“My mom went to Juilliard, graduated from Juilliard. She taught us all of our instruments. We performed very high-level classical music, but we never felt a connection with the audience. And that's what we really yearned for.” — Dan Fedoryka
You might not guess that the Fedoryka brothers, the core of the four-piece band Scythian, would have started their musical journey in such a formal setting, judging from their freewheeling, sweat-soaked and jet-engine-loud performances. As spontaneous and loose as you may think they are, however, Scythian is actually leaning hard into that foundational experience with their approach. It is the second part of Dan’s quote that is obvious from the first notes they play on stage, as Scythian is well known for getting their audiences fully engaged in their show — wide swaths of spontaneous dancing, pockets of shoulder surfing, and much of the audience singing along at full volume.
You might not expect that such a scene would be commonplace at a music festival founded on the music of the decidedly non-raucous flat-picking guitar legend Doc Watson and the festival’s namesake, his son and frequent musical partner Merle. But they are a staple at the festival over their now 17-year tenure there, and Doc gave them their first opportunity to play the festival himself.
In April 2026, I caught up with Scythian for a conversation that touched on everything from their first time playing at MerleFest, to their nomadic warrior ancestors from Ukraine and much more. We also dive into brand new music from the band as we salute the memory of Doc and Merle with a hearty toast from their homeland, “Nostrovia!”.
Songs heard in this episode:
“Get There” by Scythian
“Bulgarian Suite” by Scythian, from Paste Studio’s “On The Road” session at the 7th Annual Suwannee Spring Reunion
“Life To Live” by Scythian
Thank you for dropping by! We encourage you to follow this series wherever you listen to podcasts, and to share it with a friend. We are especially grateful for top ratings and your reviews. You can follow this series on social media: @southstories on Instagram, at Southern Songs and Stories on Facebook, and you can view these episodes and a lot more on my YouTube channel, at the handle JoeKendrickNC. We can also send you newsletters via Substack, where you can read the scripts of these podcasts, and get updates on what we are doing and planning in our quest to explore and celebrate the unfolding history and culture of music rooted in the American South, and going beyond to the styles and artists that it inspired and informed.
This is Southern Songs and Stories, where our quest is to explore and celebrate the unfolding history and culture of music rooted in the American South, and going beyond to the styles and artists that it inspired and informed.
- Joe Kendrick
