Appalachian Sky Band

Appalachian Sky is the fiddling of native Appalachian musician Shawn Craver, the deft groove of Joshua Luper's Collings dreadnought guitar, the cutting-edge beats of former metal-head turned bones player Jeremy Blaes, and the precision three-finger Gibson banjo playing of Cassi Dahlinger. The band specializes in traditional pre-bluegrass Appalachian music, including centuries-old fiddle tunes and haunting mountain ballads.


Shawn Craver - fiddle, vocals, stories.

Shawn is a 4th generation Appalachian multi-instrumentalist and singer of traditional songs. Known for his intense and emotional fiddling, he's torn down the stages of college campuses, concert series, and festivals throughout the country. Shawn is also a 5 time Maryland State Banjo (oldtime) Champ, Mid-Atlantic Mandolin Champ and his unique versions of tunes and songs learned from family and friends in the Potomac Highlands form the foundation of Appalachian Sky.

Joshua Luper - guitar.

Joshua burst onto the Wichita, Kansas music scene in 2009 as the guitarist playing hundreds of shows with Kansas's most prolific string band, Raging Sea. Though coming from a "Winfield" family, as a teenager Joshua developed a taste for rock and blues and provides the eclectic backdrop for Appalachian Sky. Ever experiementing with arranging fiddle music, Joshua and Shawn sometimes branch out as a duo to explore even more subleties of the rare tunes.

Jeremy Blaes - percussion, dancing.

Jeremy "Blaze" Blaes began his musical career as a Heavy Metal drummer until he found himself at the Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield, Kansas playing the bones. His sense of timing with the bones is precise and he makes the simple instrument sing in an intricate danceable groove. Jeremy's deft use of the washboard turns it into a sophisticated instrument and his love of flat-foot dancing make Jeremy a force in the current Old-Time music scene.