Past Bluegrass Related Events

“If you like your bluegrass served with a little punch, attitude, grit and gravy … Damn Tall Buildings will slide in nice as a welcome edition to your listening rotation. Bluegrass at heart, but pulling from a wide range of influences including swing, ragtime, jazz, and even a hint of contemporary perspective in the songwriting, they offer virtually unmatched energy and enthusiasm, underpinned by intelligent songs that don’t skimp on the infectiousness…” – Savingcountrymusic.com Witty & engaging, Damn Tall Buildings’ energizing music finds beauty and glory in the mundane workaday struggle of everyday life: time keeps passing and the seasons come and go, you scroll too much, you smoke too much, you lose yourself, only to sit with yourself & find yourself again, you laugh with your friends, and you look out the window & dream about what else might be out there. It all keeps coming around. You carry on, intent on flourishing and thriving. This is what Damn Tall Buildings sings about, what they seek to share with their audience.

The brainchild of bassist and impresario Zachariah Hickman, Barnstar! features some of the Boston area’s most dynamic seasoned musicians: Mark Erelli (vocals, guitar), Charlie Rose (banjo, vocals), Taylor Armerding (mandolin, vocals), and Jake Armerding (fiddle, vocals). Their music resonates with audiences who appreciate the artistry of traditional bluegrass as well as those who are drawn to the band’s innovative and boundary-pushing approach. The band continues to record and perform, while navigating solo careers and high profile side-person gigs (with the likes of Josh Ritter, Rodney Crowell, Lori McKenna, Elephant Revival, Ray LaMontagne, ROSIN, and many more).

Bluegrass legend Del McCoury brings his band to the Concert Hall at Groton Hill March 22! “Almost unimaginable, McCoury’s sixth decade in a half-century of bluegrass bliss brings new triumphs, new collaborations, and new music.” — Opry.com For more than 50 years, Del McCoury’s music has defined authenticity for hard-core bluegrass devotees as well as a growing number of fans only vaguely familiar with the genre. Del is something special, a living link to the days when bluegrass was made only in hillbilly honkytonks, at schoolhouse shows and on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry, yet also a commandingly vital presence today, from primetime and late night TV to major music festivals.

“Once again, Tony has set the world afire with his banjo and his storytelling skills…”— Bluegrass Today Tony Trischka is considered the consummate banjo artist and perhaps the most influential banjo player in the roots music world. For more than 50 years, his stylings have inspired a whole generation of bluegrass and acoustic musicians with the many voices he has brought to the instrument. His show honors the music of Earl Scruggs, pioneer of the three-finger banjo style and one of the most important musicians in bluegrass, or, in Trischka’s opinion, in any genre. Trischka recently came into possession of extremely rare recordings of jam sessions with Scruggs and John Hartford, and he transcribed and recorded Scruggs’s note-for-note solos from a number of these, including many songs that were never recorded. Together with his ace band — Michael Daves on vocals and guitar, fiddler Alex Hargreaves and bassist Jared Engel — Trischka will trace the story of Scruggs from his childhood to his final years. “The depth of his genius becomes ever more apparent when I transcribe his solos, which I’ve been doing my entire musical life and with renewed vigor,” says Trischka. “Discovering new twists and turns in his playing is pure joy and, in fact, the inspiration for this tribute show and album.” The show debuted at Joe’s Pub in New York City which drew lots of interest, including an appearance on the Grand Ole Opry, a rarity for a banjo player these days. “Earl is my North Star, a lifetime pathway. And I’m not alone,” says Trischka, a banjo innovator and educator who has influenced everyone from Béla Fleck to Steve Martin. “Through his music, this shy kid from Flint Hill, North Carolina went on … Read More »

Aoife O’Donovan and Hawktail join together for a night of joyous music. Hawktail opens the evening with their signature songs and cosmopolitan sound. Aoife O’Donovan will then take the stage with Hawktail as her band, performing songs from the Grammy-award winning musician’s 4th studio album All My Friends (out March 22, 2024). O’Donovan continues to enchant audiences worldwide with her soul-stirring music and unwavering passion for storytelling through song. Deemed “a vocalist of unerring instinct” by the New York Times, she has released three critically-acclaimed and boundary-blurring solo albums including literarily crafted Age Of Apathy, which received three Grammy nominations. Her newest album, All My Friends is based around a collection of songs Aoife O’Donovan wrote, inspired by women’s suffrage and the passage of the 19th amendment. The album is a deep dive into the reimagining of the life of Carrie Chapman Catt – one of the movement’s leaders and founder of the League of Women Voters – juxtaposed with Aoife’s own experiences as a woman and mother. Hawktail is the acoustic instrumental trio of fiddler Brittany Haas, bassist Paul Kowert, and guitarist Jordan Tice. Though at first glance it looks like an acoustic super-picker side-project, their all-original music is cohesive and unique, distinguishing them as an ensemble with a sound built from the ground up. Flush with orchestral sweeps and sparse vigils, with strains of the American South and the North Atlantic. Together, they have fostered a reputation as a rare ensemble of composers and instrumentalists able to take the listener on a journey, without the use of words.

From an early age, Michael Cleveland heard old-time and bluegrass music at local jams and festivals near his hometown of Henryville, Indiana. His grandparents hosted regular bluegrass gatherings at the American Legion, and at age four, he began playing the fiddle. He attended the Kentucky School for the Blind in Louisville, where he learned the Suzuki method of violin. While he practiced the violin at school, he played fiddle at home. Cleveland had always dreamed of leading his own band and in 2006, he formed Flamekeeper, seven-time recipients of the IBMA’s “Instrumental Group of the Year” award, including Josh Richards, Nathan Livers, Jasiah Shrode, and Chris Douglas. In addition to touring with his band, Cleveland has performed with a legendary list of bluegrass greats: Bela Fleck, Tommy Emmanuel, Billy Strings, Vince Gill, and more. Widely considered the bluegrass fiddler of his generation, Cleveland has been recognized 12 times as the IBMA’s Fiddle Player of the Year and in 2018 was inducted into the National Fiddlers Hall of Fame. His recording Fiddler’s Dream was nominated in 2018 for a GRAMMY for Best Bluegrass Album, and in 2019, he won a GRAMMY for his album Tall Fiddler. The same year, Cleveland’s amazing life of adversity and achievement was featured in the documentary film Flamekeeper: The Michael Cleveland Story. And in 2022, he was awarded the National Endowment for the Arts Heritage Fellowship. 

An alumnus of celebrated progressive bluegrass bands Joy Kills Sorrow and the Yonder Mountain String Band, Jacob Jolliff is one of the genre’s top mandolinists and a sought-after collaborator, sharing the stage with Darol Anger, Tony Trischka, Sam Bush, David Grisman, Ronnie McCoury, Michael Daves, and many others. In 2022, Jacob was called on by banjo master Béla Fleck to tour as part of My Bluegrass Heart. He performed around the country alongside Béla and some of the top musicians in the genre: Bryan Sutton, Cody Kilby, Justin Moses, Mark Schatz, Michael Cleveland, Stuart Duncan and Billy Contreras. Now, the mandolinist’s main focus is The Jacob Jolliff Band, a group of virtuosic pickers – Jolliff on mandolin and vocals; Myles Sloniker, bass; Ross Martin, guitar; and George Jackson, fiddle – who play Jacob’s original instrumentals and songs. They tour nationally in the US, Scotland, and Australia, and have released two albums, “Instrumentals Vol. 1” in 2018 and “The Jacob Jolliff Band” in 2022.