IBMA Names a New Executive Director
The International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) has selected Pat Morris as its new executive director. Morris succeeds Paul Schiminger, who is retiring after nearly six years at the helm of the Nashville, Tennessee-based nonprofit professional music organization that connects, educates and empowers bluegrass professionals and enthusiasts, honoring tradition and encouraging innovation in the bluegrass community worldwide.
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IBMA World of Bluegrass 2021 Update
The International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) and its partners on the City of Raleigh’s local organizing committee have expressed cautious optimism that they will be able to hold a hybrid IBMA World of Bluegrass this fall (Sept. 28-Oct. 2, 2021) with a meaningful and safe in-person component in North Carolina’s capital city, as well as online content.
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FAI Folk Radio Charts – January 2021
Distance and Time by Becky Buller, a Minnesota-based multi-instrumentalist, singer and songwriter, was the most-played album on folk radio during January 2021. Topping the monthly songs chart was “Monumentsa' by singer-songwriter Tret Fure. Tony Rice, the late bluegrass guitar virtuoso who died on Christmas Day, was January’s most-played artist. So say charts compiled by Folk Alliance International based on radio playlists submitted to FOLKDJ-L, an electronic discussion group for DJs and others interested in folk-based music on the radio.
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Tony Rice, Bluegrass Guitar Virtuoso, 1951-2020
Tony Rice, an influential acoustic guitarist and 2013 inductee into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame, died on Christmas Day, Dec. 25, 2020 at his home in Reidsville, North Carolina. He was 69.
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IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards Winners Named
Sister Sadie –- a female quartet featuring Tina Adair, Dale Ann Bradley, Gena Britt and Deannie Richardson –- was the recipient of the coveted Entertainer of the Year award during the 31st annual IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards on October 1, 2020. The reigning IBMA Vocal Group of the Year also retained that distinction, while Richardson was named Fiddle Player of the Year and was also part of the Collaborative Recording of the Year (The Barber’s Fiddle).
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Nominees Announced for 2020 IBMA Awards
Nominees have been named in 17 categories for the 2020 IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards. On June 26, the International Bluegrass Music Association also announced the 2020 inductees into the Bluegrass Music Hall Of Fame and a number of Distinguished Achievement Awards recipients.
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DelFest Hosts Free Virtual Festival Over Memorial Day Weekend
DelFest will stream performances from previous editions of the festival launched by Del McCoury, an acclaimed bluegrass musician, and members of his extended family, May 21-May 24, 2020 -- the originally scheduled festival weekend.
Called DelFest At Home and celebrating musical highlights from DelFests past that have taken place in western Maryland for more than a decade, the free online event will showcase the festival’s namesake and his family, along with other notable bluegrass artists and jam bands.
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Bluegrass Now! Airs on PBS Television Stations
Bluegrass Now!, a television special featuring a wide array of the musical genre’s leading performing artists, will begin airing on PBS stations across the U.S. on Saturday, February 29. Fittingly, it was filmed during a concert on December 19, 2019 at the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum’s Woodward Theatre in Owensboro, Kentucky -- near the home of Bill Monroe, the "Father of Bluegrass Music."
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Folk DJ Radio Airplay Charts – January 2020
Treat A Stranger Right by Frank & Allie Lee, a harmony-driven old time and folk music duo, was the top album and featured six of the 25 most-played songs on folk radio during January 2020. Topping the monthly songs chart was “Hello Stanger” by teenage bluegrass artist Eliza Meyer. The month’s most-played artist was David Olney, a revered folk and Americana singer-songwriter who died last month. So say charts compiled by Folk Alliance International based on radio playlists submitted to FOLKDJ-L, an electronic discussion group for DJs and others interested in folk-based music on the radio.
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SPBGMA Presents its 2020 Bluegrass Music Awards
Carolina Blue was the top winner in the 46th annual Bluegrass Music Awards presented by The Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music of America (SPBGMA) at the Sheraton Music City Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee on Sunday, February 2, 2020. Winners in 19 categories were honored during an awards show that capped the nonprofit organization’s 37th national convention.
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Official Showcase Artists Sought for IBMA Bluegrass Ramble
February 29 is the deadline for artists to submit online applications for Official Showcases during the IBMA Bluegrass Ramble and IBMA Business Conference that are part of the International Bluegrass Music Association’s annual five-day World of Bluegrass, September 29 – October 3, 2020. Considered the genre’s annual industry gathering and family reunion, World of Bluegrass takes place in Raleigh, North Carolina for an eighth consecutive year.
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