New banjo DVD from Jens Kruger

As announced today on the Bluegrass Blog, Homespun Tapes have just released a new banjo instruction method, Jens Kruger’s banjo method for beginners, subtitled An easy and joyful way to start picking. Homespun says:

His is a completely different approach to learning to play the banjo: it’s liberating, inspiring, and will allow anyone to make music in minutes.

This is available from Homespun as a DVD or by direct download, and also from Amazon.

The Kruger Brothers will also be touring Europe in late March 2010. According to their schedule page (where more details are given), the dates are as follows:

Sat. 20 Mar. Eagle Music Shop Event, West Yorkshire, UK
Wed. 24 Mar. Tell Schauspielhaus, Altdorf UR, Switzerland
Fri. 26 Mar. Stadtcasino, Basel, Switzerland
Sat. 27 Mar. Yehudi Menuhin Forum, Bern, Switzerland
Sun. 28 Mar. Tonhalle, Kammermusiksaal, Zürich, Switzerland
Tues. 30 Mar. Prague, CZ; details TBA
Wed. 31 Mar. Bratislava, Slovakia; details TBA

Mike Seeger Passes

We are sorry to report that Mike Seeger passed away on Friday evening, August 7.

A true and dedicated musician, historian and teacher if ever there was one. Mike is responsible (along with his good friend Alice Gerrard) for many of the live concert recordings of the most influential pioneers in folk & bluegrass music history. He has been a major force in the preservation of traditional American music all of his life, from blues to bluegrass. His most recent gig was as a band member with the Alison Krauss & Robert Plant tour last year. He has surely seen and done it all in his music career.

In truth, his accomplishments are far too many to include in this blog. Please read about Mike Seeger and his legacy via the links in the previous article. To see Mike in action you may click on this link: Mike Seeger Video.

Better yet, review this short promotional video of a one-hour documentary, released on DVD July 21, 2009 by Arhoolie Records. ALWAYS BEEN A RAMBLER is an hour-long documentary that celebrates 50 years of the New Lost City Ramblers (Mike Seeger, John Cohen, Tracy Schwarz and Tom Paley.)

Emails, cards & letters may be sent to Mike's wife Alexia using the contact information in the yesterday's post.

A Personal Note from Alexia: "Dear family, dear friends… Mike has completed his passage. He died this evening, August 7, some time before 9 pm. Family, home, peace. It’s what he wanted, and he did it so gracefully. It went too fast for me to comprehend–but he always said 'I don’t want to linger!' Clear in what he’s about, as always.

The love coming from you and from friends all over is just amazingly helpful, sustaining.
Thank you. Love——–A"

Homespun Tapes: new delivery system

Music has historically brought us through hard times, bringing enjoyment to those who play it and to those who listen. What better way to lift spirits and create a sense of community?

Homespun Tapes continue to make their massive catalogue of prime instructional material available in innovative ways. The new Homespun Instant Access Delivery System makes it possible for anyone with a high-speed internet connection to receive a Homespun DVD and tab/music booklet delivered directly to their computer, with no waiting or postal charges. More information is here.

Keep in touch with Homespun Tapes for future offers. An article on Homespun by David McCarty appeared in the March 2009 ('Instruments') issue of Bluegrass Unlimited.

The Stanley Brothers (1966) on DVD

Thanks to Karl Heinz Siber of Germany for drawing attention on the IBMA-L e-mail list to a DVD, Festival of American Folk & Country Music 1966, which is scheduled for release on 31 January 2009 by the German Tropical Music company. It includes footage of the Stanley Brothers & the Clinch Mountain Boys, as well as the New Lost City Ramblers, Roscoe Holcomb, Tracy Schwarz, Cyprien Landreneau, and Cousin Emmy.

This package of artists was assembled by the German music agency of Lippmann & Rau, with the advice of Arhoolie Records' founder Chris Strachwitz (born in Germany). The tour was not a commercial success, but the artists were brought to the studio of the German radio and TV network SWF in Baden-Baden, where a 60-minute program was recorded live. It was broadcast once, and then lay in SWF archives for forty years.

In 2008 Claus Schreiner, founder and head of Tropical Music, obtained permission to release this show on DVD. Running time has been cut to 44 minutes, but we hear on good authority that the sound and video quality (black and white) is excellent. Tropical Music's German-language press release on this DVD can be seen here. The Stanley Brothers & the Clinch Mountain Boys are shown performing 'How mountain gals can love' and 'Rank stranger'. Karl Heinz Siber adds:

An aspect of historical significance in this is that this is probably one of the last recorded shows that the Stanley Brothers made. Carter Stanley died in early December of 1966, just nine months after the recording session in Baden-Baden.

Coastline Bluegrass Music Event, 6-8 June

The song 'Sleepy Hollow' by G2 Bluegrass Band from Sweden is the sound-track for a promotional DVD for the Third Coastline Bluegrass Music Event, which will be held at Plas Uchaf Farm, near Llandudno Junction, North Wales LL28 5PD, on 6-8 June.

The DVD shows the site and its picturesque setting looking over the Conwy estuary; photos of all members of bands taking part; and shots of the open mike stage, jam sessions, and other features of the festival. It proves that a DVD need not be an expensive technical miracle to be a completely effective promotional tool.

G2 (the current #1 European Bluegrass Band) are at the top of the bill for the Event, together with the Sons of Navarone (Belgium), Longway (Scotland), and two Appalachian dance teams, Mind the Step and Wicked Soles. The Event also has a MySpace site.

Picnic Festival, Namur, 6-7 September

Toute l'équipe du Picnic Festival vous souhaite ses...

Meilleurs Voeux pour cette Nouvelle Année 2008

Et en guise de cadeau, découvrez le DVD du Picnic Festival 2007
sur la page d'accueil de notre site.

Rendez-vous les 6 et 7 septembre à la Citadelle de Namur pour la quatrième édition, avec une affiche exceptionnelle...

*****************************

The Picnic Festival Team wishes you a...

Happy New Year 2008

As a gift, there's the video of the Picnic Festival 2007 on the main page of our website.

Please note on your calendar the 4th edition next 6 and 7 September at the Citadel of Namur with an extraordinary schedule...

New DVD: Rawhide live

What the fans have been begging for over the years: Rawhide has released its DVD Live. It gives an appropriate reflection of the music and unique humorous atmosphere Rawhide creates on stage. The DVD includes an uncut one-hour show at the Fredericia Bluegrass Festival 2007 (DK), and as bonus a 25-minute set at EWOB 2007 plus an original recorded in 1993!

See for yourself why Rawhide was chosen #3 European Bluegrass Band for two consecutive years. You can enjoy them now from your lazy chair for just €10 (+ €2 to get the DVD to your lazy chair). Contact the band by e-mail or their website.

Thunderbridge Bluegrass Boys: live DVD

The Thunderbridge Bluegrass Boys from Somerset, south-west England, are planning to release a DVD, including film taken over the last few years but centred on a live show to be held at their home base, the Wellington Arts Centre, on Saturday 1 December 2007. Admission is free, but only about 130 tickets are available, and can be ordered from the band by e-mail. The DVD is scheduled for release in spring 2008.

The band have three shows on their schedule between now and the filming: a charity show on Saturday 27 October at Wellington School, in which Thunderbridge appear at 8.00 p.m.; a free-admission show at 9.00 p.m on Thursday 8 November at The Martlet, Langford Budville; and Fry's country club on Saturday 10 November at Keynsham, near Bristol. Other shows follow on 14 and 15 December; full details are on the Thunderbridge website.

Thunderbridge also tip their hats to the UKBluegrass.com website, founded nearly a year ago as a medium for publicising bluegrass in the UK.

Chris Jones Announces New Website

Chris Jones, a veteran of the European bluegrass circuit, has announced the release of his new website featuring video samples and a music store.

Happy birthday, Rawhide

Waitin' for a train: Rawhide on their trip to Denmark

Rawhide, Belgium's senior bluegrass band and the only band to have played at every European World of Bluegrass Festival, celebrates its thirtieth anniversary with a concert and party (admission free) on Thursday 4 October 2007 at the Kunstcentrum Kaleidoscoop, Molenstraat 50, 2640 Mortsel, Antwerp, Belgium, starting at 8.00 p.m. As many previous band members as possible will be there. A flyer can be downloaded from the band's website.

Further steps towards a European Union of bluegrass: Rawhide played in Denmark at the Fredericia Bluegrass Festival in May. Photos of the trip can be seen here. The band reports:

We had a great time, not only doing the gig itself, but also because we ran into some old friends. Late night jam sessions were the obvious result. Anytime Denmark calls us, we'll be on our way!

NEW: Some of that feeling is now available to all - Rawhide is launching a DVD, Live in Denmark, showing the unique atmosphere that the band creates on stage. It includes an uncut one-hour show from the Fredericia Festival, and as bonus a 25-minute set at EWOB 2007, plus an original tune recorded in 1993. For further details see here.

The Osborne Brothers: live in Germany

Pinecastle Records of Columbus, NC, announce that The Osborne Brothers: live in Germany 2 CD/DVD set is available in stores today - the first of several unreleased Osborne Brothers recordings that will be made available to the public in the next few years.

The rare archival footage was recorded on 30 July 1989 in Streekermoor, Germany, during a European tour with the Father of Bluegrass, Bill Monroe. Sonny Osborne's liner notes tell it how it is: 'This is just about as good as you will ever remember the Osborne Brothers.' Their hits 'Kentucky', 'Georgia mules and country boys', 'Midnight flyer', 'Tennessee hound dog', and 'Rocky Top' are among the 22 songs presented on two CDs, and 27 tracks on the DVD. Musicians with Bobby and Sonny Osborne include Terry Smith (bass), Terry Eldridge (guitar/vocals; now with the Grascals), and Steve Thomas (fiddle). Cuts from Live in Germany can be heard on the Osborne Brothers' online press kit.

The Osborne Brothers: live in Renfro Valley is being re-released for the first time on DVD today (3 April). Recorded on 6 August 1992 at the Barn in Renfro Valley, Kentucky, it features nine favorites from the Osbornes.

Press info: Ethan Burkhardt; phone +1-828-894-0322 x225

Sons of Navarone promo DVD available

The Sons of Navarone, from Belgium, can now offer a free promo DVD to promoters and event organisers. Taken during the Sons' performance in September 2006 during the Second Edition of the Picnic Festival in Namur, Belgium, the live video footage has been put on a DVD, together with extra information about the band.

Interested in booking the Sons for a gig? Order your free copy of the DVD: send your details to this link and it will be posted out 'on the fly'.

Bluegrass in Sweden on DVD

The January/February 2007 issue of IBMA's newsletter International Bluegrass reports: 'A new DVD entitled De Blanande Bergens Musik: Bluegrass Torsaker 2005 features footage of bluegrass music in Sweden, including festivals and the surrounding countryside. Info: here.'

International Bluegrass's 'Video file' column also notes that new and reissued instructional DVDs from Homespun includes New directions in flatpicking - from bluegrass to European dance, by Beppe Gambetta.