kurate featured

Most bluegrass bands are normally burning up the highway traveling to festivals and other venues this time of the year, but the social distancing required now due to the Covid-19 virus has brought touring to a screeching halt. In a

Robin Smith with one of his Heartland Banjos - photo by Dustin Ogdin Robin Smith, noted Nashville banjo luthier and musician, has died following emergency heart surgery last week. He was 71 years of age. Many banjo players have taken advantage of

The White House and Congress are negotiating the details of emergency aid that will likely include money for musicians and others who participate in the so-called gig economy. President Trump said this afternoon that the size of checks mailed to Americans

This post is a contribution from Bryan Bolea with 529 Photography, a connoisseur of modern bluegrass and contemporary acoustic music in Ann Arbor, MI. After recording a February 29 show at The Caverns, Railroad Earth headed north for shows in Indianapolis

West Virginia mandolin player Silas Powell, leader of Silas Powell & the Powell Family Band, is recovering after a scary car accident last week. According to Powell, he was traveling near Jane Lew, WV, this past Monday (March 9), when he

IBMA is closely monitoring the coronavirus outbreak but isn’t taking action just yet related to the 2020 World of Bluegrass celebration in Raleigh this fall. “As of right now, there are no plans to cancel” the conference, IBMA said in a

The South Carolina Arts Commission and the and the University of South Carolina McKissick Museum have announced that Kristin Scott Benson is one of the recipients of the 2020 Jean Laney Harris Folk Heritage Awards. Benson had this to say in

Back in the early days of bluegrass, before that name even became associated with the music, the Farm and Fun Time show on WCYB radio in Bristol, VA was a regular stop for those performers that launched the style. Flatt

A Grammy Award-nominated singer, songwriter and phenomenal fiddler, Laurie Lewis has plied her craft in bluegrass circles for the better part of the past 40 years. At a time when it was rare to find women playing music of that

Last fall, the bluegrass world said farewell (for now) to Flatt Lonesome, a band who had burst onto the scene making a massive impact in just a few short years. We all knew it wouldn’t be long before we saw