The premier of the new PBS program “Big Family: The Story Of Bluegrass Music” will be this Friday, August 30, 2019 all across the country.
The program will air on Channel 9, KQED-San Francisco at 9:00pm on Friday. Check local listings for public stations in other areas of California.
The program was produced by Kentucky Educational Television. It examines the history of bluegrass music, from its origins to its eventual worldwide popularity. It presents dozens of musicians, including locals Laurie Lewis and Peter Rowan who explain the ways bluegrass music transcends generational, cultural and geographic boundaries.
PBS says that “Big Family: The Story of Bluegrass Music” provides a comprehensive look at a distinctly American genre of music. The film explores what bluegrass music is, what makes it unique, and key musicians who have shaped its sound. Historical segments trace the beginnings of bluegrass in the traditions of Scots-Irish immigrants and African-Americans and how these influences coalesced in the music of a young rural Kentuckian, Bill Monroe, in the 1920s.
