Meet the Members

In 1997, when Chris Steiner responded to a newspaper ad that said, “Learn to play 10 songs on the dulcimer in 2 hours.  Keep the dulcimer. $35”, little did she know where it would lead.  That first dulcimer turned out to be a cardboard mountain dulcimer. Within two weeks, she was performing at the county fair and local nursing homes. A few months later, she saw her first hammered dulcimer, and fell in love all over again.  

In addition to private lessons, Chris conducts workshops and performs at several festivals and venues yearly.  Her vita includes assisting with in-school music clubs and programs, and conducting workshops for school teachers for “Bluegrass in the Schools” in conjunction with the International Bluegrass Music Association in Nashville.  

Chris has been the "Special Event Coordinator" for the Northern Indiana Bluegrass Association for the last 20-plus years.  Her goal is to teach as many people as possible the joys of playing music.  To that end, one of her favorite accomplishments was providing a FREE "Kids on Bluegrass" event where 50 children spent a weekend with master musicians on 5 different bluegrass instruments, were immersed in the bluegrass experience, and then culminated in performing a concert on the main stage.

As someone who never touched a stringed instrument until she was in her 40s, Chris is living proof that you are never too old to learn, and she just LOVES teaching “old dogs new tricks”.

Joe Steiner is a well-respected and innovative instructor on several instruments, and he has several recordings to his credit with various old-time and bluegrass groups. Joe is recognized for his banjo and guitar knowledge and skills, but he is just as comfortable with harmonica, mountain dulcimer and ukelele.  He has been performing, playing and teaching stringed instruments all over the Midwest for over 45 years. 

Joe is the host and programmer of Blue Ridge Breakdown, a bluegrass and old-time music program on WLFC 88.3, University of Findlay, now in his 27th year behind the controls.  You can listen to him any Monday night from 8-10 pm. EST, on www.pulse.findlay.edu/listen-live. 

One of Joe's favorite experiences was teaching banjo at the World of Bluegrass (WOB), International Bluegrass Music Association, in Nashville, TN.  Also, in conjunction with the WOB, along with his wife, Chris, they taught about 200 inner-city kids how to make bucket basses and play them.

In addition to playing Bluegrass music as often as he can get away with it, Joe is the long-time president of the Northern Indiana Bluegrass Association (NIBGA).  NIBGA hosts the TriState Bluegrass Festival twice yearly in Kendallville, Indiana since 1976 - celebrating it's 50th year soon!

In addition to currently performing with Buckeye Roadshow, Joe performs with his wife, Chris, as "Old Time Duo".  

Shari Wolf entered the wonderful world of traditional music in the early 80’s after a friend purchased a hammered dulcimer with the stipulation that she would get her guitar out from under the bed and play with her.   SHE DID and it changed her life forever. 

Shari was a founding member of SWEETWATER (Cindy Funk, Shelley Stevens) an Ohio-based dulcimer/folk trio.  The Sweetwater group performed extensively in the Midwest; held the Shady Grove mountain dulcimer camp for 10 years; performed with author, Sharyn McCrumb in presentations featuring her ‘Ballad Series’ books based in Appalachia; toured in Ireland and the British Isles; toured to the Pacific Northwest and to Northern Ontario.  This trio was a cornerstone of mountain dulcimer music festivals from 1985 until the group’s finale' in 2008.

Since that time, Shari has been involved with other groups including Country Strings and Nine Mile Creek, manages websites for a wide variety of music-related groups, past president of the Mountain Dulcimer Society of Dayton, and music leader for several groups.

 Shari has also been involved in teaching workshops on guitar and mountain dulcimer.  Shari’s passion is to lead jams that invite all playing levels to join in as well as arranging music customized to the strengths of the members.