Cherryholmes

Two unique characteristics of traditional music are the intergenerational, familial nature of many groups. Cherryholmes is overflowing with both.

Dubbed “the first family of bluegrass,” the sextet features mother and father Jere and Sandy Lee Cherryholmes and their children Cia Leigh, B.J., Skip and Molly Kate. In addition to their astonishing instrumental chops, all six members share lead, harmony and backing vocal duties over the course of a performance.

The band got its start just six years ago, following a family road trip to a bluegrass festival. Jere, the musical foundation of the band, returned home convinced that his brood could play. The home-schooled siblings began in earnest on their instruments in 1999, with Cia Leigh switching from guitar to banjo and Skip changing from mandolin to guitar a year later. B.J. and Molly Kate play the fiddle, from the right and left side, respectively. Jere serves as the concert emcee, arranger and double bassist, while matriarch Sandy Lee doubles on mandolin and clawhammer banjo, in addition to her skill as a yodeler.

After releasing a trio of albums independently starting in 2001, the group released a self-titled album on Skaggs Family Records in 2005. That same year, the family received the IBMA (International Bluegrass Music Association) Entertainers of the Year Award. In 2007, Cherryholmes II was released on the same label, and garnered the family their second Grammy nomination.

“What’s truly impressive about Cherryholmes is the very obvious passion and commitment everyone in the family has for this music,” said Tulsa World. “We’ve listened to scores of family bluegrass bands in our time, and rarely have we witnessed a group as focused as this. One got the sense that everyone on stage could not imagine doing anything else but playing this music.”

Close program notes

• Jere Cherryholmes, vocal, bass
• Sandy Lee Cherryholmes, vocal, piano, clawhammer banjo
• Cia Leigh Cherryholmes, vocal, guitar, banjo
• B. J. Cherryholmes, vocal, fiddle
• Skip Cherryholmes, vocal, mandolin, guitar
• Molly Kate Cherryholmes, vocal, fiddle