Anyone who gets Philadelphia’s Broad Street on a bitter cold New Year’s morning might think this will be a story about the Mummers Parade. Nope. In this case, string band has a slightly different connotation. Lovers of old-time music, the kind that predates bluegrass, according to fiddler Fran Lowry, don’t look for fancy costumes and large gatherings of marching musicians. 

Lowry said, “An old-time string band can consist of a fiddle (melody instrument) and guitar, or fiddle and banjo, which is actually the traditional combo for old-time music.” She said she’s determined to introduce old-time music to the Treasure Coast one gig at a time. “There's a lot of bluegrass in the area, and great players. But no old time. But I figure, once people really listen to this music, they'll fall in love.”