Owensboro Community and Technical College will soon be one of only a handful of nationwide schools offering a Bluegrass and Traditional Music program. Beginning this fall, students can enroll in the program to obtain an associate of science in traditional music studies.
Scott Napier, a native of Hazard, KY, is heading up the program. Napier recently led a similar program at Hazard Community and Technical College for 9 years.
“The program will feature songwriting, history, lessons, studio recording, basics, and more,” Napier said. “My position at Hazard was ending, and there wasn’t a better town to create this program in than Owensboro. I am excited to be here and grow the genre.”
The Kentucky Community and Technical College System already has a curriculum and place, and Napier said he looks forward to collaborating with the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame and Museum.
“So far, it’s been a warming welcome between the people at the college and across town,” he said. “We’re looking forward to building everything from the ground up and collaborating with the museum. Right now, we’re forming a vision of where to house the program and what we need to get it running.”
While Napier is an avid bluegrass fan and artist — having toured across the globe and performed with the likes of Tyler Childers — he said the program will encompass and embrace several genres.
“I love all kinds of music — old jazz, rock, and others — and it will show in my teaching,” he said. “I’ll have students show up with their guitars playing Nirvana, and I can relate to that. I like to meet them where they’re at and bridge the game. There are several gateways between current music trends and traditional music.”
He added he also enjoys discovering new music from his students, often learning it and using it in his teachings.
Napier began playing the mandolin as a teenager, beginning his professional career just a few years later. He’s toured in Japan, performed at the Washington Monument on the Fourth of July, participated in a Prairie Home Companion taping with Alison Krauss on G.A.C. TV, and played at The Grand Ole Opry on several occasions.
He continued his career as an artist into the early 2010s, releasing his first solo album in 2010. He later joined Mike Scott and The Nashville Band for a 12-day tour playing bluegrass in Israel — an all-time career moment, he said.
And while Napier thoroughly enjoys playing and performing, he said he’s developed a passion for teaching. In conjunction with teaching in Hazard, he also created a mandolin camp for students of all ages and launched an effort to provide instruments to deserving young artists from Appalachia.
“I’m passionate about being a teacher – it’s more important than being a musician at this point,” he said. “Teachers are magical. It’s amazing to be around teachers and see what they can do and the students’ transformations.”
Napier also contributes to several bluegrass publications and enjoys participating in projects surrounding the genre. He said merging his enthusiasm for playing with teaching is a “dream come true.”
OCTC joins Hazard, Morehead State University, Eastern Tennessee State University, and South Plains College on the short list of colleges and universities with the program. Napier said his classes will host several recitals and performances throughout the year.
“Owensboro is the place to be – these are exciting times, Napier said. “This program strongly aligns with the bluegrass initiative and creates another platform for the genre. I’ve never been a director, but I’m ready for it.”
Napier’s wife, Lauren Price Napier, will join him on this journey. She is also a professional bluegrass musician and part of the Price Sisters, an emerging bluegrass duo.
