AT LEAST FORTY-TWO BLUEGRASS BANDS TO SHINE AT 11TH ANNUAL FESTIVAL
Voorthuizen, the Netherlands – On May 1, 2 and 3 the eleventh European
World of Bluegrass Festival will take place in the Dutch village of Voorthuizen.
Bluegrass has developed from American traditional folk music, in which banjos,
mandolins and fiddles feature as the main instruments. Typical for this style
of music is the harmony singing in two, three, or four parts, which is called ‘high
lonesome’ because of its piercing sound. At the festival at least 42
bands from 12 different European countries, and the USA, will perform on stage.
Also there will be workshops, a Trade Show, a children’s programme, and
of course people can ‘jam’ together to their heart’s desire.
In 2003 this festival won the annual award of the International Bluegrass Music
Association (IBMA) as ‘best event of the year’ – an extraordinary
achievement.
From Thursday until Saturday this renowned festival will put bluegrass music
in the spotlight. Bands from Western Europe, but also from more exotic countries
such as Estonia, Czech Republic and Spain will be part of the programme. Different
styles of bluegrass will be featured, ranging from the strictly acoustic and
traditional to sounds influenced by gospel, modern jazz, or even pop music.
Among the guests from the USA this year are singer/songwriter are Sally Jones & The
Sidewinders, performing contemporary bluegrass music, while Dick Staber & Judith
Chasnoff will play more traditional bluegrass. Soon the complete programme
will be announced. The schedule is to be found on the website.
The initiative to this European festival is taken by the overall European
bluegrass organization EBMA.
The festival is known to provide a varied programme. During the workshops,
experienced musicians will answer all sorts of questions about instrumental
skills, singing techniques or beginner’s pitfalls. Again this year there
will be classes for banjo, mandolin, guitar, fiddle and dobro, for players
on any level. We also have individual lessons on various instruments, 20 minutes
at the low fee of 5 euros. And because of its success in previous years, once
again the bluegrass karaoke will be featured. Musicians and upcoming talent
can demonstrate their skills, while being backed up by a professional band.
At the Trade Show a wide variety of musical instruments, CDs, sheet music,
magazines and bluegrass knick-knacks is offered. For the very young ones there
will be a special children’s programme on Thursday and Friday, hosted
by professional musicians. The children will receive a hands-on music lesson.
An important element in the European World of Bluegrass Festival is the DIY
factor: since many (if not all) visitors bring their own instruments, the festival
is also a gathering of a large amount of guitars, banjos, mandolins, fiddles
and double basses. With people jamming and pickin’ in all corners of
the festival grounds, it is one of the liveliest events in the Netherlands.
At the end of the Saturday night concert the title ‘European Band of
the Year 2008’ will be awarded, based on the voting of all musicians
performing at the Festival. The winning band will perform as guests at the
annual IBMA convention, Trade Fair, and Fan Fest in the USA. It was at that
same convention that the Voorthuizen festival won the ‘Event of the Year’ award
in 2003, because of its unique contribution to bluegrass music in Europe.
fact: 11th European World of Bluegrass festival (EWOB)
data: May 1, 2 & 3, 2008
programme: daily from 12.00h until 1:00h
concerts: daily from 14:00h until 24:00h
venue: ’t Trefpunt, Roelenengweg 25, Voorthuizen, the Netherlands
for more information see: www.ewob.eu
Contact in the Netherlands:
European Bluegrass Music Association
Rienk Janssen
Mail: press@ebma.nl
Tel.: (+31) (0)599-312663
Fax: (+31) (0)599-313285
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