A Traditional Music Lover

I remember mom making me a cigar-box and rubber band guitar when I was three years old. Roy Clark and Buck Owens were my heros. I played around at a cheap guitar in junior high but never got the hang of it. I taught myself mouth harp by ear at 11 and played in band through my freshman year in college. In high school, while my friends listened to Pink Floyd and The Cars, I had bootleg cassettes of Flatt and Scruggs and Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. My interest in making traditional music myself was piqued when my brother got a mountain dulcimer. Hey, I could play this, I thought after strumming around a bit. So I bought one. That was in 1990. Shortly after, I started playing around on tinwhistle. My early efforts on recorder were a big help there. Joined the Prairie Dulcimer club in about 1993 for several years and learned how to play nice with others. I've attended various festivals and taught/been taught in classes. Began regular session jamming in about 2002. Took up guitar in 2006 and had half a dozen lessons (still not very good and find it a challenge). Fell in love with the mandolin in Fall 2008 and have been playing (self-taught) since then. My favorite website is YouTube! Last night my oldest son said, Dad, are you so desperate to jam that you have to play with complete strangers on YouTube. Yes, son, I am. And that about strums (er, sums) it up! My YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/mgwhitehead