Today’s times call for fresh, new, cutting edge ideas. Who will be the first of the group to get the latest iPhone? What’s the best recording equipment to date? Who will create the newest lick or write a song unlike any other?
Tristan Scroggins has taken a different approach to his understanding of music and stepped back to the prehistoric theory of reading books, that’s right, those clunky things we used to carry around in school, to study with. Tristan is very well known for his personal charisma and amazing talent as a mandolin player and singer with Jeff Scroggins & Colorado, even earning him a Instrumental Momentum Award nomination from IBMA this past year. His most recent journey through music doesn’t necessarily have to do with his mandolin, though. It deals with the word “Why.” Why do people love bluegrass music so much? Why has it became a lifestyle for so many? Why does it encompass every fiber of our being?
Tristan has turned back to history to answer these questions. He is gathering every possible book, magazine, article, etc and studying the path of bluegrass music. He is reading his way to understand what makes us bluegrassers tick. Along the way, he is posting reviews of books he has read, and blogs of what he has learned from his own life experiences on the road as a full-time traveling musician. The blog is appropriately title The Why Lonesome Sound. Pretty catchy, huh? His first blog entry is already up. The January 11th posting of How Bluegrass Music Changed My Life and Why You Should Read My Blog has already encountered over 1,000 visitors. This young man’s personality and quick whit shines through in these entries. His writing and thoughts are more than worthy of us taking a few minutes out of our busy schedules to digest what he has to say.
Tristan Scroggins has looked to the past to answer the questions of the present, and solidify a firm understanding of the future of bluegrass music. His quest to know everything he can learn about his favorite music seems to be a great journey and he has offered to share it with his friends and fans. You can join the experience by following him online.
Check it out for yourself, you’ll enjoy the ride with Tristan.
