Gems of Bluegrass

Series produced by Philip Nusbaum

Series image

short modules about bluegrass music

Each under 5-minutes, highly produced "Gems of Bluegrass" module discusses a key element of bluegrass music. Some Gems of Bluegrass relate to a particular bluegrass style or sub style, repertoire, commonplace bluegrass themes, playing techniques or study the work of a particular artist.

Each Gem of Bluegrass contains snips of music taken from CD, along with Phil Nusbaum's commentary. Phil is an experienced radio producer, bluegrass scholar and bluegrass performer.

Each Gem of Bluegrass also appears on the Bluegrass Review broadcast with the same number. (The Bluegrass Review is a one-hour bluegrass show available free of charge from PRX, or from Phil Nusbaum. For information on the show, see the Bluegrass Review listing on Phil Nusbaum's section of the PRX website or go to www.bluegrassreview.com.

Gems of Bluegrass fit well on established Bluegrass or folk shows, and can be used to forward promote the Bluegrass Review. Hide full description

Each under 5-minutes, highly produced "Gems of Bluegrass" module discusses a key element of bluegrass music. Some Gems of Bluegrass relate to a particular bluegrass style or sub style, repertoire, commonplace bluegrass themes, playing techniques or study the work of a particular artist. Each Gem of Bluegrass contains snips of music taken from CD, along with Phil Nusbaum's commentary. Phil is an experienced radio producer, bluegrass scholar and bluegrass performer. Each Gem of Bluegrass also appears on the Bluegrass Review broadcast with the same number. (The Bluegrass Review is a one-hour bluegrass show available free of charge from PRX, or from Phil Nusbaum. For information on the show, see the Bluegrass Review listing on Phil Nusbaum's section of the PRX website or go to... Show full description


363 Pieces

Order by: Newest First | Oldest First
Caption: Phil w/ 2012 Zeitfunk, Credit: Karen Van Norman
Bluegrass has evolved greatly over time. Perhaps the greatest change is in how the voice sounds. It’s more like pop music toady, and the reason mig...

  • Added: Jul 22, 2012
  • Length: 07:25
Caption: Phil w/ 2012 Zeitfunk, Credit: Karen Van norman
From the mid 50’s onward rock and roll captured a big share of the music market, and from the 1960’s onward, it was apparent that rock and roll was...

  • Added: Jul 22, 2012
  • Length: 10:04
Caption: Phil w/ 2012 Zeitfunk, Credit: Karen Van Norman
Mike Seeger died in 2009. At a distance of a few years, it’s good to assess his contributions as a player and promoter of the music. And when you d...

Bought by WMMT


  • Added: Jul 15, 2012
  • Length: 10:24
  • Purchases: 1
Caption: Phil w/ 2012 Zeitfunk, Credit: Karen Van Norman
In the 1920’s there was a lot of idiosyncratic old time music recorded. But by the bluegrass era, there were fewer idiosyncrasies and more that was...

  • Added: Jul 13, 2012
  • Length: 08:19
Caption: Phil w/ 2012 Zeitfunk, Credit: Karen Van Norman
Since Bluegrass came into existence, there has been a vague feeling that the electric guitar somehow did not fit in a bluegrass band. But why? Toda...

  • Added: Jun 29, 2012
  • Length: 06:57
Caption: Phil w/ 2012 Zeitfunk, Credit: Karen Van norman
The 1920’s was a great era for country music recordings, but it was an era that ended with the Great Depression of the 1930s. The depression caused...

  • Added: Jun 28, 2012
  • Length: 08:26
Caption: Phil with 2012 Zeitfunk, Credit: Karen Van Norman
In the early days of sound recording, in the early and mid 1920s, record labels recorded many local instrumental and singing groups. But no really ...

  • Added: Jun 23, 2012
  • Length: 10:21
Caption: Phil w/eitfunk 2012, Credit: Karen Van Norman
The fiddle has the longest tradition in bluegrass music. Now there exist banjo tunes, mandolin tunes, but by far, there are more fiddle tunes. But ...

  • Added: Jun 19, 2012
  • Length: 06:47
Caption: Phil w/ 2012 Zeitfunk, Credit: Karen Van norman
Bluegrass songs evolve for all sorts of reasons. Take footprints in the snow. There’s more than one way you can understand the song, which begins w...

  • Added: Jun 06, 2012
  • Length: 04:40
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What catches the ear in a song? It could be the beat, or it could be the story. And in some cases, it just could be the words chosen to relate the ...

  • Added: Dec 29, 2012
  • Length: 05:45
Caption: Phil w/ 2012 Seitfunk, Credit: Karen Van Norman
Today it is commonplace to acknowledge the extent of Bill Monroe’s contribution to bluegrass music: The instruments used, their function in a band...

  • Added: May 21, 2012
  • Length: 07:44
Caption: Phil w/2012 Zeitgeist, Credit: Karen Van norman
Bill Monroe’s band was called the Bluegrass Boys after his home state of Kentucky. It was considered part of country music, and bands that adopted ...

  • Added: May 15, 2012
  • Length: 08:03
Caption: Phil with 2012 Zeitfunk, Credit: Karen Van Norman
We know that bluegrass music is blue. The most obvious examples are the seemingly limitless number of songs about lovers breaking up. But in bluegr...

  • Added: May 08, 2012
  • Length: 05:15
Caption: Phil w/ 2012 Zeitfunk, Credit: Karen Van Norman
In the early twentieth Century jazz and country music both had bad reputations among members of the music establishment. For one thing, with a lack...

  • Added: Apr 30, 2012
  • Length: 07:23
Caption: Phil w/2012 Zeitfunk, Credit: Karen Van Norman
If you think that folk music means singer with guitar, then bluegrass is not really folk. But before you slam the door on the idea of bluegrass bei...

Bought by KKRN


  • Added: Apr 30, 2012
  • Length: 06:21
  • Purchases: 1
Caption: Phil w/ 2012 Zeitfunk, Credit: Karen Van Norman
A recent Gem of Bluegrass addressed the recontexting of bluegrass songs. Take a bluegrass song or bluegrass approach and combine it with ideas from...

  • Added: Apr 19, 2012
  • Length: 10:53
Caption: Phil Nusbaum w/2012 Zeitfunk, Credit: Karen Van Norman
When you play bluegrass or any type of old time music, you rely on your ear. Sure, some of the music written down, but if you rely solely on writte...

  • Added: Apr 16, 2012
  • Length: 07:27
Caption: Phil w/ 2012 Zeitfunk, Credit: Karen Van Norman
One of the great things about bluegrass is that it is always changing, always evolving. The 60’s was an era with a lot of change, and it may be hap...

  • Added: Apr 11, 2012
  • Length: 08:28
Caption: Phil w/2012 Zeitfunk, Credit: Karen Van Norman
We know that bluegrass evolves over time. But what causes the evolution? Usually we think it’s caused by the little changes made by players. But wh...

  • Added: Apr 06, 2012
  • Length: 09:33
Caption: Phil w/ 2012 Zeitfunk, Credit: Karen Van norman
The House of the Rising Sun. It’s an old time song that’s been kept alive by a lot of singers. Why do singers like it? It might be that it sings of...

  • Added: Mar 28, 2012
  • Length: 08:34