Whitney Roy with The Hazel Project at Joe Val ’26 – photo © Tara Linhardt
Saturday at the 2026 Joe Val Bluegrass Festival was a day full of music, workshops of all kinds, Kids Academy practices, jams throughout the hotel, and some beautiful awards given to people who have devoted their lives to building and enhancing the bluegrass community in the region.
One such was the Joe Val Artist Award, which was presented by Tony Watt, President of the Boston Bluegrass Union (BBU), to Steve Watt. Steve was a founding member of the BBU. He ran sound for the early concerts at the “big brown church with the rooster on top.” He played with many great musicians over the years, and co-founded the band True Life Bluegrass. Steve was a regular at the famous Cantab lounge where he helped to train countless young musicians in bluegrass music. Here is a video to hear more about Mr. Watt, and to see him receive his award.
There were also fascinating discussion panels covering the history of bluegrass in the northeast: the people, places, and stories that have helped to build this community, and some that have become legendary in the area. There was also a fascinating and entertaining discussion focusing on the history of Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard, headed up by Jen Larson with Alice Gerrard, Ken Irwin, Dudley Connell, Marian Leighton Levy, and Laura Orshaw.
You ever wondered about the history of bluegrass in Boston or wondered who was this Joe Val fella that the festival is named after? Well, here is a short history as Taylor Ackley summed up his life to open the panel on the History of Bluegrass in Boston on Saturday.
Below you can get just a couple small tastes of the music-filled weekend, with a great combination new, young, up-and-coming musicians, some of the big dogs touring the bluegrass circuits these days, and some of the legends of the music.
JB and Cardineau Sin doing some crazy hot Orange Blossom Special.
The Hazel Project, an all female band that pays tribute to the music written and/or recorded by Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard.
There are some family traditions in bluegrass bands where the younger family members join the band at a tender age and grow up playing the music. This is the case with Ashley Lilly, the next young generation of the celebrated Lilly Brothers. Here she is on the old classic, Blue Moon of Kentucky.
Below is Tony Watt, the aforementioned President of the Boston Bluegrass Union, posthumously presenting the Stan Zdonik award to Stan Zdonik. Stan passed away on February 5, 2026, and his wife, Gail Mitchell, and his son, David Zdonik, were there to receive his award. He was a fascinating and well accomplished man who devoted much of his life to the bluegrass community, and to enhancing it in so many ways. To hear more about Stan and see some of the presentation you may watch this link below.
Here is a New England Band called Northern Lights.
And Special Consensus performing a way fun Mr. Postman.
And here are some photos from the day.
