The IBMA Awards - Look Out Louisville, here we come!
The annual pilgrimage to honor the best and brightest in the Bluegrass world is almost upon us again. The IBMA Awards will be handed out to a happy gang of hard working musicians in Louisville , Kentucky on October 2nd . The list of nominees was announced a few days ago and once again reflects a diverse and exciting trend in this increasingly popular music genre.

The term Bluegrass has grown to encompass many styles as the music has evolved with the new generations of musicians down the years. The nomination list includes some of the greats of the genre from Alison Krauss to Del McCoury, from Doyle Lawson to Ricky Skaggs. I am also very pleased to say our own dear Chieftains are nominated in the Recorded Event of the Year catogory for their Down the Old Plank Road project, leaving no doubt that those in Bluegrass still acknowledge and respect where some of their own musical roots originate.

Of course they have taken those roots and woven a tapestry of sounds and styles and modern bluegrass embraces all of its children. In recent years, bands like Nickel Creek and Robinella and the CC String Band have shown what magic the younger generations can make.

Pushing back the boundaries in Bluegrass is nothing new though. The music itself has such a strong backbone that it not only allows but cries out for divergence from the beaten track. Through the years musicians like Bela Fleck and David Grisman have used the basis of the music to take to places Bill Monroe could only have imagined. There are those who would argue that this dilutes and even destroys the sound itself but as the musicians themselves know, Bluegrass is strong allowing growth and experimentation which in the long run, as has been seen in my own world of traditional Irish music, will keep it alive and vibrant for many years to come.

The world of Bluegrass is alive and well and more especially, safe in the hands of those who play it.

For a full list of the nominees in this years awards go to http://www.ibma.org