There is no singular event that brings people together around music like fiddler’s conventions. All across the South, every summer and fall, people gather at state parks and fairgrounds to share their love of traditional music.  Ten years ago the folks at Grassroots (Shakori Hills Festival of Music & Dance) had an idea to start their own fiddler’s convention on a gorgeous 72-acre farm in Silk Hope, NC – The Hoppin’ John Fiddler’s Convention. The convention, like many others, features a competition for bands and individual instruments. What sets Hoppin’ John apart is the cooking competition that for none other than the famous Southern dish – Hoppin’ John. The food and music creates a type of family that only meets a couple times a year, like distant cousins that are drawn together over their love and music. Music Maker is proud to sponsor the Hoppin’ John Fiddlers Convention, it’s part of our mission to cultivate these musical communities, from the Blues scenes at the drink houses in East Winston-Salem to the banjo twanging and fiddle playing at the Hoppin’ John Fiddlers Convention.