The 15th annual Wintergrass music festival, featuring a mix of straight-ahead bluegrass, newgrass and beyond performances and workshops by nationally touring and regional artists, is set for February 19-22 at four locations in downtown Tacoma, Washington.
Among the nationally touring acts slated to perform are the up-and-coming young Alaskan bluegrass ensemble Bearfoot, young instrumental quartet The Bee Eaters, Blue Highway (now celebrating its 15th year as a group), Alison Brown Quartet with fiddler-mandolinist Joe Craven, Michael Cleveland and Flamekeeper (2007 and 2008 IBMA Instrumental Group of the Year), Laurie Lewis and the Right Hands, Mike Marshall and Big Trio with Alex Hargreaves and Paul Kowert, The McCoury Boys, The Paperboys, Scythian (whose music is a mix of Celtic, klezmer and gypsy influences), seven-time IBMA Bass Player of the Year Missy Raines and the New Hip, The Steeldrivers, jamgrass trio 3 Ring Circus, Tony Trischka (whose latest recording was named Best Americana Album in the eighth annual Independent Music Awards) and Adrienne Young.
Performing artists from the Pacific Northwest include Molly Adkins and Martin Stevens, Dewgrass and The Urban Monroes, while Belle Monroe and her Brewgrass Boys and the five-piece outfit Hot Buttered Rum hail from northern California. Also in the lineup are Cody Bryant and Riders of the Purple Sage, The Issacs, Monroe Crossing, The Tallboys and Widowmaker.
The McCoury Boys and members of Blue Highway will conduct two days of intensive instrumental instruction at the Murano Hotel as part of the Wintergrass Academy, while Joe Craven and Beth Fortune lead the two-day D’Addario Wintergrass Youth Academy. in the historic RialtoTheater. In addition to concerts and workshops, festival goers can anticipate impromptu jams in the hotel lobbies.
A complete schedule is available at www.acousticsound.org, while daily tickets and weekend passes (including all shows, festival workshops and dances) also may be purchased online.
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