2018 North Carolina Heritage Award recipient Tony Williamson is a visionary musician, composer, musical instrument expert, teacher and mentor. He has played stringed instruments, most famously mandolin, for six decades and has been receiving awards and honors for his music for nearly 50 of those years. Never content to rest on his laurels, today Williamson continues to perform live and travel internationally and has recordings with fresh new concepts in progress. Williamson was born and raised in North Carolina’s rural Piedmont to a family of wood-workers and musicians. After studying at the University of North Carolina, Williamson went on the road with the Bluegrass Alliance, a band whose alumni include Vince Gill, Sam Bush and Tony Rice. His credits also include Alison Krauss, Chris Thile, Earl Scruggs, Bill Monroe, Bobby Hicks, Vassar Clements, David Grisman, Sam Bush, Mike Marshall, Ricky Skaggs, Jerry Douglas, Don Stiernberg, and Robin and Linda Williams of “A Prairie Home Companion” fame. In addition to the prestigious NC Heritage Award, his list of honors includes the IBMA recorded event of the year in 1994.
