Junior Appalachian Musicians, Inc

06/02/2026

Josh Goforth will be joining us for the 2026 JAM Sessions: Traditional Music Education Summit!

Josh Goforth must have been born musical—he was already playing piano in church at the age of four— but it was an experience he had in the sixth grade that really lit the fuse of his precocious musical career. A performance at Goforth's middle school by Sheila Kay Adams caused him to start thinking about the musical heritage and stories of his native Madison County, NC. Josh was able to listen and learn from local masters like Gordon and Arvil Freeman and Jerry Adams. Goforth is a highly accomplished storyteller and acoustic musician playing close to 20 different instruments. After high school he went to East Tennessee State University to study music education with a Euphonium concentration, and to be a part of ETSU's famous Bluegrass and Country Music Program.

In 2000, he played fiddle for the movie Songcatcher, both onscreen and on the soundtrack. He has toured extensively with a variety of ensembles, including the ETSU Bluegrass band, David Holt, Laura Boosinger, and with several bluegrass bands like Appalachian Trail, the Josh Goforth Trio, the Steep Canyon Rangers, Open Road and Carolina Road. He has performed in all 50 US states, all over Europe, Asia, and Australia. In 2000, 2003, and 2005, he was named Fiddler of the Festival at Fiddler's Grove and, after winning the third title, was designated "Master Fiddler" and retired from that competition. He has performed at the Grand Ole Opry, the Lincoln Center, as well as Carnegie Hall. In 2009 he was nominated for a Grammy for his album with David Holt entitled "Cutting Loose". He currently is on faculty at the Academy for the Arts in Asheville and performs all over the world.

06/01/2026

Hancock County TN JAM Spring Showcase

05/30/2026

Congratulations to The Blue Ridge Stringbenders who will be representing JAM at FloydFest this July!

05/29/2026

Joining us as a featured panelist at Summit this year!

Sarah Kate Morgan

Born of Appalachian soil in Sharps Chapel, Tennessee, Sarah Kate Morgan sings, plays, and writes like she’s been in these hills since the dawn of time. She’s had plenty of varied influences, beginning with hearing a classical music CD belonging to her family and going on to discover old time music through a dulcimer built by her grandfather. She began playing dulcimer at age 7.

This proved to be a pivotal moment. At 18 years old, Sarah Kate placed 1st at the 2012 National Mountain Dulcimer Championships in Winfield, Kansas. She’s gone on to build a unique personal style which honors mountain dulcimer giants such as Jean Ritchie while working across genres to build something new. Her dexterous approach to the instrument is one that only masterful artists can bring to the table; much like Bruce Molsky and the fiddle, having been a dedicated student of the dulcimer’s complexities Morgan is able to distill them into a beautifully polished package.

Well-known and widely respected as one of the leading experts of the mountain dulcimer, Sarah Kate is also a first-rate singer and songwriter. Her earthy and poetic lyrics embrace the highs and lows of southern Appalachian life while her voice does the same – moving between alto and soprano parts with ease. Her crystal-clear but rootsy vocal style combines the best of country, old time, bluegrass, and gospel influences who, like Morgan, foreground their cultural roots. All of this goes hand in hand to create a musical experience akin to a sonic baptism.

None of this is lost on the giants of roots music. Sarah Kate has performed and/or recorded with artists like Tyler Childers, Amethyst Kiah and Erynn Marshall & Carl Jones. In addition to her musical prowess, Sarah Kate is an accomplished scholar who graduated from Morehead State University with degrees in Traditional Music, Appalachian Studies, and Arts Administration.

Currently based in Hindman, Kentucky, she practices, cultivates, teaches, and preserves Appalachian folk traditions in her role as a community music educator at Eastern Kentucky nonprofit. Whether calling square dances, playing the mountain dulcimer, or making music and creating art with Appalachian youth, Sarah Kate Morgan’s work centers on a lived belief that art and tradition are living, breathing tools that foster hope, build community, and create change.

05/28/2026

Alice Gerrard is a talent of legendary status. And we're thrilled to have her as part of the 2026 JAM Sessions: Traditional Music Education Summit.

In a career spanning more than 50 years, Alice has known, learned from, and performed with many of the old-time and bluegrass greats and has in turn earned worldwide respect for her own important contributions to the music.

Known for her groundbreaking collaboration with Appalachian singer Hazel Dickens during the 1960s and ’70s, the duo produced four classic Hazel and Alice LPs on Rounder and Smithsonian Folkways that influenced scores of young women singers.

“[Hazel and Alice] were an overwhelming influence on many of the young women who were pouring into old-time and bluegrass music during this era. [1967-1975].... [They] left a legacy of spine-tingling backwoods harmony; sturdy old-time revivals; and resonant pro-woman original songs.”
— Finding Her Voice by Bufwack and Oermann, Crown Pub. 1993

Down through the years Alice has appeared on more than 20 recordings, including projects with many traditional musicians such as Tommy Jarrell, Enoch Rutherford, Otis Burris, Luther Davis and Matokie Slaughter; with Tom Sauber and Brad Leftwich as Tom, Brad & Alice, with the Harmony Sisters, The Piedmont Melody Makers, The Herald Angels, Beverly Smith, Kay Justice, and with Anna R-g and Elizabeth LaPrelle.

In 1983, she co-produced and appeared in the Les Blank documentary film Sprout Wings & Fly about Tommy Jarrell. In 1987 Alice founded The Old-Time Herald and the Old-Time Music Group, a non-profit organization that oversees publication of The Old-Time Herald. Alice served as editor-in-chief of The Old-Time Herald from 1987 till 2003.

A tireless advocate of traditional music, Alice has won numerous honors, including an International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) Distinguished Achievement Award, a Virginia Arts Commission Award, the North Carolina Folklore Society’s Tommy Jarrell Award, and an Indy Award. In 2017 Alice was inducted into the IBMA Hall of Fame along with Hazel Dickens. A film by Durham filmmaker Kenny Dalsheimer about her life and music You Gave Me a Song, was shown at the Full Frame Festival in Durham, NC, at the Mill Valley Film Festival, and several others.

In 2023 Alice finished her latest recording project, Sun to Sun, on the local Durham label, Sleepy Cat Records. It features all original songs by Alice and one original instrumental by Reed Stutz, who also plays on the recording, along with Tatiana Hargreaves, Hasee Ciaccio, DaShawn Hickman, Gail Gillsepie, Marcy Marxer, Phil Cook, Nick Falk, and Joseph Dejarnette.

Now 91, Alice is touring less but still performs and teaches in workshops. You can find her schedule on the calendar. As she noted on the back cover of her latest recording: "In the dark of the night I think sometimes about how this might be my final recording, my final mattress, my final car, my final dog—but then you never know...."

05/25/2026

Junior Appalachian Musicians, Inc. (JAM) is proud to announce the third year of JAM’s annual conference: JAM Sessions: Traditional Music Education Summit. This dynamic gathering is designed to offer professional development and opportunities for collaboration for teaching artists and program directors in JAM affiliated programs. Lodging, meals and attendance for this 4 day event is covered for only $50.00/participant this year. The Summit will be held September 21 – 24, 2026 at WildAcres Retreat Center (the location of the first Summit). WildAcres is in Little Switzerland, NC – in between Boone and Asheville off the Blue Ridge Parkway. Sign up now at the link below to reserve your spot; space is limited.

https://jamkids.org/summit2026

05/20/2026

It was great to see JAMkids Grundy Area open the American Revival show at The Caverns and sing in the children’s choir for the finale performance with Yo-yo Ma, T-Bone Burnett, Abigail Washburn, Bela Fleck, Martha Redbone, and more!

05/03/2026

The Gladson Family leads the Hancock County JAM. Here they are performing for Appalachia Sessions LIVE !!

17 likes, 9 comments. "Appalachia Sessions LIVE Season 4 Episode 4"

04/30/2026

The New Found Gap Band at Appalachia Sessions LIVE representing Junior Appalachian Musicians!

72 likes, 4 comments. "Reuben's Train | New Found Gap | Appalachia Sessions Live"