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Ralph Stanley (born February 25, 1927, Stratton, Virginia, U.S.—died June 23, 2016, Sandy Ridge, Virginia) was an American banjo player and singer who was a pioneer in post-World War II bluegrass and a leading figure in the early 21st-century revival of interest in that music genre. Stanley grew up in the mountains of far southwestern Virginia, where his mother taught him to play the banjo in the traditional clawhammer style. While other banjo-picking techniques involve...