Mark Ralph grew up in the Short Creek community of Grayson County, Kentucky. He joined the Grayson County Youth Orchestra when he was eleven years old, and started an ongoing contest fiddling career soon afterwards.
Notable wins include: Kentucky State Fiddling Champion (four times); Tennessee State Fiddling Champion (three times); Indiana State Fiddling Champion (three times); Alabama State Fiddling Champion; Walnut Valley Fiddle Contest in Winfield, Kansas; Lake Superior Open Fiddle Contest in Duluth, Minnesota; Lincoln Heritage National Open Fiddle Contest in Springfield, Illinois, and the TVOTFA Fiddle King in Athens, Alabama. He also has several top ten finishes in the Grand Master Fiddle Championship in Nashville, Tenessee, and in the Grand National Championship in Weiser, Idaho.
Mark played professionally as a member of The Bar-J Wranglers, a western group based in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, during the mid-1980s. He has served as a judge at numerous contests, including the Grand National Championship in Weiser, Idaho, the World Championship in Crockett, Texas, the Grand Lake Contest in Grove, Oklahoma, and the Kentucky and Tennessee State Championships. In addition, he helped revive the Alabama State Fiddling Championship and serves as its chief coordinator.
Mark is a practicing general dentist residing in Huntsville, Alabama, with his wife, Robin, and their three children, Claire, Jake, and Wade. Samples of his playing are available on several National Oldtime Fiddlers’ Championships CDs, as well as on his own Gone to Texas CD.