Joe Deetz grew up around the Boston bluegrass scene. He moved to the west coast where he played with Frank Wakefield for several years. After his time with Frank, he moved to Woodstock, NY, to play with the John Herald Band. During this time Joe did some studio work, appearing on projects with Carole King and Sesame Street, among others. He then moved to the Boston area to play with Joe Val and while playing with Joe appeared on a variety of televised shows in the U.S. and abroad. After Joe Val’s passing, Joe played in various bands and recorded on Brian Wilson’s solo album, where both his banjo and vocals were blended with Brian Wilson and the Beach boys. Joe has taught banjo on and off through his career and enjoys coaching new players and helping intermediate and advanced players improve their playing. Joe currently performs with the Rhode Island bluegrass band Rock Hearts.

Growing up in a musical family, Cathy Day began performing at age 10 with her parents and sister in the Rose City Bluegrass Band, which played numerous shows throughout the Northeast U.S. during the 1980s. As a teen, she arranged and taught the harmonies to her band, taught fiddle, bass, and Dobro, and won numerous contests on fiddle, mandolin, and guitar. While she could be found playing any instrument, her fiddling was and still is most often sought after for performances and studio work throughout New England. She was a member of the award winning all-girl band SassyGrass, and the New Hampshire-based band Marcy Hill. She is currently in the Bill Thibodeau Band, Cashel Rock (an Irish Band), The Cicadas (a contradance band) and often freelances with the Cornfed Dogs. She has a passion for passing on bluegrass music and gets the word out as a bluegrass DJ on WHUS 91.7FM in Storrs, CT, demonstrates to kids in the schools, plus still finds time teach in her spare time.

Riley Baugus first came to music through his family in the Blue Ridge mountains of North Carolina. Riley started playing banjo at 10 years old, on an instrument that he and his father built from some scrap wood. He spent most of his early years honing his skills as a musician, singer and storyteller by spending time with many traditional players from the Blue Ridge Mountains. The core or Riley’s style is the Round Peak tradition of Surry County, NC. His teaching focus is mostly on learning many of the possibilities of the banjo, rather than just learning tunes.
Some of Riley’s projects include the award-winning film, “Cold Mountain”, “Raising Sand”, the multi Grammy winning recording by Alison Krauss and Robert Plant, and Willie Nelson’s “Country Music”. Riley spends most of his time either performing, teaching or building his sought after old-time open back five-string banjos.

As banjo player for the award winning Becky Buller Band, one half of the duo Nedski & Mojo, and host of Sirius XM Bluegrass Junction’s Derailed and More Banjo Sunday, Ned Luberecki is known not only for his banjo prowess, but for his wit and humor. Respected as both a traditional and progressive player, Ned toured extensively in the United States and Europe as a member of Chris Jones and the Night Drivers for over a decade before joining the Becky Buller Band. He’s also been a member of Paul Adkins and the Borderline Band, the Rarely Herd, and Larry Cordle & Lonesome Standard Time, and has appeared with such artists as Jim Lauderdale, Tony Trischka, and Ray Stevens.

When not performing and broadcasting, Ned teaches private lessons in Nashville and at music camps and workshops around the world. Additionally, he is the author of Alfred Music Publishing’s Complete Banjo Method.

Dave Dick is a multi-instrumentalist, writer, singer, and producer who also owns D String Guitar Repair where he is repairman and luthier. Dave’s music career spans more than 35 years, playing in several prominent bluegrass groups in the Northeast including Southern Rail, Salamander Crossing, Northern Lights, and Blackstone Valley Bluegrass. Dave has traveled the U.S. extensively and been featured on many recordings. Although most known as a superb five-string banjo player, Dave also is a versatile guitarist. Formerly a producer for CMH Records “Pickin’ On” series, Dave produced tribute albums of The Eagles, Dwight Yoakam, Brad Paisley and The Red Hot Chili Peppers. In 2016 Dave opened D String Guitar Repair, located in Sturbridge, MA, where he provides repairs and restorations for fretted instruments of all types. Dave released his first solo album, entitled “Greenwood” in 2017. The album is a collection of original music written for acoustic guitar.

Greg Cahill has been playing bluegrass banjo since the early 1970s. He formed The Special Consensus in 1973 in the Chicago area and the band became a full time touring (nationally and internationally) and recording entity in 1975. Greg has appeared on all eighteen of The Special Consensus recordings (one received a Grammy nomination and two others received multiple International Bluegrass Music Association [IBMA] awards). He has also released three solo recordings, one European bluegrass music recording and four banjo instructional videos/DVDs. Greg conducts workshops and master classes at bluegrass camps and festivals worldwide, has taught banjo at The Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago for over 40 years and became the first adjunct professor teaching banjo at Columbia College (Strings Department) in Chicago in 2011. Greg has released two banjo tablature books and is a regular contributor of banjo tablature and interviews with notable banjo players for Banjo NewsLetter.