Gary Hultman may be from a small town, but he has his sights set on big goals.
The 2012 Indus High School graduate has come a long way from performing around the Midwest with his family band, Sloughgrass. Now, he completed a 16-day tour of Japan, rubbing elbows with Ricky Skaggs and recently joined the Grammy-nominated bluegrass band, The Boxcars.
“I had dreamed about getting to jam with The Boxcars,” Hultman told The Journal in an email this week. “Getting a gig like this was one of my goals so I am excited to see where it will take me.”
Hultman, 20, met The Boxcars’ Adam Steffey at East Tennessee State University, where he is studying bluegrass music in the bluegrass, country, celtic and old-time music program. He is expected to graduate in 2016.
With the recent announcement of John Bowman’s departure from The Boxcars, a release said the band was initially unsure of how to search for a replacement.
“John’s work here as a Boxcar speaks for itself,” Steffey said in the release. “He is one of the highest caliber musicians and singers in our business and will certainly be missed.”
The band members acknowledged that Bowman’s talents could not be duplicated, so their hope was to find someone who was dedicated and driven to make The Boxcars as good as possible. In Hultman, they feel they’ve found that artist.
“Although he is young in age, Gary has talent beyond his years,” Steffey said. “He has the great ability to play what each song needs – never overplaying or showboating, always sensitive to the song and the dynamics that it requires. This is a rare quality in a young player but it seems to come quite naturally to Gary.”
While music may come naturally, Hultman admits his nerves made an appearance during the audition process.
“I was extremely nervous and extremely excited at the same time,” he said. “I had a hard time not over analyzing everything I was playing and being overly critical of myself. But the guys told me they liked my playing and they haven’t fired me yet so I guess I’m doing alright.”
And already, Hultman feels like part of The Boxcar family.
“The guys are all so nice that they just make you feel comfortable right away,” he added of his new bandmates.
In addition to playing the Dobro, Hultman will contribute to the lead vocals of the band as it travels around the United States.
“I had never imagined that a Dobro would fit into their sound,” Hultman said of the band he’s long admired. “Traveling with those guys is amazing because I get to sit and pick the brains of my heroes and hear all these awesome stories they have. I really look up to them and this is a dream come true for me.”
Even though he’s on cloud nine, Hultman said the new gig won’t take a back seat to his studies.
“The guys are all family men and one is a schoolteacher so the schedule really works around my schooling,” he said. “That’s another reason this is like my dream – I can get my education and play with my heroes...I am the luckiest guy in the world and truly blessed.”
