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If there is an effort by the IBMA to “expand the tent” with the inclusion of more non-traditional bands, it was fully evident in the Tuesday night showcase lineup. The festivities began with Bearfoot, a name befitting a band whose

I had a chance last week to speak with Punch Brothers banjo maestro Noam Pikelny about his new solo project, Beat The Devil and Carry A Rail, due from Compass October 25. He was very frank in discussing the album,

Apparently, playing in a bluegrass band is a lot like riding a bicycle. Once you learn how to do it, you don’t forget how, even if years go by without doing it. You might wobble a bit, but the basics

You have to give IBMA credit for listening to those who complained that new and tradition-breaking bands were locked out of prized official showcase slots in the past. But just in case anyone missed the association’s more open approach during

Chris Pandolfi had some succinct advice for those on both sides of the “what is bluegrass” debate – stop picking fights and start picking. “We’re not trying to reposition old bluegrass fans,” the banjoman for the Infamous Stringdusters said in Tuesday’s

Watching Emma Hardin take the stage with her carbon-fiber cello was a solid clue that the assembled crowd was not about to see another Bluegrass Boys clone; a clue that proved to be delightfully correct in the ensuing 25 minutes.Eric

Anya Hinkle didn’t set out to break the rules. She honed her edgy vocal style and expressive fiddling on old time music in Virginia and might never have strayed if she hadn’t moved to Asheville, N.C., in the middle of

The switchover from The Bluegrass Blog to Bluegrass Today has forced us to create a new home on Facebook for the new site. And with the newest iteration of Facebook's interface, previous hacks to invite all your friends and lickers in

There might not be more aptly named pickers at IBMA’s World of Bluegrass this year than the Foghorn Stringband. At Monday night’s showcase performance, the quartet’s fiddle tunes on steroids cut through the haze of the Nashville Convention Center ballroom

Jett's Creek, a relatively new group - formed in 2008 by guitar player Jon McIntosh, and his daughter, lead vocalist Angie Young - opened the 2011 IBMA World of Bluegrass official showcases. They have released two recordings and have signed with Mountain