"Music is magical." That’s the way singer-songwriter Kari Arnett described the process of creating her latest album, "When the Dust Settles."

For the band Lula Wiles, folk music isn't just about passing on the music, but also passing on the possibility to other women.

For Noel Paul Stookey, one-third of the iconic 1960s folk trio, Peter, Paul and Mary, music still plays an essential role in today's society.

Bluegrass, like so many genres of music, is a mix of styles: old-timey string band music, with a little bit of blues and jazz from down South, some English and Scottish influences from the Appalachian Mountains, and a pinch of gospel music as well. The members of Nashville quartet the Barefoot Movement share how they came upon their version of bluegrass music.

“Where would we be without music?!” That was a question that musician Johnsmith recently pondered during an interview for WPR’s Simply Folk. “Sometimes you’re driving down the road and Simply Folk comes on or some song comes on and you didn’t even think that some issue was up in your heart or like you were stuck about something ... and all of a sudden you got a tear in your eye or you’re really laughing. You’re really thinking about some little thing and it just kind of opens you up.”

Lil Rev and Larry Penn talked with "Simply Folk" host Stephanie Elkins back in September 2013 when they shared a performance of their classic, "I'm a Little Cookie."

We Banjo 3 is a four-piece string band from Galway, Ireland, that plays a blend of music they call "Celtgrass."  This recording is from an in-studio interview the group did on "Simply Folk" on May 5, 2016.

Rivka Maizlish is a doctoral student in the history department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, with a focus on folklore, particularly folk music. She stopped by WPR to talk with Dan Robinson, the host of "Simply Folk," about folk music and her work as a folk historian.

WPR's Sheila Shigley had the good fortune to interview Wisconsin-born artist Jeffrey Foucault this summer, and to capture some great tunes in Buck Studio -- take a listen!

Art Stevenson and High Water brought their brand of traditional bluegrass, sterling instrumental work, and wonderful harmony singing to the Simply Folk Shindig this past June. They’ve been at the heart of the Wisconsin string band community for years, and the crowd loved their performance this summer!