Abstract:
Traditional mountain music has not fared well over the past decades, and among the younger generations, it was fast becoming almost unknown. Helen White, a guidance counselor for eighteen years in the Alleghany County Schools, is an award-winning songwriter/composer and Fiddlers Grove champion fiddler. Aware of this problem, White began a program at Sparta Elementary School called the Junior Appalachian Musicians program. Students have the opportunity to learn the mandolin, dulcimer, banjo, fiddle, or guitar. Schulman discusses the program's progress since its inception in 2000.