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October newsletter

Mountaingrass Newsletter  – October 2020 

Mountaingrass 2020 – CANCELLED –  but the ABOTMA AGM will run! 
Hello everyone,
Welcome to our October newsletter!
We have lots for you to view, listen to and read this month to keep you amused during these Covid times.
A big welcome to our newest members as well! And, thank you to all existing members who have renewed their membership for the current year. We will extend your membership by one year for your loyalty.
All current members will be able to attend and vote at the AGM. While we are unable to run the Mountaingrass festival this year, where we usually hold our AGM, we do have to run the 2020 AGM before December 30, 2020.  We are not sure yet how best to do this, but we would prefer a face-to-face meeting with our ABOTMA members if at all possible. We will keep you posted on the arrangements.

We welcome anyone interested in getting involved with ABOTMA or Mountaingrass. If you would like to serve on the ABOTMA Executive committee for 2021 please put your hand up when we call for nominations. The current Executive welcomes new members who would like to get involved. We have a monthly meeting via teleconference that is capped at one hour.  if you are interested please email us at info@abotma.org.au
IBMA awards  2020
We are very pleased to hear that Mike Kear, our very fine host of the Sunday Morning Gospel concert at Mountaingrass, and long time broadcaster, has won IBMA Broadcaster in this year’s  IBMA’s Industry Award category.  Mike’s radio show  Music From Foggy Hollow showcases new release bluegrass and acoustic roots music.  He broadcasts locally on Hawkesbury Radio 89.9 FM, north of Sydney, NSW, but hjs program is also available via the internet through bluegrasscountry.org,
John Lawless from Bluegrass Today has written a lovely article about Mike complete with a lovely anecdote which you can read here.
Greg McGrath, from Australian Bluegrass.com, (the best Bluegrass blog in Australia by the way folks!), has written a great article about Mike here. It follows on from an earlier article that he wrote about Mike which includes details of how to  listen to Music From Foggy Hollow. You can read it  here.


Congratulations Mike for this very well-deserved award!. 

Another winner at the IBMA Awards was Tabitha Agnew from Midnight Skyracer (banjo), who headlined Mountaingrass in 2019. She won the Momentum Award for Instrumentalist of the Year along with Thomas Cassell (mandolin).
In addition to this many of you will have seen Mile Twelve when they toured Australia in 2017.  Mile 12 won the NEW ARTIST OF THE YEAR award and Missy Raines, who toured Australia in 2019, took out BASS PLAYER OF THE YEAR.
Congratulations to all the winners! 
Videos of the Harrietville National Bluegrass & Traditional Country Music Convention        
In our last newsletter we announced that we are working on a video compilation for our YouTube channel and after calling for contributions, Harro Skapinskas, a long time attendee of the Harrietville Bluegrass and Traditional Country Music Convention has offered his video of  some of the Saturday night concerts that he recorded over the years, beginning with 1994, when the convention was held at the Bon Accord. What a blast from the past!
You can watch the Saturday night concert from 1994 here. 

Don’t forget our Spotify play list:  You can listen to it here.

If you would like to contribute any video footage or memorabillia from either Mountaingrass or the Harrietville Convention please let us know by emailing as at info@abotma.org.au
Slim Dime – new album out – ‘Long Journey Home’
That dynamic acoustic duo Jen Land and Chris Taylor producing old time mountain sounds with gorgeous harmonies and great pickin’ have been hard at work during lockdown producing their latest album: Long Journey Home.

Rob Dickens, from that highly informative online music magazine, Listening through the Lens, interviewed Jen and Chris about the motivation for this album and how it was produced. You can read this article here.

In their interview with Rob Dickens Slim Dime acknowledge the work of the sound engineer on this album, Mark Woods. As many of you know Mark is the ‘go to’ sound engineer for live acoustic events. He has been running sound in the main venue of Mountaingrass since it started and at the Harrietville Convention for many years before that. Aside from doing sound at the Theatre Royal in Castlemaine, Vic, and other live shows and festivals, Mark has his own recording studio at his home in Central Victoria. He also does audio Mastering for CD or vinyl,  and cassette transfer to CD.
To contact Mark for your audio project go to  markwoodsaudio.com.au

To get yourself a copy of The Long Journey Home head to Slim Dime’s website slimdime.com
ABOTMA Executive committee for 2020
President: Helen Ludellen, Vice President: Bec Bradbury, Secretary: Susan Boothroyd, Treasurer: Karita Brokenshire.

Many thanks to our sponsors and supporters: 
The George Kerferd Hotel; The Mayday Hills Art Society; Wangaratta Sound and Lighting and the Mayday Escape Rooms; Alexander Bell Studios; Evan Webb, John Boothroyd, George Fendyk; Cole Clark Guitars for supporting our raffle; Jan Dale and the Southern Style program on PBS 106.7FM in Melbourne; Grundy banjos; Gerald Pink picks; Chip Bragg leather straps; Madam PC and Comedy Hypnotist Gerard V for technical services; and  the Australian Bluegrass (dot) com for the best bluegrass blog in Australia!
Stay safe and happy picking! 
Contact us at:
Email: info@abotma.org.au

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