Cowboy music is the music of the western united states and Canada related to the traditions, culture, and way of life of people who work livestock, ranch, farm or enjoy horses and other rural lifestyles. It is not "country" music. It goes hand in hand with cowboy poetry. It spans the days before modern transportation when horses dominated peoples lives and has a vibrant, but parochial following today. Wonderful cowboy music and western folklore festivals occur all across the west today. The national cowboy poetry gathering in Elko, Nevada is perhaps the greatest of them all. Early masters include the Sons of the Pioneers and modern artists include Red Steagall, Ian Tyson, Brenn Hill, Wylie, Michael Martin Murphey, Jonie Harms and Don Edwards. It is little known, but represents the "cowboy" way of life.