John Harrod

BIOGRAPHY

John Harrod has documented, recorded, and performed traditional music for more than 40 years. Born and raised in Shelby County, Kentucky, he has a B.A. from Centre College (1967) and an M.A. from Oxford University (1969) which he attended as a Rhodes Scholar. Recently retired, he taught history and English at Owen County High School (16 years) and Frankfort High (8 years).

In the 1970s and ’80s, Harrod played with a number of bands including the Progress Red Hot String Band, the Bill Livers String Ensemble, and the Gray Eagle Band that re-introduced traditional musicians such as Bill Livers and Lily May Ledford to Kentucky audiences. During this time he also worked for three years as a Kentucky Arts Council folk artist-in-residence in Wolfe, Estill, and Trimble Counties.

Along with Mark Wilson and Guthrie Meade, Harrod has produced a series of field recordings of Kentucky fiddle and banjo players that is available on Rounder Records. His extensive field recordings are housed at both the Kentucky Center for Traditional Music at Morehead and Berea College. He has taught fiddle and conducted workshops at the Augusta Heritage Center, the American Festival of Fiddle Tunes in Port Townsend, Washington, the Berea College Celebration of Traditional Music, and the Cowan Creek Mountain Music School. He continues to perform with Kentucky Wild Horse, a band that highlights the connections between traditional music and bluegrass. In 2004, Harrod received the Folk Heritage Award of the Governor’s Awards in the Arts for his work in traditional music.