Bob Pope

Bob plays flat top guitar and sings for the group. He started learning how to play the guitar in 1963 while living in Puerto Rico. He was strongly influenced by local, Spanish, classical and flamenco guitarists, as well as the '60's era folk boom. It was not until his Army days in 1977, when Bob attended the All America Bluegrass Festival in Louisville, KY, that the bluegrass bug bit him. He bought his first and only steel string guitar that same year and has been playing bluegrass music ever since. He has enjoyed playing in several local bands and can be found "pickin' and grinnin'" once a month at the Nashua Senior Center in New Hampshire. Bob has 3 daughters and 5 grandchildren, and lives in Nashua, New Hampshire with his wife Lisa Greenleaf.

Keith Hillyard

Keith plays the 5-String Banjo. Keith adds over 40 years of experience to the band, having performed all over New England with many of the area's top bluegrass bands. His interest in the banjo and bluegrass music started in the early 1970s listening to WBCN, Boston's innovative alternative FM rock station. It was on that station where he first heard Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs playing "Foggy Mountain Breakdown", the infamous theme to the Bonnie & Clyde movie. But Keith was a big Aerosmith rock fan at the time! His mother Lois and his Aunt Karen gave him his first banjo at the age of 15. With the help of his banjo mentors Herb Rolls, Bill Hall, Bob French and the "Earl Scruggs" instructional book, Keith was soon realizing his dream.

Elise Laflamme

Elise plays fiddle and sings for the group. She started playing the fiddle at the age of 14 when she received a fiddle from her parents as a Christmas present. Elise spent the next 8 years taking lessons with Carl Rebello, a veteran bluegrass fiddler in Dartmouth, MA. It is enough to say that the fiddle is her passion. She loves to fiddle all the time. You can sure tell by her playing. Her influences include Jason Carter, Alison Krauss, Stuart Duncan and Mike Cleveland. The energy she brings to her performances cannot be matched. In addition to Monadnock, you are likely to see her sit in with several bands in the New England area. And be sure to catch her latest venture; Elise Marie and the Flames!

Dan Africk

Dan plays the upright bass and sings for the group. Dan was bitten by the bluegrass bug when his college girlfriend and father brought him to Merlefest in the mid 90’s. He saw Doc Watson, Tim O’Brien, Tony Rice, Alison Krauss and Ralph Stanley perform which continues to inspire him today. Dan moved to NYC after college and attended as many bluegrass jam sessions as he could find. Banjoist Tom Hanway, leader of a downtown session, urged him to listen to and study the Rice and Skaggs duet album. He’s been singing high lonesome harmonies ever since. Dan hosts a weekly bluegrass session of his own in Boston and has played in Boston-based bands such as Flatt Rabbit, Sick Sad & Lonesome, The Vinegar Flies and The Mudsills.