2020 has been a tough year for everyone. In our bluegrass music world, festivals were canceled, jam sessions suspended, concerts foregone, and the economic fiber of the music world, including this newspaper, stretched terribly thin. There were some highlights though, reminding us of the positive camaraderie that can be built through music and of the […]
Last month we covered the sad end of KSON’s Bluegrass Special Radio Show hosted by Wayne Rice, which had been running for 43 years. We noted the irony that the show was cancelled by corporate headquarters at the same time that Wayne Rice was awarded IBMA’s highest award—the Lifetime Achievement Award. Well, the show is […]
KSON’s Bluegrass Special radio show, hosted by Wayne Rice for the last 44 years, is no more. May it rest in peace and may all who cherish bluegrass music remember it fondly, with thanks to Wayne for a long and memorable run. The corporate parent of KSON unceremoniously notified Wayne in early September that the […]
Bluegrass music was started in the 1940s by Bill Monroe and his Bluegrass Boys. This great group is still the gold standard for bluegrass music today. At that time the vast majority of bluegrass music players, and all the stars, were men. The women were few and far between and almost always relegated to playing […]
IBMA. IBMA stands for the International Bluegrass Music Association, which is the nonprofit trade organization supporting and promoting all aspects of bluegrass music, both in the U.S. and internationally. Among other activities the IBMA conducts: Awards Shows. IBMA runs the annual IBMA Awards Program, which every fall—through member voting—selects the best of the best from […]
As we all struggle unable to attend outdoor festivals and concerts, as we miss our regular jam sessions, and are sick and tired of practicing at home alone, what’s to do? Here are a few thoughts: Pick topics in bluegrass that you’ve always known you should know more about but never got around to. Calendar […]
As we go to press, covid cases in San Diego continue to rise. The Governor has issued a statewide order that masks are now mandatory except in limited circumstances. County officials indicate we may have to back off from reopening. Large gatherings, especially indoors, are last on the list of things to reopen. Overall the […]
Music in a covid world. Music is always important. It seems especially so in our covid world, as we face being isolated from each other, unable to attend concerts or jam sessions, or even to play music with friends in the living room without fear of contagion, wearing masks, and sanitizing everything in sight. Humans […]
THOUGHTS I’m a bluegrass musician, but I am also an elected local official. In the latter capacity I get access to the latest information from our state government about the virus. Two world-class virus experts are constituents living in my community with whom I regularly interact. I also sit on committees at UCSD Medical School, […]
