The Picker's Guide

The bluegrass site we wished existed.
So we built it.

Our Story

Tony and Phil met in 2008 when Phil was looking for some advice to improve his flatpicking. They worked together on and off for the next two years, but lost touch when Phil moved to Colorado — and didn't see each other for a dozen years, until Tony ended up attending an academic conference where Phil was presenting. They immediately started jamming as much as they could, and Phil shared a project he'd been working on: cataloguing accurate lyrics to many bluegrass jam standards. Tony had been working on something similar, and they decided to join forces to create The Picker's Guide.

The Picker's Guide was designed entirely with the bluegrass community in mind, and Tony and Phil's hope is that it will become a go‑to resource for musicians at all levels. The core of the site will always be free and ad‑free.

Founders
Phil Fernbach

Phil Fernbach

Co‑founder · Boulder, Colorado

Phil Fernbach is a bluegrass fanatic and professor of marketing at the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado, Boulder. By day, he is a cognitive scientist who studies how people think, and he applies insights from his research to improve public discourse and help consumers and managers make better decisions. He also teaches data analytics and behavioral science to undergraduate and Masters students.

His book, The Knowledge Illusion: Why We Never Think Alone, was chosen as an Editor's Pick by the New York Times and explores why we think we know so much more than we do, and the profound implications for individuals and society. He has also written popular press articles for outlets such as the New York Times, Quartz, MarketWatch, and Harvard Business Review, and he regularly gives public talks about his research. He has a Ph.D. from Brown University and an undergraduate degree in philosophy from Williams College.

Phil is a fixture in the Colorado bluegrass scene and has been lucky enough to play bluegrass music throughout the United States and Europe.

Tony Watt

Tony Watt

Co‑founder · Boston, Massachusetts

2024 IBMA Momentum Mentor of the Year award winner Tony Watt has performed throughout the United States, Europe, and on the Grand Ole Opry. He has toured with Alecia Nugent, Leigh Gibson, and Alan Bibey & Grasstowne, and his performance, jamming, and teaching videos on YouTube have over 1.5 million views.

Tony is an Associate Professor at Berklee College of Music in Boston, teaching bluegrass within the Ensemble Department and the American Roots Music Program. He is a graduate of IBMA's Leadership Bluegrass and is the Vice President and Education Co‑Director of the Boston Bluegrass Union. He has organized and taught at various camps, including his own NE Flatpicking Camp.

Tony is also the director of The Bluegrass University, which presents JamVember, a weekend‑long bluegrass jamming "non‑festival" held the weekend before Thanksgiving. He hosts Bluegrass Tuesdays at Lily P's in Cambridge, MA — one of the longest‑running and most successful bluegrass nights in the country — and teaches lessons, classes, and jam sessions throughout the Boston area and anywhere in the world online via Zoom.

Ars Gusev

Ars Gusev

Chief Curator · Saint Petersburg, Russia

Ars Gusev is a bluegrass musician based in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Since 2023 he has led the Rosewood Bluegrass Band and worked to grow the bluegrass community across Russia. His mission is to popularize bluegrass at home — both with the listening public and with musicians coming from adjacent traditions.

Ars hosts a monthly traditional jam in Saint Petersburg, where he draws players from other genres into bluegrass and teaches newcomers the fundamentals of the music's rhythmic feel and jam conventions.

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