Bluegrass Wales
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The North Wales Bluegrass Festival
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ome top bands from the US, UK, and Europe.
including 
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Scholarships Available for Transatlantic Bluegrass School
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Fiddle Legend to Teach at Transatlantic Bluegrass School May 7-11, 2008
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Think of some of the greatest historic fiddle tracks of all time
played by the bluegrass band that defined the genre, Bill Monroe and the Bluegrass
Boys: “Wheel Hoss,” “Roanoke,” “Cheyenne,” and “Big Mon” among many other
classics… then throw in other unforgettable fiddle work on albums by Ricky
Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder, The Bluegrass Album Band, J. D. Crowe, and Jim and
Jesse McReynolds. The fiddle of BOBBY HICKS has been heard on all these, and
more, for over 50 years. In fact, ask most fiddlers to name their top fiddle
tracks and favourite fiddle players and Bobby Hick’s name will invariably be
right there at the top everyone’s lists.
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Transatlantic Bluegrass School
The instrument classes are not designed for the absolute beginner. To get the most out of them you should have an understanding of the basics of playing your instrument. If we have enough beginners wanting to take the course, we may look into an additional class, so please let us know! The singing class does not require previous training, just the enthusiasm and desire to learn to sing lead and/or harmony bluegrass vocals. There
will be morning and afternoon sessions, but you'll also have Another concert featuring our instrucutors is being organised as well, which we'll be announcing on the forum shortly. We're also having an open mic one night to give the students a chance to perform as well. On Wednesday evening, September 7th, there will be a reception party where you'll have a chance to meet your instructors and fellow students, have a meal, and socialise before the classes begin. This will be followed by picking sessions at a few pubs in the village. Classes will begin Thursday, September 8th, with three days of instruction with your chosen tutor. There may be assistants available to help out, but do to our smaller class sizes, everyone will be taught by the main instructor. We are also scheduling a day in which students can choose between a variety of morning and afternoon workshops. These electives will give students the opportunity to take classes with some of the other instructors, or to focus on specific skills involving their chosen instrument. It was
very important to us to make our bluegrass school affordable for all our
students, and to give participants choices that will make it a To offer more individual attention for participants we are limiting enrolment to 20 students for each instrument. We'll be announcing all our tutors shortly. Given the limited number of spaces available for each class, we recommend that you reserve your space without delay. The total cost for the course, including all activities, performances, and elective workshops is only £195. The booking form with additional details is available on our website. All announcements will be posted on our forum, so if you're not already a member, please sign up to receive updates. We look forward to seeing you in May! |
some free time
during the day to pick with other students, take a walk on beautiful Newport Beach or just relax and enjoy the
surroundings. In addition to your daily classes there'll be other workshops and
social activities including - of course - evening jamming at the local pubs!
We've scheduled an instructor's concert on Saturday evening and with the line-up
of musicians coming, it's guaranteed to be absolutely outstanding! You're going
to love it! 
great experience
for everyone. We decided to hold it in the beautiful seaside village of Newport,
Pembrokeshire because of its outstanding beauty, charm and friendly village
atmosphere. Most locations are within walking distance, and there is a choice of
lovely, but affordable, accommodation including hotels and B&Bs, two caravan
parks and camping areas. Local restaurants and eateries offer delicious food for
any budget. Many visitors from around the world come to visit our
coast every year and we’ll be posting photos of the area and details regarding
accommodation choices soon.
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Bluegrass Wales Has a New Forum!
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The Cool Mandolin Company has just announced the release of "An American Tradition". The CD features tracks from an impressive list of talented artists including Butch Baldassari, Andrew Collins, Rich DelGrosso, Scott Gates, Ryan Holladay, Sierra Hull, Dominick Leslie, John Lowell & Ben Winship, |
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Simon Mayor, John McGann,
Justin Moses, Josh Pinkham, and Frank Solivan II. The CD incorporates a range of styles, from bluegrass and newgrass, to Americana, blues and Celtic styles, and all feature the mandolin. Each of these artists has donated a track and 100% of the profits will go towards mandolin scholarships. And better still, the cost for international shipping (which is included) is the same as for those purchased in the US! For us in the UK, it's under £9. So, it's a great CD, for a great cause - and at a fantastic price! It's now available on the Cool Mandolin Company website www.coolmandolin.com |
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Announcing the Fiddle Hangout Eric Schlange, creator and webmaster of the popular Banjo Hangout has announced a new website for fiddle players. It has all the same features as Banjo Hangout, including discussion forums, a free homepage with blogging capabilities, photo albums, classified section, MP3 music archives, events calendar, and free drawings. Eric told us that other features, such as tab/sheet music will be added. The site has only been ‘live’ since Friday, June 22, and is already averaging 2,000 visitors a day. The mission of the Fiddle Hangout is to become the world's most comprehensive fiddle resource by bringing the world's fiddlers together into one online community. After visiting the site ourselves, we think it’s off to a great start. So, if you play fiddle, definitely visit the Fiddle Hangout! |
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Butch Baldassari We're sad to report that following an MRI and biopsy of the brain May 22, Butch Baldassari has been diagnosed with an anaplastic astrocytoma. The tumour is inoperable and he began six weeks of treatment with radiation and chemo June 6th. A special fund has been set up to help with his medical |
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expenses. For further information and to send Butch your best wishes, visit the Mandolin Cafe website. Lets all keep Butch in our thoughts and prayers for a successful treatment and speedy recovery. |
European World of Bluegrass (EWOB) Festival AwardsOn May 17, 18 and 19 the tenth European World of Bluegrass (EWOB) Festival was held in the Dutch village of Voorthuizen, and From Thursday until Saturday this award-winning festival brought together some of Europe top bluegrass bands, from throughout Western Europe to the Eastern countries of Estonia and Slovokia. The following awards were presented on Saturday May 19, the final night of the EBMA’s European World of Bluegrass Festival. This year’s winner, G2 Bluegrass Band, will hold the title of #1 European Bluegrass Band for the next twelve months, and will represent Europe and perform at the IBMA's World of Bluegrass in Nashville, TN in 2008.
European Bluegrass Band 2007#1 G2 Bluegrass Band (Sweden) #2 Meantime (Slovakia) #3 Kreni (Czech Republic)
Audience Popularity Award #1 4 Wheel Drive (Netherlands) #2 G2 Bluegrass Band (Sweden) #3 Rawhide (Belgium) Rawhide also received a special award as the only band to have performed at all ten European World of Bluegrass.
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