50 free Alison Krauss trivia questions with answers — music quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
This Alison Krauss trivia quiz covers the Illinois fiddle prodigy who signed to Rounder Records at 14, joined the Grand Ole Opry at 21, and became the most Grammy-decorated woman in history until Beyoncé caught up. The easy questions cover the landmarks: her instrument, her band, the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack, and the two albums with Robert Plant. From there the quiz moves through the Union Station line-up, the Cold Mountain songs she sang at the Oscars, her Nickel Creek productions and her only No. 1 hit. The harder half is for the die-hards: the county fair where it all began, the band that had to change its name from Silver Rail, the Buffy the Vampire Slayer placements, the $2 million Oscar sandals, the Phish and Def Leppard guest spots, and the 2025 return of Union Station with Arcadia. Every answer was checked against Alison Krauss's encyclopaedia entry before publishing. If you enjoy this, try our Robert Plant, bluegrass and country music quizzes next.
30 of 50 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01At what age did Krauss begin classical violin lessons, at her mother's insistence?
Five
She was reluctant to practise but stuck with classical lessons until she was eleven, by which time bluegrass had won her over.
Q 02What was Union Station first called, before bassist John Pennell found another band had the name?
Silver Rail
Krauss joined Pennell's band at 12, replacing fiddler Andrea Zonn.
Q 03Krauss was born in Decatur and raised in Champaign, both in which state?
Illinois
Champaign named a block of West Hill Street 'Honorary Alison Krauss Way' in 2015.
Q 04Krauss's 2007 collaboration with Robert Plant, which won Album of the Year, was titled what?
Raising Sand
A sequel, Raise the Roof, followed in 2021 and the pair toured as a duo.
Q 05As of 2025 Krauss has won how many Grammy Awards, the fourth-highest total of anyone?
27
Only Beyoncé, Quincy Jones and conductor Georg Solti have more.
Q 06Krauss and Union Station featured heavily on the soundtrack of which 2000 Coen brothers film?
O Brother, Where Art Thou?
The soundtrack sold over seven million copies and won Album of the Year; she skipped an on-screen role because she was pregnant.
Q 07Whose vocals on 'I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow' were used for George Clooney's character in O Brother?
Dan Tyminski
Tyminski, Krauss's Union Station guitarist and mandolinist, first met her at a bluegrass festival around 1984.
Q 08Krauss signed with which independent label in 1985, at age 14?
Rounder Records
Her Rounder contract required her to alternate solo albums with Union Station albums.
Q 09What was the title of Krauss's 1987 debut album, released when she was 16?
Too Late to Cry
Union Station backed her; Two Highways in 1989 was her first album credited to the group.
Q 10Krauss joined the Grand Ole Opry in 1993 at what age, making her its youngest cast member at the time?
21
She was the first bluegrass artist to join the Opry in 29 years.
Q 11Krauss's cover of which Keith Whitley song reached No. 3 on the country chart in 1995?
When You Say Nothing at All
It came from the double-platinum compilation Now That I've Found You, and she later sang it at the White House.
Q 12Krauss's only No. 1 hit came in 2000 with a vocal credit on which song?
Buy Me a Rose
Her later duet 'Whiskey Lullaby' won CMA awards but stopped short of the top.
Q 13Krauss's duet 'Whiskey Lullaby' was recorded with which country star?
Brad Paisley
It appeared on his album Mud on the Tires and won the CMA's Musical Event and Music Video of the year.
Q 21At what age did Krauss enter her first fiddle contest, at the Champaign County Fair?
Eight
She placed fourth in the novice division; her mother had bought a bluegrass instruction book and a Richard Greene album to prepare her.
Q 22At 13, Krauss won the fiddle championship at which Kansas event?
Walnut Valley Festival
The Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass in America named her 'Most Promising Fiddler in the Midwest'.
Q 23Besides music, which sport did Krauss pursue seriously as a girl before choosing a musical career?
Roller skating
She said she chose music over roller derby in her teens.
Q 14Krauss sang two Oscar-nominated songs from which 2003 film at the Academy Awards?
Cold Mountain
Both songs were performed live at the ceremony, one with Elvis Costello and T Bone Burnett and the other with a former Police frontman.
Q 15At the 2004 Oscars Krauss wore a pair of $2 million 'Cinderella' sandals by which designer?
Stuart Weitzman
They carried 565 diamonds and had to go back, but she kept the crystal-covered smartphone he gave her.
Q 16Which renowned Dobro player joined Union Station in 1998, having played on Krauss's records since 1987?
Jerry Douglas
He replaced mandolinist Adam Steffey.
Q 17Krauss produced the first two albums of which bluegrass trio, earning her first producer Grammy?
Nickel Creek
This Side, their 2002 follow-up, brought the award; she has also produced the Cox Family, Reba McEntire and Alan Jackson.
Q 18What Billboard 200 peak did Krauss's 2011 album Paper Airplane reach, her highest ever?
No. 3
Production dragged on because of her non-stop migraines.
Q 19Krauss's 2017 album Windy City, her first solo release in 17 years, was produced by whom?
Buddy Cannon
It collected country and bluegrass classics on Capitol Records and earned two Grammy nominations.
Q 20Union Station's 2025 album, their first since 2011, is titled what?
Arcadia
It came out in March 2025 and was followed by an extensive tour.
Q 24Krauss's father owned a house in Urbana that appeared on the debut album cover of which emo band?
American Football
Fred Krauss, a German immigrant, taught his native language while earning a psychology doctorate before going into real estate.
Q 25Krauss's brother Viktor became a professional player of which instruments?
Double bass and piano
He played on her 1986 recording debut, the independent album Different Strokes.
Q 26Which TV series featured Union Station's 'It Doesn't Matter' and 'That Kind of Love'?
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
'It Doesn't Matter' opened the show's second season and made the Buffy soundtrack album.
Q 27Krauss's cover of 'Baby, Now That I've Found You' was used in which hit Australian comedy?
The Castle
The song was originally a hit for the Foundations.
Q 28Krauss sang on 'If I Could', a 1994 track by which jam band?
Phish
She recorded the vocals in Los Angeles in 1993 for the album Hoist.
Q 29Krauss's 1994 single with Shenandoah, her first country top-ten, was titled what?
Somewhere in the Vicinity of the Heart
It won the Grammy for Best Country Collaboration with Vocals.
Q 30Krauss's 2007 duet 'Missing You' revived a 1984 hit with its original singer. Who?
John Waite
It appeared on the collection A Hundred Miles or More alongside duets with James Taylor and Natalie MacMaster.