Pharis and Jason Romero graced Pickathon stages in 2013 and are now nominated this year for a Juno award for Traditional Roots Album of the Year.

Hilary Saunders from Paste Magazine (and longtime friend of Pickathon) writes about how the duo fell in love and began making banjos together.

“Eventually, he recalls, ‘I told myself that when I had six months’ worth of orders I would quit.’ It only took him a year of, what he calls, ‘working after work’ to reach that point.”

“As for Pharis, she remembers falling in love with the sound of Jason’s banjo before they even met. A mutual friend, banjoist and teacher Ivan Rosenberg, bought one of Jason’s first instruments at Wildwood around 2000 and swore by its tone and the creativity ingrained in its maker’s woodworking. He later bought another Romero piece, a 12”Honduran mahogany banjo.”

Read the full story here.