Here are your can’t-miss performances at this year’s (virtual) IBMA Bluegrass Live
The International Bluegrass Music Association’s World of Bluegrass event has shifted from the streets of downtown Raleigh to the internet, but the show most definitely is going on.
For the weekend festival now called IBMA Bluegrass Live!, recorded performances are scheduled Friday from 3 p.m. to past 10 p.m. and Saturday from 1 to 11 p.m.
This year, performances were filmed in advance, including several that feature North Carolina artists in and around Raleigh, ensuring the city retains the place it has enjoyed in the spotlight since World of Bluegrass came to town in 2013.
Among the hometown settings are the rooftop of the Dillon building in downtown’s Warehouse District, underneath the new sculpture in front of the Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts and the front porch of a Raleigh home where the father of bluegrass, Bill Monroe, lived for a time.
David Brower, executive director of PineCone, which books the events’ public performances, told The News & Observer he is excited about the wider accessibility an online festival opens up, with its events and performances viewable now to people who may not have been able to travel for them.
“I’m really hopeful that we as music presenters will be learning from this and will be able to use what we learned from presenting this festival when we get back to having audiences of some size,” he said. “I think this does provide an accessibility component for people who either, because of the weather they don’t want to get out or because of mobility issues or some other reason they can’t get out to a live event, then they can experience the performing arts.”
The Travelin’ McCourys with Del McCoury, Jerry Douglas and Odessa Settles, and Molly Tuttle and Sierra Hull are set to perform from their home bases.
The North Carolina musician roster includes Steep Canyon Rangers, Chatham County Line, Chatham Rabbits, the Kruger Brothers and Tommy Edwards with Andrew Marlin (Mandolin Orange).
To watch, register for a Music Pass at worldofbluegrass.org/festival, then follow the instructions to view the performances via an online platform called Swapcard. The Music Pass is free, but donations to IBMA and its programs to support musicians are requested.
Whether you’re brand new to bluegrass or a seasoned veteran of festivals, jam circles and hotel hallway picking, here are some can’t-miss sets you’ll want to catch.
The full schedule of performances is at worldofbluegrass.org/schedule2020.
Friday
Lindsay Lou, Phoebe Hunt and Mimi Naja (The Songs of Bluegrass Women)
6-6:30 p.m.: These artists surely have plenty to tell us about women in bluegrass, having played alongside some of the music’s pioneers. That conversation goes musical with their set highlighting key songs and their impact.
Sierra Hull and Molly Tuttle
6:30-7:30 p.m.: Two of the most exciting names in modern bluegrass team up to present what is sure to be a fun and energetic set, with probably about a billion notes played between them. Both became the first women to receive the IBMA awards on their respective instruments in the past few years — Hull on mandolin and Tuttle on guitar.
Jerry Douglas and Odessa Settles
8:45-9:30 p.m.: When Jerry Douglas and his dobro appear onstage, it’s usually either solo or as part of a large group — say, Alison Krauss and Union Station or the Earls of Leicester. But for this set, it’s just Douglas backing up one incredible voice, Nashville gospel and folk singer Odessa Settles, who makes time for music amid her day job as a registered nurse.
Saturday
Tommy Edwards and Andrew Marlin
1:30 p.m.-2 p.m.: Guitar marvel Tommy Edwards and Mandolin Orange’s Andrew Marlin, both from North Carolina, sit and pick a little on the front porch of a house in Raleigh that was home to bluegrass founding father Bill Monroe for a time in the 1930s.
Shout & Shine
2-3:45 p.m.: Now in its fifth year, this showcase highlights the diversity in modern bluegrass as well as throughout roots music history. Curated by the founder of a nonprofit called Decolonizing the Music Room, the set will include performances from Rissi Palmer, Kaïa Kater, Amythyst Kiah, Jerron Paxton, Tray Wellington and more.
Dom Flemons
4:15-4:45 p.m.: He’s a Grammy winner and co-founder of the Carolina Chocolate Drops, and probably just about the most knowledgeable guy you can find about traditional music. Get ready to learn while you’re tapping your feet during this set.
Mountains of Infamous Leftovers
6:10-7:25 p.m.: That mouthful of a band name for this infrequent collaboration comes from a mashup of jamgrass groups its members represent: Yonder Mountain Stringband, the Infamous Stringdusters and Leftover Salmon. Make sure both your energy level and volume are turned up high.
This story was originally published September 29, 2020 at 11:48 AM with the headline "Here are your can’t-miss performances at this year’s (virtual) IBMA Bluegrass Live."