Alita was born Alita Stoneking on April 17th, 1980. She is a fifth-generation fiddle player on her father’s side, as well as inheriting musical talen from her mother’s side. She grew up learning to back up her father, Fred (one of the great Missouri fiddlers), on the guitar. One day, he handed her a fiddle and said, “Play Faded Love.” She did! Fiddling was in Alita’s blood; once she picked it up, she never wanted to put it down again.
Since that time, she has traveled thousands of miles to contests and music festivals all over the country, winning countless contests as well as judging many others. Alita has been teaching and giving workshops around the country for a number of years, and is also much sought after as a back-up guitarist all across Missouri.
Alita has had many influences on her playing over the years. Her father was both an exceptional dance fiddler and a contest fiddle player, and Alita has drawn on that feel, along with influences from Major Franklin, Norman and Vernon Soloman, Dick Barrett, Terry Morris, and Orville Burns, among others.
Alita has now married and lives in Minnesota, where she still plays music regularly with her husband, Tom Weisgerber. Tom was also one of Alita’s favorite players growing up, and, coincidentally, she is a favorite of Tom’s, too.