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Sierra Hull is in the studio again this month trying to finish up her third project for Rounder Records, which is expected to be released sometime in 2015. When discussing this record with Rounder's Ken Irwin this summer, he suggested that she was "going in a little different direction," and so it seems to be. [...]
This set of reflections on a Béla Fleck/Abigail Washburn concert is a first contribution from Jen Hughes, a new writer we hope to feature semi-regularly at Bluegrass Today. Perfectionism I have always thought Béla Fleck is a perfectionist. I came to this notion not only by witnessing time and again the meticulous presentation of his talent, [...]
The last set of the night at the Red Hat Amphitheater on Friday, at Wide Open Bluegrass, was heaven. Billed as the Wide Open Jam, that was a rather modest description. It was the pinnacle. It was a fine Loar, or a fine pre-war Martin. It was as good as it gets. Period. Maybe that [...]
As we all knew they would, someone recorded Béla Fleck's Keynote Address to the 2014 IBMA World of Bluegrass Business Conference, and posted it online. It's a good, clear recording and Béla's remarks should be of interest to anyone who contributes, follows or participates in the world of bluegrass and acoustic string music. [jwplayer player="1" [...]
If it’s time for IBMA’s World of Bluegrass, it must be time for another keynote address by a “name” player who has bluegrass in his background but has moved on to other genres. It’s been the organization’s M.O. for the past few years. Doing the honors this year: Béla Fleck, one of the most inventive [...]
Béla Fleck and Abigail Washburn: husband and wife, parents, musicians, touring partners, and now studio duet collaborators. Rounder Records has announced today that they will release their first, and eponymous, album October 7. There will also be a second duo tour starting later this Fall. Family relationships aside, these two are among the most visible banjo [...]
The PBS Newshour, broadcast nightly during the week on hundreds of public television stations across the US, aired a special report July 31 about Colorado's RockyGrass festival. Last year, shortly after the 2013 event, the St. Vrain River drastically flooded its banks, destroying roads and property and reshaping the topography along the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains [...]
During 2011 while Béla Fleck was writing his banjo concerto, The Imposter, he was closely tailed by filmmaker Sascha Paladino to capture the process. Entering the realm of the symphony orchestra was something completely new for Fleck, who doesn't read music, much less have training in orchestration or composition. But he agreed to the challenge when [...]
Attention talented young string players... Applications for the 2014 Acoustic Music Seminar at the Savannah Music Festival must be turned in by December 1. The week long seminar runs from March 30-April 5 in Savannah, GA and is open to musicians 22 and under (as of April 2014). All string players are welcome: violin family, [...]
Mercury Classics has released The Impostor, a new project from Béla Fleck, including a pair of long-form Fleck compositions recorded with the Nashville Symphony and the Brooklyn Rider quartet. The Impostor is a concerto for banjo in three movements, performed with the symphony, and Night Flight Over Water is a quintet for banjo and string quartet. Each [...]
