The Grasstronaughts will be the featured band for Huntsville Traditional Music Association’s Feb. 28 Coffeehouse Concert. Karen Newsum will open the coffeehouse at 7 p.m. in the old country church at Burritt Museum. Advance tickets are available for purchase at https://huntsvillefolk.org/ for $10. Doors open at 6:45 p.m. Tickets will be available at the door for $12 cash. Children 12 and under are free when accompanied by an adult.

The Grasstronaughts is a new, progressive bluegrass band that plays traditional bluegrass tunes and an extensive list of more modern songs not thought of as bluegrass. The group takes a wide range of Americana, Rock, and Folk Rock and converts it with conventional bluegrass instruments for a different bluegrass sound. Some examples of artists covered are; The Beatles, Coldplay, The Civil Wars, Jason Isbell, Steely Dan, Crosby, Stills and Nash, and the Punch Brothers. The band is composed of James Parker (guitar and lead vocals), Huntsville bass icon Nick Walker, Ben Davis (mandolin and vocals), Russ Holder (Dobro and vocals), Lauren Clardy (fiddle), and Phil Riddick (banjo).

Karen Newsum is a singer/songwriter who enjoys writing songs from her life experiences and whimsical pieces for children. Young or old, her audiences delight in her original lyrics and music.

As a non-profit organization, Huntsville Traditional Music Association’s purpose and objective is to preserve and perpetuate traditional music, instruments, and styles of rendition. This includes, but is not necessarily limited to, what is commonly referred to as folk, traditional, and old-time music. HTMA strives to provide wholesome and informative family entertainment in each and every event.

Since HTMA’s objective is to preserve and encourage original and traditional styles and forms of music, the organization emphasizes live performance of music (not recorded or assisted by recordings) using natural, acoustic instruments and unaltered human voices. For more info, please visit https://huntsvillefolk.org.