WILKESBORO, NORTH CAROLINA — From the good folks at MerleFest:
2023 marks MerleFest’s 35th festival and, as previously announced, will honor Doc Watson’s 100th birthday year through musical collaboration and commemoration over the weekend of April 27-30, 2023, in Wilkesboro, North Carolina.
As part of this year’s celebration, MerleFest, presented by Window World, will premiere”My Name Is Merle,” Director Robert Kinlaw’s latest documentary, on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. at the Walker Center.
Chronicling the rise and continued legacy of North Carolina’s favorite community fundraiser turned renowned music festival, “My Name Is Merle”was produced by EducationNC.
Immediately following the premiere at the festival, EdNC will be publishing the documentary online, freely accessible by all at EdNC.org and on the MerleFest YouTube channel.
The Del McCoury Band and The Po’ Ramblin’ Boys featuring Bobby Osborne are among the featured acts
RALEIGH – The International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) has announced the initial lineup of artists and ticket information for IBMA Bluegrass Live! powered by PNC, a two-day festival at the 2023 IBMA World of Bluegrass®. Tickets for the festival, which will be held Sept. 29-30 in Raleigh, N.C., will go on sale in April, a press release.
The live weekend performances will take place at Red Hat Amphitheater and on additional stages in downtown Raleigh. Reserved tickets for the Red Hat Amphitheater performances start at just $50 for IBMA members.
IBMA Bluegrass Live! powered by PNC is part of the five-day IBMA World of Bluegrass event, billed “The Most Important Week in Bluegrass,” which also includes the IBMA Business Conference, the IBMA Bluegrass Ramble showcase series and the 34th Annual IBMA Bluegrass Music Awards, Sept. 26-30. Tickets and hotel reservations will open for IBMA members in April. More information is available at the IBMA World of Bluegrass website, worldofbluegrass.org.
“We are excited to announce the initial lineup of special world-class performances featuring IBMA Hall of Famers for this year’s IBMA Bluegrass Live! powered by PNC,” said Pat Morris, executive director of IBMA. “The IBMA experience in Raleigh, for fans and professionals alike, is unmatched and we look forward to an exciting week of fantastic music from award-winning artists with amazing guests. We are so thrilled to feature two beloved Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame members – Bobby Osborne and Del McCoury. If you love bluegrass, this is a week you won’t want to miss! Stay tuned for more exciting announcements.”
As in years past, events during IBMA World of Bluegrass will take place at the Raleigh Convention Center, the Martin Marietta Center for the Performing Arts, the Red Hat Amphitheater and at various venues in town.
“When people in Raleigh talk about this festival they often refer to the event simply as Bluegrass,” says David Brower, Executive Director of PineCone and Producer of the Festival. “They’ll say, ‘Are y’all going to bluegrass in September?’ I love it and think it’s perfect shorthand as in Raleigh the word bluegrass means fun, family and good vibes. We’re proud that the music is so rooted in our town.”
IBMA – the International Bluegrass Music Association – is the non-profit music association that connects, educates, and empowers bluegrass professionals and enthusiasts, honoring tradition and encouraging innovation in the bluegrass community worldwide. IBMA Bluegrass Live! powered by PNC, featuring the best of the best in bluegrass today, helps benefit the IBMA Trust Fund—a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that assists bluegrass professionals during financial emergencies—and introducing the music to thousands of new fans every year.
PineCone is the Piedmont Council of Traditional Music. It is a Raleigh-based nonprofit that serves as the official local host and festival producer for IBMA’s World of Bluegrass. It was founded in 1984 by a group of friends looking to preserve, present and promote music and dance that’s rooted in the Piedmont. PineCone hosts year-round events that highlight rich and diverse musical traditions that’ve been passed down informally for generations. There’s more about PineCone’s concerts, jam sessions, workshops, camps, youth programs and weekly radio show at pinecone.org.
Raleigh Convention and Performing Arts Complex is home to four pristine venues in Raleigh, North Carolina. Owned and operated by the City of Raleigh, the Raleigh Convention Center, the Martin Marietta Center for the Performing Arts, and Red Hat Amphitheater are located within a two-block radius in the heart of Downtown Raleigh and welcome approximately one million visitors annually. Nearby, the City of Raleigh-owned Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek welcomes roughly 300,000 people each season.
Greater Raleigh Convention and Visitors Bureau (Visit Raleigh) — As the official destination marketing organization for Wake County, the Greater Raleigh Convention and Visitors Bureau (Visit Raleigh), is responsible for promoting Wake County as an attractive travel destination and enhancing its public image as a dynamic place to live and work. Through the impact of travel, the organization strengthens the economic position of and provide opportunity for people throughout Wake County. Raleigh, N.C./Wake County welcomes nearly 16 million visitors annually whose spending tops $2.3 billion. The visitor economy supports more than 21,000 local jobs in Wake County and generates $243 million in state and local tax revenues, saving each Wake County household $592 in taxes annually. visitRaleigh.com
PNC Bank, National Association, is a member of The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE: PNC). PNC is one of the largest diversified financial services institutions in the United States, organized around its customers and communities for strong relationships and local delivery of retail and business banking including a full range of lending products; specialized services for corporations and government entities, including corporate banking, real estate finance and asset-based lending; wealth management and asset management. For information about PNC, visit www.pnc.com.
The City of Raleigh is the capital of North Carolina, home to several colleges and universities, with a vibrant performing arts community. Fueled by an impressive mix of education, ingenuity and collaboration, North Carolina’s capital city has become an internationally recognized leader in life science and technology innovation.
WILKESBORO, NORTH CAROLINA — The annual MerleFest Band Competition participants have been announced by organizers of the 35th festival, which will be held April 27-30 on the campus of Wilkesboro Community College.
Since the festival’s inception, MerleFest has fostered and provided opportunities to up-and-coming musicians, songwriters, local and regional artists, and other unknown talents from around the country. MerleFest continues that tradition each year by inviting eight groups to not only perform during Saturday’s events but also compete for the chance to perform on the Cabin Stage in front of thousands of festival goers.
The Band Competition performances will take place on MerleFest’s Plaza Stagefrom 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 29, and the winner of the coveted spot on the Cabin Stage’s Sunday lineup will be announced at 4 p.m.
This year’s Band Competition will include: Ashes & Arrows (Asheville, NC) Casey Noel (Greensboro, NC) Crystal Fountains (Charlotte, NC) Colin Cutler (Greensboro, NC) The Greenliners (Asheville, NC) The Letter Show (Charleston, SC) Red Eye Gemini (Charlotte, NC) Reedy River String Band (Greenville, SC)
“For some, performing at the nation’s largest Americana music festival is a springboard for their musical careers, while for all the participants it is a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” said longtime MerleFest Band Competition host Mark Bumgarner in a press release. “The level of talent has been incredible and continues to wow the crowds each year.”
Hosted by Kris Truelsen and his house band Bill and the Belles, “Farm and Fun Time” is recorded for broadcast television on Blue Ridge PBS, East Tennessee PBS and PBS North Carolina
Sam Bush There was only one prize-winning teenager carrying stones big enough to say thanks, but no thanks to Roy Acuff. Only one son of Kentucky finding a light of inspiration from Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys and catching a fire from Bob Marley and The Wailers. Only one progressive hippie allying with like-minded conspirators, rolling out the New Grass revolution, and then leaving the genre’s torch-bearing band behind as it reached its commercial peak.
There is only one consensus pick of peers and predecessors, of the traditionalists, the rebels, and the next gen devotees. Music’s ultimate inside outsider. Or is it outside insider? There is only one Sam Bush.
In 2009, the Americana Music Association awarded Bush the Lifetime Achievement Award for Instrumentalist. Punch Brothers, Steep Canyon Rangers, and Greensky Bluegrass are just a few present-day bluegrass vanguards among so many musicians he’s influenced. His performances are annual highlights of the festival circuit, with Bush’s joyous perennial appearances at the town’s famed bluegrass fest earning him the title, “King of Telluride.”
Electrified Appalachian folk band Annabelle’s Curse has gathered quite the following in the mid-Atlantic region and beyond with a reputation for captivating, high-energy shows. After more than a decade together, the band has become a staple at Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion and tickets for their performances are always in high demand. Annabelle’s Curse makes its first appearance on Farm and Fun Time for this special Paramount Bristol edition of the program. A great venue in which to experience the music of this original and captivating act.
Bill and the Belles Based in Johnson City, Tennessee, Farm and Fun Time house band Bill and the Belles is known for combining a stringband format with their signature harmonies, candid songwriting, and pop sensibilities. Composed of Kris Truelsen on guitar, fiddler Kalia Yeagle, banjo/banjo-uke player Aidan VanSuetendael, and bassist Andrew Small, the group has a knack for saying sad things with a bit of an ironic smirk and revels in the in-between.
Boonerang is a free music and arts festival in downtown Boone. The festival includes multiple concert stages, primarily made up of artists with Boone connections. Other festival highlights include local food and beer, a vendor market, a kids zone, silent discos, and afterparties. To volunteer or learn more visit: https://www.boonerangfest.com/
Tickets for the 13th annual Rooster Walk Music & Arts Festival on May 25-28, 2023, are officially on sale at www.RoosterWalk.com! Grab yours today to get the cheapest prices of the year for this outdoor family friendly festival at Pop’s Farm just outside of Martinsville, Virginia.
Festival organizers have announced the first 16 bands including headliners progressive jamgrass rockers Greensky Bluegrass. Other artists join the initial Memorial Day weekend band lineup include Marshall Tucker Band, Kitchen Dwellers, Trouble No More, Doom Flamingo, Kitchen Dwellers, Yarn, Neighbor, Mike & The Moonpies, Crawford & Power, Sol Driven Train, The Wilson Springs Hotel, Isaac Hadden Organ Trio, Sneezy, TC Carter Band, Big Fat Gap and Pirates of the Piedmont.
More than 30 additional bands will be added to the lineup in the coming weeks and months, organizers said in a press release.
Tickets for Rooster Walk 13 went on sale on Tuesday, Nov. 22, at the newly redesigned http://www.roosterwalk.com, which also features all the information needed to plan for an amazing experience: band bios and music, ticket descriptions, festival experiences, frequently asked questions, a venue map and more.
The festival will take place Thursday-Sunday of Memorial Day weekend in the rolling foothills surrounding Martinsville. Rooster Walk is a four-day festival celebrating music, art and the great outdoors at the idyllic Pop’s Farm venue. With roughly 50 bands performing on six different stages, an amazing roster of stellar music steers the Rooster Walk experience.
In addition to approximately 80 sets of live music, the family-friendly Rooster Walk will offer a wide variety of kids’ activities, craft beer, great food, arts and numerous opportunities to enjoy Virginia’s great outdoors with kayak river floats, bike rides, yoga, a disc golf course and beautiful on-site camping.
Rooster Walk has been named one of the Top 5 festivals in the state by the Richmond-Times Dispatch. It also was voted the region’s Most Creative Charitable Event by readers of Virginia Living Magazine for three consecutive years. The festival was created in memory of late Martinsville natives Edwin “The Rooster” Penn and Walker Shank, who graduated from Martinsville High School in 2000.
A portion of proceeds from the festival will be donated to local and regional charities, including Rooster Walk’s own Penn-Shank Memorial Endowment Scholarship Fund for students at Martinsville High School, and the Rooster Walk Music Instrument Program for public band programs in the local city and county school systems.
The festival is produced by Rooster Walk Inc., a 501c3 nonprofit dedicated to promoting music, arts and education in its home of Martinsville-Henry County. Since 2009, Rooster Walk Inc. has donated more than $270,000 to local and regional charities.
Head on over to the website to get more info, updates, buy tickets or volunteer at www.roosterwalk.com.
In 2015, bands of rain from Hurricane Joachin came down on Raleigh, soaking artists, vendors and attendees of bluegrass music’s biggest week and leaving organizers scrambling to move the International Bluegrass Music Association’s IBMA Bluegrass Live! festivities indoors to the relative comfort of the city’s convention center.
Fast forward seven years and IBMA’s organizers announced today all of the outdoor festivities associated with this week’s IBMA Bluegrass Live! will move indoors, due to expected rain and wind from Hurricane Ian as it approaches the western shores of Florida.
“The music will go on,” said IBMA Executive Director Pat Morris at this afternoon’s IBMA welcome reception celebrating the festival’s 10th year in North Carolina’s capital city. “We have a fantastic week lined up.”
This year, however, will be different than 2015, when the ticketed festival and the free street events were all suddenly forced into the confines of the convention center. What won’t change is several days of bluegrass tunes ringing throughout the facility — some planned in ballrooms and convention rooms, others spontaneously erupting into jam sessions filling up the facility’s not-so-hidden corners and even in hallways and on staircases.
One major difference will be the ticketed Main Stage performances, originally planned for the outdoor Red Hat Amphitheater adjacent to the convention center, will take the stage in the Raleigh Memorial Auditorium at the Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts. Reserved seating bought in advance will be honored. Unfortunately, fans hoping for a free general admission ticket to see headliners such as the Infamous Stringdusters, Jerry Douglas and Molly Tuttle and Golden Highway may be out of luck. Organizers are still working out details to try to make some free seating available.
On a positive note, there is still a lot of free entertainment to take in. All previously scheduled performances at the five free Street Stages are moving into the Raleigh Convention Center along with all 115 vendors including the Art Market, Shop Local and Black Friday Market. Also on tap indoors will be the beer garden, PNC Porch, jam “tents” and other activities planned for this weekend.
Raleigh Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin said the resiliency of the organizers and the City of Raleigh is similar to that often sung about in bluegrass music as well as the genre itself, which celebrated its 75th anniversary during the height of the pandemic.
“Whether you have been here before or it’s your first time, you are in for great entertainment,” she told the crowd in the RCC ballroom. “We did this in 2015 and it turned out great, and it’s going to be great again.”
Baldwin added she hopes IBMA will return to Raleigh for another 10 years. “The best part of IBMA is you get to be part of this unique experience and community,” she said. “It’s about bringing people together.”For tickets and more information, visit https://worldofbluegrass.org.
“Our triumphant return to The Ramkat will be an absolute knockout party you won’t want to miss! With it being so late in the touring season, we’re looking at this as our last HURRAH in N.C. before the end of the year, which means that this will be the LAST CHANCE TO SEE US IN N.C. THIS YEAR! We also advise that you get your tickets NOW because all the seating and balcony seating is SOLD OUT! Only GA for the floor and balcony is left, so BE QUICK and we’ll see you there!”
Tickets (what are left anyway) are on sale at TheRamkat.com!
musicreporterblog 