Defining

Defining bluegrass as a musical genre feels like constantly running into a brick wall. There can be conflicting definitions of bluegrass and they are often defined by community practice rather than an encyclopedia entry. However, having a working definition of "bluegrass music" can help begin the search for repertoire. After all, how can you search for something if you don't know what it is? 

The standard narrative situates bluegrass as beginning with Bill Monroe and his Bluegrass Boys (although they weren't all boys at first -- Sally Ann Forrester played accordion in the first iteration of the band). The style emerged in the 1940s, combining elements from blues, jazz, religious music and square dance repertoire into a polished string band performance with high, tight harmony vocals and featuring virtuosic instrumental playing on mandolin, fiddle, banjo, guitar and bass. Common repertoire includes songs and instrumental tunes that feature band members on improvised solos. 

In addition to knowing the traditional definition of bluegrass music, knowing its musical relatives can help expand searches for new repertoire and more diverse artists. A wide array of instrumental and vocal styles including blues, contest fiddling, gospel, jazz, jugband, ragtime, swing and square dance music are all a part of what makes bluegrass music bluegrass. 

Contemporary bluegrass artists encompass many different sub-genres that often fall under the category of "bluegrass." Subgenres such as newgrass, mash bluegrass, progressive bluegrass, new acoustic music, chamber-grass, jam-grass all fall under the bluegrass umbrella but are vastly different. You may have heard of Billy Strings, Molly Tuttle, the Punch Brothers, Allison Krauss, or Mipso -- how do these artists fit under the traditional definition of bluegrass, if at all?

Nusbaum, Philip. “Bluegrass and the Folk Revival : Structural Similarities and Experienced Differences.” In Transforming Tradition : Folk Music Revivals Examined, 203–19. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1993.

Rosenberg, Neil V. Bluegrass: A History. Music in American Life. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1985.

Smithsonnian Folkways. “Bluegrass on Folkways: An American Roots Tradition.” Accessed April 28, 2022. https://folkways.si.edu/bluegrass-folkways-american-roots-tradition/history/music/article/smithsonian.