BY ANNIE HOLLER
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN

INEZ — In a county where front-porch picking once drifted through hollows and churchyards every evening, a new effort is taking shape to ensure old-time Appalachian music does not quietly slip into memory.

That effort is the Pick and Bow program, a grant-funded initiative bringing free traditional music instruction to Martin County students ages 9 to 18. The program is a collaboration between James L. Webb, operator of James E. Webb Musical Repair and Sales in Tomahawk, the Stidham Old Time Music Association, Appalshop, the Hindman Settlement School and other partners who together secured a $10,000 grant to launch the classes.

Beginning Friday, lessons will take place each Friday that school is in session, from 3:45 to 5:15 p.m. in the Martin County High School auditorium. Students will receive instruction on guitar, banjo, fiddle, dulcimer, mandolin, autoharp and violin.

Snacks will be provided and there is no cost to participate.

Locally, James L. Webb is overseeing the program.

“So far, we have around seven students who have signed up for the no-cost lessons, with several others expressing interest,” Webb said. “Our goal is to have at least 14-15 kids as we go along.”

Instructors for the first class include Webb, his sons Joey Webb and Jimmy Webb, and Peyton Burns.

A defining feature of the program is access.

Webb traveled earlier this week to Chattanooga, Tennessee, to pick up a donation of traditional instruments from Restring Appalachia. Those instruments will be loaned to participating students so they can practice at home. Webb said that students stick with their commitments through the semester will get to keep their instruments.

Guitars4gifts.org provided an additional donation of four guitars.

“I’ve always had a love for working on and repairing musical instruments, a skill I learned from my dad,” Webb said. “Getting your hands on something that needs repaired or tweaked is something that has always brought me joy. But I have to say that the happiness it brings me to place an instrument in the hands of our youth and watch them not only grow as a musician but also in respect for the history and tradition of Appalachian music is truly unmatched.”

Webb said the program’s roots are in memory as much as in music. Growing up in Martin County, he recalls a time when old-time tunes were simply part of daily life.

“Traditional music was something we took for granted because it was a part of our everyday life,” he said. “Then one day you look around and realize that the older musicians have died off and there are very few to fill their shoes. Thankfully, we have artists in the music industry today who love bluegrass and the traditional instruments and have revived interest and appreciation for the art.”

Among those artists, Webb pointed to Tyler Childers and his “Hope in the Hills” charitable organization that has supported Stidham Old Time Music Association and its annual festival in Tomahawk.

Looking ahead, Webb hopes Pick and Bow becomes more than a one-semester offering.

“If this program proves successful and we have enough interest from our students, we have a chance of being funded beyond this one semester, and that is definitely our goal,” he said.

For Webb, the measure of success is simple: Keep the sound alive in the next generation.

For more information about the Pick and Bow program, contact Webb at 502-330-6688.