Grammy Nominee Among Bluegrass Festival Headliners

There's something simple, direct and authentic in Bluegrass Music. In a time and place that values novelty, experimentation and change for change's sake, Bluegrass at its purest remains a truly original American concoction.

And it’s the reason why legions of fans will make their way to Myrtle Beach next week for the South Carolina State Bluegrass Festival, to be held Nov. 22-24 at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center.

Originating in southern Appalachia, Bluegrass is a blend of Scottish-Irish and traditional American folk music that has remained true to its roots through several generations of inspired performers.

Pure Bluegrass is acoustic, shunning any electric instruments in favor of fiddle, bass fiddle, acoustic guitar, 5-string banjo, mandolin, and dobro. These are the instruments the "old-timers" used – the legendary greats of Bluegrass, most famously Bill Monroe and the Bluegrass Boys.

Monroe is credited with refining the genre into its present form. By 1945, with the addition of Earl Scruggs and his infectious, driving banjo, Monroe had perfected the Bluegrass sound.

Bluegrass had its heyday in the 1950's, as Scruggs and Lester Flatt left the Bluegrass Boys, forming Flatt and Scruggs and the Foggy Mountain Boys. Between them, these two groups popularized and spread the Bluegrass "gospel."

Today, fiddler Alison Krauss is the most recognized face in contemporary Bluegrass, and over two decades has helped usher in a new interest in the musical genre in the United States. She also happens to have a voice that can melt an iceberg:

Ticket information for this year’s Bluegrass Festival can be found here.

Source: TripSmarter.com, YouTube