The DC Bluegrass Union was formed in 2002 through the efforts of DC-area musicians and supporters, led by the late Kip Martin. Our goal from the beginning has been to promote the music we love through performance and education. We have operated as a public charitable organization, and the IRS designated us as a 501(c)3 non-profit in 2004.
We strive to serve the greater Baltimore-DC area that includes parts of Virginia, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Delaware as well as the District. Bluegrass in our area has a rich history – and much of it is profiled in the bios found here under “Meet the Pioneers.” History-making contributions have continued from many members of our community, and DCBU since 2010 has acknowledged them with its annual Washington Monument Award. Our awardees have included Bill Emerson, Hazel Dickens, Tom Gray and Eddie Adcock, Lynn Morris, Ben Eldridge, Katy Daly, Pete Kuykendall, Tom Mindte, and Akira Otsuka.
Origins
Promoting bluegrass was strictly a commercial venture for many decades. As reflected in “Meet the Pioneers,” performance venues have ranged from school auditoriums, radio stations, and outdoor stages to bars, nightclubs, and festivals. Non-profits like DCBU got involved more recently to help preserve an audience who will enjoy the music and to help new generations of musicians discover bluegrass, its heritage, and how to play it.
A venue that acquired special standing in bluegrass lore was The Red Fox in Bethesda, MD. The “basement band” from Ben Eldridge’s house moved there in January 1972 for a weekly gig as The Seldom Scene. For over five years at The Red Fox, Thursday nights drew a growing following to the their genre-bending music. In 2013, DCBU celebrated those times with a special fundraising event that reunited several past members with the current band – and staged it at The Red Fox’s location, then as now an Italian restaurant. Spirits were high and Emmylou Harris sat in, like old times.
Our Events
Our support to the music and to our area’s bluegrass community takes many forms. Early on, the events calendar on our website became the community’s source for information about local shows, festivals, and jams. DCBU hosts its own regularly-scheduled jams, and our “Pick-nics” twice each year are relaxed occasions for some pickin’ and singin’ and for just catching up.
To help fill the cold-weather gap in the annual festival cycle, we began an indoor DC Bluegrass Festival in 2010. Touring bands headlining those festivals have included Michael Cleveland, The Gibson Brothers, The Boxcars, The Steep Canyon Rangers, and the Tim O’Brien Band. And we’re proud to have presented festival favorites that we can call our own, including: Bill Emerson and Sweet Dixie, Circa Blue, Frank Solivan and Dirty Kitchen, Danny Paisley and Southern Grass, and of course The Seldom Scene. Our Festivals have given way now to smaller productions that are free to the public. In recent years we have used these concerts to honor bluegrass greats from our region who have influenced the music and our appreciation for it
Annual Contests
DCBU conducts two judged contests each year. One is for vocal songwriting and the other is for instrumental compositions – both in the bluegrass – or “bluegrass related” – style. The song contest honors Hazel Dickens, who made her home here and influenced so many others – men and women alike. The instrumental contest honors Mike Auldridge, who innovated an unmistakable style on the resophonic guitar and lent his sound to The Seldom Scene.
Other Annual Activities
Since 2007, we have joined with Common Ground on the Hill, in Westminster, MD, to present the DCBU Bluegrass and Old-Time Camp each summer for a week of classroom learning at all levels, jamming without limits, and evening shows by musicians on the staff. Attendees have enjoyed the rare opportunity to get tips – and tales – directly from the likes of Tony Trischka, Tim O’Brien, Roland White, Wyatt Rice, Mark Schatz, and Dudley Connell.
Finally, DCBU’s music scholarship program now is a financial resource to help learners in bluegrass receive instruction at the Camp or in any other instructional setting. We initiated it in memory of the late Orrin Star, a talented instructor and performer as well as a friend.
The music we love is not standing still, and neither is DCBU. Please join us!