Trenton Caruthers, of Cookeville, is highly regarded as one of the state’s finest young traditional musicians. Although just twenty years old, Trenton has been playing music actively for a decade, with a specific focus on the fiddle and banjo music of the Cumberland Plateau. As part of the Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program in 2018, Trenton studied with master fiddler Michael DeFosche, of Whitleyville. DeFosche was one of the most respected old time musicians of his generation in Tennessee, with forty-five year’s experience playing fiddle, banjo, and guitar. DeFosche spent decades studying the traditional fiddle repertories and playing styles of Cumberland Plateau fiddlers like Clyde Davenport, John Sharp, Bob Douglas, and Leonard Rutherford—and passed this repertoire and these techniques to Trenton during the apprenticeship program and beyond. Sadly, DeFosche died in 2018 and Davenport, another of Trenton and Michael’s mentors, died in 2020, at age 98.
Trenton, then, feels a direct responsibility to continue to play and now teach this music. “I feel that this beautiful music is very close to becoming extinct,” he explains. “I can only think of three living people that have in depth studied and learned this music and its rich history from “the sources”–that being Michael, Clyde and the Sharp Family. I am the only person in the region now that has poured their heart and soul into preserving this. And since Michael and Clyde have both passed away I’ve been on my own. I’m blessed to have gotten to be around those guys so much.”
As part of the Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program this year, the student becomes the teacher, as Trenton will teach Cumberland Plateau banjo and fiddle music to Emma Tinch, also of Cookeville. For Trenton and now Emma too, the music must be transmitted not just as sounds and styles, but also with the stories and context that have given the art its deeper meaning and connection to place. “While Trenton has been instructing me, he has encouraged and challenged me to not only learn the music, but the history behind it as well,” Emma says. “Trenton has also supported me by attending various competition and music functions, helping me to gain confidence as I progress. I could not imagine a better mentor for myself in this endeavor and I hope to obtain the knowledge needed to play and preserve this music for future generations.”
For Trenton, Emma has already proven a fine student and kindred spirit in the effort to sustain this musical culture. “I tried teaching dozens of people this style,” he says. “Never have I seen someone with as much skill, drive, commitment, and determination to this style as Ms. Emma.”
*This team is funded through a special partnership with the South Arts’ initiative In These Mountains: Central Appalachian Folk Art & Culture.
