeth on bluegrass music after seeing Bill Monroe and His Bluegrass Boys at Beanblossom, Indiana in the early 1970s, and he has continued developing an energetic traditional fiddle style that makes audiences want to tap their toes or dance a little jig, while also bringing versatility and sensitivity to bluegrass ballads.
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His key influences include Kenny Baker, Paul Warren, Benny Martin, Vassar Clements, Scotty Stoneman, and Curly Ray Cline. Gerald has performed in multiple bands over the years, starting his first band, The Bluegrass Posse, as a teenager in Indiana with his brother Daryl on guitar, Grady Eldredge on banjo, and Terry Eldredge on bass. He later joined The Downstate Ramblers, a popular band on the SPBGMA festival circuit in the 1980s, and was named National Fiddle Performer of the Year at the 1984 SPBGMA Bluegrass Awards in Nashville, Tennessee. After relocating to Missouri, Gerald became a member of Midnight Flight, performed throughout the Midwest, and later joined Men of the Week. He currently plays with Missouri River Band and also performs fiddle duties with banjo extraordinaire Alan Munde and Mason Ridge. Gerald invites audiences to come hear his bluesy, traditional bluegrass fiddle style and says they will be glad they did.
Kent Coffey
Bluegrass, Jazz, & Swing
Kent Coffey has been playing guitar for more than fifty years. He began his musical journey studying under jazz guitarist Gus Smith, but soon found himself drawn to the lively rhythms and heartfelt melodies of bluegrass—the music of his heart.
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Over the years, Kent has continued to perform alongside his wife, Becca, in a variety of bluegrass, jazz, and swing ensembles. His versatility and deep love of music shine through in every performance. Passionate about keeping traditional styles alive, Kent enjoys sharing his knowledge with younger musicians—and just as much, he values the inspiration and new ideas he learns from them in return.
Maggie Farnum
Bluegrass
Maggie Farnum, 21, grew up surrounded by music, performing alongside her family in The Farnum Family Band. She began her musical journey at the age of five on fiddle, but found her true passion at eleven when she picked up the upright bass—a love that has continued for more than a decade. Her bass, affectionately named “Jeeves,” has been her musical companion ever since.
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In March of 2024, Maggie joined the acclaimed group Southern Raised, where she continues to share her joy for bluegrass through energetic performances and heartfelt musicianship. Whether on stage with her family or traveling with her band, Maggie’s steady rhythm and love for the bass shine through every note.
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Sandi McClary
Bluegrass
Sandi McClary began writing bluegrass songs after she was saved in 1996. Soon after, she bought a guitar, flew home to Missouri to record with her brother, and began leading worship for church retreats and prison ministry. Her love for bluegrass quickly grew, and with the help of friends, she formed her first band, Thermal Breakdown, to bring her songs to life.
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Since then, Sandi has been featured on the songwriter stage at a Ricky Skaggs concert, and Seldom Scene’s Clay Hess recorded demos of her songs “Cabin in the Mountains” and “Seeds in the Spring.” Her songwriting catalog includes a range of heartfelt originals such as “Those Train Songs,” “We Keep Pretending,” “Restless Heart,” “Me of Little Faith,” “Let’s Take a Dirt Road,” and “The Nail-Scarred Hands of Grace.”
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Rooted in her faith, family, and Ozarks upbringing, Sandi’s music reflects both authenticity and hope. In addition to performing at events such as the KC Bluegrass Club and HABOT, she remains passionate about working with youth and will be teaching at the Ozark Mountain Music Songwriter Workshop in December.
Oscar Caudell
Bluegrass
Oscar Caudell is a multi-instrumentalist based in Asheville, North Carolina, with over a decade of experience performing and playing music. Originally from Chicago, he has spent years immersing himself in the acoustic music community, developing a deep appreciation for both tradition and innovation.
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Comfortable playing everything from bluegrass to rock and roll, Oscar’s primary instruments are guitar and mandolin. From national festivals to local jam circles throughout Western North Carolina, his musicianship reflects both versatility and dedication. Whether performing on stage or picking in a circle, Oscar approaches music with a deep respect for the craft and a constant drive to keep learning, always drawn to the shared energy that makes live music come alive.
