Steep Canyon Rangers with Peter Rowan  

Hailing from both the Appalachian and Piedmont regions of North Carolina, the Steep Canyon Rangers have long held traditional bluegrass paramount, while possessing an exceptional ability to bring it down the mountain, and to incorporate accessible influence from all walks of the region. With the band’s last few albums, they have gained recognition from well beyond the world of bluegrass, earning a reputation as some of the most influential songwriters in Americana today. Over the band’s esteemed career, the three-time Grammy nominees have released 14 studio albums, three collaborative albums with actor and banjoist Steve Martin, been inducted into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame, and appeared on some of music’s biggest stages. In 2013, Nobody Knows You won the GRAMMY Award for Best Bluegrass Album, while 2012’s Rare Bird and 2020’s North Carolina Songbook garnered nominations in the same category. 

Steep Canyon Rangers is made up of Graham Sharp on banjo and vocals, Mike Guggino on mandolin/mandola and vocals, Aaron Burdett on guitar and vocals, Nicky Sanders on fiddle and vocals, Mike Ashworth on drums and vocals, and Barrett Smith on bass, guitar, and vocals.

Spotlighting this performance will be another Grammy-winner, Peter Rowan, who is a major cult figure among progressive bluegrass aficionados. As one writer put it, ”Bluegrass proved perfect for Rowan with its compelling blend of power and poignance and punch and precision in the instrument.”

Peter Rowan and Steep Canyon Rangers will perform together in a highly integrated, special evening of music that spans the origins of bluegrass and Rowan’s work as a member of Bill Monroe and the Bluegrass Boys, through the latest original material by the Steep Canyon Rangers.