Bluegrass is a genre of American music that originated in the Appalachian region of the United States. It is characterized by its use of stringed instruments such as the banjo, mandolin, guitar, and fiddle. The term 'bluegrass' was coined by Bill Monroe, who is considered the father of bluegrass music. EARL Scruggs was an influential banjo player who popularized the three-finger picking style of playing the banjo. Lester Flatt and EARL Scruggs were members of the band The Foggy Mountain Boys, which was one of the most popular bluegrass bands of the 1950s and 1960s. The Poa genus of grasses is also known as bluegrass.