Old-time and bluegrass fiddler Tim Gardner has been around traditional music since his early childhood, when he would travel to festivals with his parents, old-time music community pillars Lo and Mary Gordon. He began learning the fiddle at the age of seven, inspired by Kentucky fiddler J. P. Fraley, whom he met at the 1986 Galax Fiddlers Convention.
Gardner was the fiddler for High Windy, a prominent Asheville-area bluegrass band whose first CD, A Greater Storm, was released on Mountain Home Records in 2008. He now plays with other bluegrass, old-time, and folk bands in the region, including the bluegrass band Unspoken Tradition. In addition to his accomplishments in bluegrass and old-time fiddling (he has won high honors at Fiddlers Grove and other events), Gardner is also skilled in classical, country, swing, and Celtic music, and can play a variety of instruments.