Video Finds: Sleepy Man Banjo Boys - Bluegrass Mastery Under the Age of 16
With no member older than 16 years old, the Sleepy Man Banjo Boys might be the world's youngest bluegrass virtuosos.
Below, watch the Mizzone brothers – fiddle player Robbie, guitarist Tommy and banjo player Jonny – perform a blazing three song set during a TED Talk from February 2013.
Sleepy Man Banjo Boys hail from Lebanon Township, New Jersey – a part of the country Tommy jokingly calls “the bluegrass capital of the world.”
The band has recorded a pair of albums - America’s Music and The Farthest Horizon – which charted at #8 and #3 on the Billboard Bluegrass Album chart respectively. According to the band’s bio, they’re already hard at work on their third release. “We’re excited to expand our style of music on the next album, and maybe our audience, too,” says Robbie.
Watch closely as Jonny uses his banjo’s tuning pegs to alter a string’s pitch mid-song – a trick he gracefully pulls off.
Find out more about the Sleepy Man Banjo Boys here.
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Acoustic Nation is written by Laura B. Whitmore, a music industry marketing veteran, music journalist and editor, who has contributed to Parade.com, Guitar World, and others. She has interviewed hundreds of musicians and hosts the She Rocks Podcast. As the founder of the Women’s International Music Network, she advocates for women in the music industry and produces the annual She Rocks Awards. She is the Senior Vice President of Marketing for Positive Grid, making the world safe for guitar exploration everywhere! A guitarist and singer/songwriter, Laura is currently co-writing an album of pop songs that empower and energize girls.
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