Bluegrass Unlimited Podcast with Avril Smith

      This week we feature mandolin master Don Stiernberg.  A protégé of the great Jethro Burns, Don is known for both his bluegrass and jazz chops on the mandolin and guitar.  In this podcast I'll talk with Don about his years learning from and performing with Jethro Burns and the connections that Jethro had with music legends like Hank Williams, Sr., Chet Adkins, Bill Monroe and Red Rector.  We'll also talk about Don's work with Special Consensus over the years.

This week we feature Avril Smith, the guitar player with Della Mae, and talk with her about her career in music, her teaching at Bryan Sutton's guitar camp, Della Mae's newest recording and what 2026 has in store for the band.

This week we feature banjo player Jeremy Stephens.  After we discuss how he got his start in bluegrass music, the various bands that Jeremy has performed with over the years and the groups he is with currently, we will talk about his deep interest in Don Reno's banjo style and his study of Reno's life story.

This week we feature Dobro player Fred Travers of the Seldom Scene.  We'll talk about how Fred became interested in playing the Dobro, his interest in Mike Auldridge's approach to the Dobro and how he got the chance to take lessons with Mike.  We'll also talk about the early bands he performed with and then how he eventually got the opportunity to take the Dobro  spot in the Seldom Scene after Mike left the band about 30 years ago.

This week we feature mandolin player and fiddler Andy Leftwich and talk with him about his early days playing fiddle contests, joining Valerie Smith at age 15 and then Ricky Skaggs' band at age 19.  He spent about 12 years playing with Skaggs and has since moved on and recently recorded a couple of new albums.  His album The American Fiddler came out in 2022 and his new yet to be titled album will come out early in 2026.  We talk with Andy about all of that and more.

This week we feature mandolin player Ashby Frank and talk with him about his work with the many different bluegrass bands that he has performed with over the years, both in his native North Carolina and in Nashville.  We will also talk about his songwriting and his new solo recording.  Additionally, you will get a chance to hear a couple of tunes from that recording.

This week we feature mandolin player Harry Clark.  Harry performs and records with one of the hottest bands in bluegrass music today, East Nash Grass.  We talk with Harry about his early years in Arkansas and follow his bluegrass career up to the present day.

This week we feature fiddle player Deanie Richardson.  Deanie has a long history in bluegrass music and fiddling and is a founding member of the award winning bluegrass band Sister Sadie. We talk with her about her early years playing fiddle contests, her work with the New Coon Creek Girls and various country artists, and the new projects she has been involved with recently.

This week we feature fiddler Christian Ward.  As many bluegrass fans know, Christian joined both the Del McCoury band and the Travelin' McCourys after Jason Carter left those bands.  We talk with Christian about his early bluegrass years in California, his songwriting and joining with the McCourys.

This week we feature Dobro player Andy Hall of the Infamous Stringdusters.  We talk with Andy about his growing up as a rock and metal guitar player and then transitioning into playing the Dobro during his college years at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, his move to Nashville shortly after college and the bands he performed and recorded with there before becoming a founding member of the Infamous Stringdusters 20 years ago.