Josh Goforth strives to ‘keep the musical traditions of Appalachia alive’

By Becky Buller
ETSU Student Writer

June 27, 2000

 

JOHNSON CITY -- For Josh Goforth of Marshall, N.C., keeping the musical traditions of Appalachia alive is just as important as eating and sleeping. Often it’s more important.

This East Tennessee State University sophomore has been “living” music since he began playing the piano in church at the tender age of four. He is now a master of almost every instrument he picks up (his own estimation puts the number between 10 and 15). He teaches private lessons and workshops, composes overtures for wind instruments as well as fiddle tunes, and even records and performs regularly with local groups, all while pursuing a degree in music with the hope of one day conducting either a high school- or college-level brass band.

And why has this 19-year-old phenomenon from Madison County, N.C., chosen to spend his time this way?

“Eighty-five percent of the drive is getting other people started in music and keeping the traditional music alive,” said Goforth. “The other 15 percent is because I have so much fun!”

Despite the rigors of his hectic schedule, Goforth still finds time to compete at a few of the summer’s festivals and conventions. He was crowned “Fiddler of the Festival,” the highest honor given, at the 76th annual Ole Time Fiddler’s and Bluegrass Festival held in May at Fiddler’s Grove Campground in Union Grove, N.C.

“Josh competed with four other fiddlers, who were declared champions in their areas of competition,” said Wanona Van Hoy, whose family has been hosting the festival since 1924. “The competition was very keen, but he did a great job and is truly a good fiddler.”

“It’s an awesome feeling,” said Goforth, “to think that there’s just been some great fiddlers who won it before me, like J.P. Fraley and Ralph Blizard. It’s a really tough competition, (with) some great fiddlers competing. It’s just weird beating out your heroes, but it was a cool feeling to win it.”

Goforth was exposed to “mountain music” all his life but did not become interested in the art form until his sixth grade year, when an uncle gave him a guitar. He then began to see the music differently.

“My other great-uncle showed me some chords, and it took off from there,” he remembered. “I’d go out to jam sessions and see a bunch of people I knew there, but I didn’t know they played. I just got into the whole jam thing, and that’s where I really learned to play, through jams. Never had a teacher.”

It is also interesting to note that none of Goforth’s immediate family are musicians.

“In fact,” he said, “none of my grandparents really played. They sang a few ballads. You’d have to go back to my great-great-grandparents before you’d find music. It just skipped generations down to me.”

What began with the guitar quickly led to a love for the mandolin, banjo, bass and fiddle. Does he prefer one over the rest?

“I play whatever instrument needs to be played or what I feel like playing,” he said. “Sometimes you just feel like playing one instrument more than another. As far as performing, though, I like bluegrass, jazz and swing the best. Just whatever I’m in the mood for.”

Goforth cites Madison County brothers Arvil and Gordon Freeman as being among the important influences on his playing of both bluegrass and old-time fiddle. Other local inspirations include Doug Phillips, Roger Howell and Byrd Ray.

“My influences, as far as professional fiddlers, have been Kenny Baker especially, Bobby Hicks -- all the standard ones,” said Goforth. “The newer guys like Stuart Duncan and Aubrey Haynie -- I love them, too, but I’ve gotten to the point in my playing where I’ve got all these influences (and) I’m in the ‘starting to find my own’ phase. The one more modern player I’ve been influenced by is Vassar Clements, with his bluesy sound. I’ve used that a lot. Vassar’s really been a huge influence on me in finding my own style, but Arvil Freeman is still my favorite fiddler.”

As a freshman, Goforth began sharing his talents with audiences around the Johnson City area last fall.

“He’s so much fun to be around, always positive and always encouraging,” said Beth Lawrence, fellow music education major at ETSU and bassist in Goforth’s school bluegrass group, Whoop ‘grass. Goforth’s ultimate decision to attend the school stemmed from the fact that ETSU has a prestigious, internationally known bluegrass and country music program, one of the few in the country.

“I had a blast this last year in the bluegrass program, just getting to know everybody,” he said. “It’s a great group of people to work with; there’s nobody like them on campus. There’s nobody like us! It’s been one of the best bluegrass bands I’ve ever played with.”

Yet even though Goforth enjoys the performance aspect of the music business, his career plans center on a more stable line of work.

“I hope to teach band and music education, then play music on the side,” he said. “I don’t think I really want to play professionally. That is not to say that if some big, huge band came knocking on my door and said, ‘Would you travel with us?’ that I’d say ‘No.’ I might travel for two or three years, but I couldn’t do that for a living. I hate traveling. My big thing is (that) I want to teach. You never know what’s going to happen with music; you never know when things are going to go out of fashion.”

Goforth is getting a healthy dose of teaching experience this summer as he presents workshops at such notable celebrations as the Blue Ridge Old Time Music Week at Mars Hill (N.C.) College and the Mountain Dance and Folk Festival in Asheville, N.C. It is a far cry from coaching a marching band. However, Goforth plans to keep bluegrass and old-time music in his curriculum after graduation.

“String band music is really overlooked as far as in teaching general music. One of my big goals is to re-educate people about bluegrass and old-time (music). It’s not hillbilly music; it takes really competent musicians, really dedicated musicians, to do this kind of stuff. There’s nothing more difficult when you first start than standing on stage and just improvising, and I feel there’s no other kind of music where you can just get in a crowd and jam.”

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