Andrew Small (3)

Andrew Small is an award-winning multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, and composer who serves as the Artist-In-Residence for the Crooked Road - Virginia’s Heritage Music Trail. Originally from Eastern North Carolina, Andrew holds a master’s degree in music performance from Yale University and has performed around the world with artists including Sierra Hull, Mandolin Orange, and the North Carolina Symphony. He performs in the house band for the PBS television show Farm and Fun Time and tours internationally as bassist for Bill and the Belles. He has also performed or recorded with Jim White, The Maes, Oh Pep!, Rachel Baiman, Chris Henry and the Hardcore Grass, Grant Gordy, One Up Two Down, George Jackson, The Davidson Brothers, The Haywood Billy Goats, Five Mile Mountain Road, The New Ballards Branch Bogtrotters, The Alum Ridge Boys & Ashlee, and Ashlee Watkins & Andrew Small. An avid proponent of traditional music styles from the Blue Ridge region, Andrew completed a Virginia Folklife Apprenticeship with master fiddler and National Heritage Award-recipient Eddie Bond of Fries, VA. Andrew is a former Bluegrass Mandolin Champion of Australia and his old time string band The Alum Ridge Boys & Ashlee won first place at the 85th Annual Old Fiddlers' Convention in Galax, VA. He performs old time, bluegrass, and country music in the duo Ashlee Watkins & Andrew Small, and together they host The Floyd Radio Show at the historic Floyd Country Store. Highly accomplished as a vocalist and multi-instrumentalist, Andrew is proficient on fiddle, mandolin, banjo, guitar, mountain dulcimer, double bass, bass guitar, and piano. Andrew’s original music has been featured on radio, recordings, podcasts, film, and television, and he has collaborated with teams from the Duke University Center for Documentary Studies and the Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media at George Mason University. With Ashlee Watkins, Andrew composed theme music and recorded soundtracks for the PBS documentary film Rock Castle Home and for the podcast The Green Tunnel. In 2021, Andrew was awarded first prize in the bluegrass category for his song "Yesterday's Blues" at the 29th Annual MerleFest Chris Austin Songwriting Contest.