About John
John and Kathie are natives of Christiansburg, Virginia, and they perform as a duo as well as with Mountain Fling.
John
is an award-winning autoharpist and is internationally known for playing
the instrument in a variety of styles. He was the first winner of the
prestigious Mountain Laurel Autoharp Championship
in 1991, and has been one of the leaders in the explosion of interest
in this American-invented instrument (Bluegrass Unlimited, Feb.
1992). John teaches week-long classes regularly at the John
C. Campbell Folk School in southwestern North Carolina, and often
at the Augusta Heritage Workshops
in Elkins, West Virginia. In 2006 he enjoyed teaching at the Swannanoa Gathering for the first time and will return in 2008. In 2002 he was an autoharp tutor at the Sore Fingers Summer School held in Kingham, England. He has also taught workshops and performed at
festivals in Pennsylvania, Oregon, Wisconsin, New York, Arkansas, California,
Missouri, and North Carolina. John has been the autoharp champion at the
world-famous Galax (VA)
Fiddlers’ Convention nine times, and in 1992, 1993, and 1997
won the coveted “Outstanding Performer” award there, being the
only autoharp player ever to do so. In recent years John has become a
custom autoharp luthier, with his Blue
Ridge Autoharps. John can be heard on the 2003 three-CD set "Autoharp
Legacy" and the “Winfield Winners” series of autoharp
cassettes. John
has served as editor of the Interaction Feature of the journal Autoharp
Quarterly and often contributes to the magazine.