Winners were named in the 24th Annual Chris Austin Songwriting Contest, hosted by MerleFest 2016, following performances by finalists on April 29 during the popular roots-oriented music festival held at the campus of Wilkes Community College in Wilkesboro, North Carolina. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]
Ten selected songwriters or songwriting teams will be afforded the opportunity to perform an original bluegrass song in front of some of the top bluegrass artists and producers in the industry as part of a Sept. 29 Songwriter Showcase during the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) World of Bluegrass in Raleigh, North Carolina. Online applications are due March 31. Judges will consider both the quality of submitted songs and their appeal to bluegrass audiences in making their selections. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]
Bill Keith, a noted five-string banjoist who introduced a melodic style of playing the instrument and designed a specialized type of tuning peg that bears his name, died Oct. 23 at age 75. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]
The Earls of Leicester were the big winners during the International Bluegrass Music Awards show, Oct. 1, at Raleigh, North Carolina’s Duke Energy Center for the Arts. The group –- which pays homage to the musical legacy of Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs and their band, the Foggy Mountain Boys -- took home Entertainer, Album (for its Grammy Award-winning self-entitled debut), Instrumental Group and Gospel Recorded Performance (“Who Will Sing For Me”) of the Year awards. [To continue reading this article and see the list of award winners, click on the headline.]
Danny Barnes, a claw hammer and three-finger-style banjo player from Texas, has been named the recipient of the 2015 Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Banjo and Bluegrass. To continue reading this article, click on the headline.
Popular bluegrass duo Dailey & Vincent will host a television show beginning this fall. The Dailey & Vincent Show, filmed before a live audience at the historic Franklin Theatre in Franklin, Tennessee, debuts on Saturday, September 5 at 9:30 p.m. EST/8:30 p.m. CST on cable network RFD-TV. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]
Thirty artists and bands have been selected to participate in the Bluegrass Ramble series of showcases slated to take place at select venues throughout downtown Raleigh, North Carolina during the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA)’s World of Bluegrass 2015, Sept. 29-Oct. 3. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]
The Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music of America (SPBGMA) presented its 41st Annual Bluegrass Music Awards on February 8, 2015 at the Sheraton Music City Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee. Winners in 23 categories were honored during an awards show that capped the nonprofit organization’s 32nd national convention. [To continue reading this article and see the complete list list of SPBGMA Bluegrass Music Awards winners, click on the headline.]
Balsam Range, Allison Brown, DePue Brothers Band, The Gibson Brothers, Sierra Hull, The Kruger Brothers, Matuto, Mipso, Tim O’Brien, Frank Solivan & Dirty Kitchen, Bryan Sutton and The Travelin’ McCourys were among the bluegrass artists who showcased their talents during the 58th annual conference of the Association of Performing Arts Presenters (APAP), held in New York City, Jan. 9-13. [To continue reading this article, click on the headline.]
Ralph Stanley, a leading exponent of traditional Appalachian music and a founding father of bluegrass, was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences In Cambridge, Massachusetts on Oct. 11. Founded in 1780 to recognize America’s foremost “thinkers and doers,” the Academy counts more than 250 Nobel laureates and 60 Pulitzer Prize-winners among its members. [To continue reading the article, click on the headline.]
Entertainer of The Year, the top honor in the 25th annual International Bluegrass Music Awards – presented Oct. 2 at Raleigh, North Carolina’s Duke Energy Center for the Arts – went to the Tar Heel State’s own Balsam Range. The acoustic quintet also was named Vocal Group of the Year, while member Buddy Melton was voted Male Vocalist of the Year. [To read the full article and see a listing of 2014 International Bluegrass Music Award winners, click on the headline.]
The Boxcars top the list of nominees for the International Bluegrass Music Association’s 25th International Bluegrass Awards, with ten nominations for the band and its individual members. Awards in more than 20 categories will be presented on Thursday, Oct. 2 at 7:30 p.m. EST at Raleigh, North Carolina’s Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts (Memorial Auditorium). [To continue read the full article, click on the headline.]
