The National Traditional Country Music Association has announced that David Davis, bluegrass mandolinist from Alabama, will receive the organization’s Lifetime Achievement Award at the 42nd National Old Time Music Festival on September 3.
David is highly regarded in traditional bluegrass circles for his determination to keep the Bill Monroe style of mandolin playing alive in today’s contemporary music scene. Though live performances and recordings with his band, The Warrior River Boys, he has preserved the sound of the early days of bluegrass, and particularly the unique way that Monroe used the mandolin in the music he created. Watching Davis play, it feels a bit like seeing Monroe, as he even mimics the way Big Mon moved his hands on the instrument.
The NTCMA was formed in 1976 to ensure that old time country music remained viable going forward. For 50 years they have worked to perpetuate this art form, created and cherished originally by the rural people of America, but now enjoyed by fans across the globe. They maintain America’s Old Time Music Hall of Fame, and America’s Old Time Fiddlers Hall of Fame, plus a Pioneer Museum with artifacts from many of the men and women who developed and nurtured this music.
Bob and Sheila Everhart manage the organization, its halls of fame, the museum, and the National Old Time Music Festival, held in Anita, IA. The festival runs for 7 days, from August 28 to September 3, with all kinds of traditional country music and dancing. Full details can be found online.
Congratulations to Davis for this award.
