Episode 9: Tony Williamson
b"In this episode, we meet Tony Williamson, a 2018 North Carolina Heritage Award recipient and mandolin virtuoso, whose musical journey has taken him all over. It\\u2019s carried him to stages around the world where he\\u2019s played with bluegrass greats like Bill Monroe, Sam Bush, and Ricky Skaggs. It\\u2019s transported him into a hospital room where he was told he\\u2019d never play music again, and it\\u2019s led him to an Ashram in Taiwan, where he sought reinvention through Eastern philosophy. But before the big successes, crippling accidents, and spiritual awakenings, there was his family\\u2019s home in rural Randolph county and that\\u2019s where it all began. \\n\\nIn this special season of Arts Across NC, we meet the 2018 North Carolina Heritage Award recipients who will be celebrated at a performance and ceremony on May 23, 2018 in Raleigh, NC. These artists are being honored for deepening awareness of the stories, music, and artistry that encompass and define North Carolina's diverse cultural traditions.\\n\\nTickets to the North Carolina Heritage Awards are available at www.pinecone.org. This episode features music by Tony Williamson.\\n_________\\n\\nArts Across NC is a podcast by and about the North Carolina Arts Council.\\n\\nFacebook: @ncarts\\nTwitter: @ncartscouncil\\nInstagram: @ncartscouncil"