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2007 Academy Instructors
Guitar | Mandolin | Banjo | Fiddle | Dobro | Bass | Vocals & Songwriting |
Bands-in-Residence | Kids Camp | Instrument Building | Electives
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Jim Hurst

Claire Lynch Band

Jim is the IBMA Guitar Player of the year for 2001 and 2002. Although flatpicking is a large part of bluegrass guitar, Jim first started learning to play finger-style. "Merle Travis and Chet Atkins made me take a turn in the road." But Jim considers his biggest influence to be Jerry Reed. Jim was featured on the cover of the Jan/Feb 1999 issue of Flatpicking Guitar magazine, and he and Missy Raines were nominated for IBMA's "Emerging Artist of the Year" in 2000 and 2001. Jim has played many different kinds of music including bluegrass, country, rock and blues with several different bands. He has also worked with country artists: The McCarter Sisters, Holly Dunn, Trisha Yearwood, and Sara Evans. He has recorded with Sara Evans on her 1998 RCA release "No Place That Far" and also with Claire Lynch on her 1998 Grammy nominated Rounder release "Silver And Gold".
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Sean Watkins

Nickel Creek

"My first instrument was the piano when I was six," recalls Sean Watkins, one-third of Nickel Creek. "I took classic instruction for 7 years, but three years into that I discovered seanwatkinsgrass music, through my piano teacher's son (John Moore), who had a bluegrass band that played every Saturday night at a pizza place in Carlsbad.
I really got into it, and when Sara and I met Chris, we started playing with him on Saturday nights too." Early on, Sean played mandolin but soon switche to guitar.
Sean made it to the National Flatpicking Championship in 1993 at age 16! In addition to the enormous success and popularity of Nickel Creek, Sean has released 3 solo albums and appeared on many others. Says Sean, "I've learned now to look back to music that has lasted through the years and to appreciate the timeless value that it has."
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Uwe Kruger

Kruger Brothers

As a young child, Uwe and his brother Jens would sit with a guitar between them on the floor playing songs together on the single instrument - one taking the upper three strings and one the lower three. Growing up in Switzerland, Uwe was introduced to American Folk Music through records his Father had brought home from business trips to the USA. Living in the small music market of Switzerland, Uwe became a versatile musician, performing a variety of styles on acoustic and electric guitars and occasionally banjo.
With such diverse influences ranging from Doc Watson, Jerry Garcia, and Eric Clapton, to Beethoven, Bach and Brahms, Uwe’s style is a unique blend of flat picking and finger picking. Since early 1995 Uwe has been performing exclusively with the Kruger Brothers and has been devoting his time to touring Europe and the United States, and composing instrumental and vocal music.
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Sandy Munro

Flying Dog Bluegrass Band

Sandy has been a long-time instructor at the Academy and helped shape its programming since its inception. He has been teaching music classes at Colorado Mountain College and at his music store Great Divide Music in Aspen, since 1976. Sandy is a multi-instrumentalist and currently performs with the Flying Dog Bluegrass Band from Aspen. Sandy is one of only two instructors that have taught at every Academy since 1992. Having created a loyal student following both in Aspen and Lyons, he will once again be serving as a guitar instructor this year.
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Chris Thile

Nickel Creek / The How to Grow a Band

Chris Thile was just two years old when he decided he wanted to play mandolin. After three years of pleading, his parents bought him his own mandolin at age five and signed him up for lessons with one of his heroes, John Moore. At the age of eight, Chris met Sara and Sean Watkins and began the collaboration that became Nickel Creek. In 1994, at the age of 13 he took home top honors in mandolin competitions in both Arizona and Kansas, recorded his first solo album for Sugar Hill, Leading Off, and received a nod from the International Bluegrass Music Association with a nomination for Mandolin Player of the Year. He finally won that title in 2001. His five solo records explore the intersection of bluegrass, classical, rock, and his own boundless creativity.
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Ronnie McCoury

Del McCoury Band

Growing up in a house where bluegrass music was played, and always listened to, Ron had the exposure from a very young age. Many pickin' parties were held at the house, along with rehearsals that his Dad would have with his band then, The Dixie Pals. At the age of 9 Ronnie started taking violin lessons. But when he was just 13, after attending a show with his Dad where he saw Bill Monroe perform, he decided that he wanted to play the mandolin. He practiced on it for six months and when his Dad had an opening in the band for mandolin player in 1981, he asked Ron to fill it. Ronnie has been playing with his Dad ever since. In 1998 Ronnie teamed up with David Grisman and some other great mandolin players to create the CD titled Mandolin Extravaganza, which made its appearance on the Acoustic Disc label in 1999. This CD was nominated for a Grammy Award and also won Instrumental Album of the Year and Recorded Event of the Year at the IBMA awards show in October of 2000.
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Jason Thomas

Claire Lynch Band

A native of Toronto, Ontario, Jason is a Canadian Open Mandolin Champion, not to mention, a two-time Florida State Champion on both fiddle and mandolin. Now making his home in Orlando, Florida with his wife, Beth, and their son, Jacob, Jason is the newest member of the Claire Lynch Band. From 2000-2006, he was a member of Kane's River and a regular performer at the Disney World and Universal Studios with guitarist Jim Hurst. Jason has been a professional musician most of his life, performed all over the world and on national television and appeared on numerous bluegrass and country recordings.
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Rob McCoury

Del McCoury Band

Rob McCoury's earliest memories are of music, especially since it was everywhere around the house. There were picking parties, rehearsals and festivals. Rob went to his first bluegrass festival at Ontalanee Park in Allentown, PA when he was six weeks old. Rob "caught the pickin' bug" when he was just eight years old, after seeing the Osborne Brothers at Sunset Park in West Grove, PA. Rob recalls "picking first thing in the morning and the last thing I did at night", and it was what he wanted to do. In June of 1986 Del had a festival to play in Bath, NY and he needed a bass player. Although Rob knew almost nothing about playing a bass fiddle, he played bass with his Dad that day and ended up being the bass player in the band for about a year, until the banjo position became available in 1987. He has been with the band ever since.
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Jens Kruger

Kruger Brothers

Though he started playing the harmonica at age of four, by age six - after hearing the banjo on one of his father's records - all Jens Kruger wanted to do was learn to play the banjo. At the age of ten Jens received a tenor banjo and learned to play Dixieland, hoping that one day it would sound like "Foggy Mountain Breakdown."
At the age of 16 Jens left home along with Uwe to make a living as street musicians thoughout Europe. Their band, Rocky Road, signed a record contract with CBS. In 1982 Jens traveled to the Bean Blossom Festival Festival to see Bill Monroe who introduced Jens as the first European Banjo Player to the Grand Ole Opry. Upon the advice of Bill Monroe, Jens returned to Switzerland to do his own kind of music. For the next 4 years, he devotted himself to learning music from every record he could find, all day and night. In 1986 Jens and Uwe formed 'The Appalachian Barn Orchestra,' which became the "Kruger Brothers." After performing at MerleFest 1997, Jens has performed together with Earl Scruggs, John McEuwen, Willie Nelson, Ricky Skaggs, and many others.
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Noam Pikelny

The How to Grow a Band

Chicago native Pikelny, now 23, was first thrust onto the international stage with polyethnic Cajun slamgrass titans Leftover Salmon, enlivening their freewheeling roots fusion with an ingenious blend of classic Scruggs-style picking and more modern, chromatic explorations. These days he divides his time between solo engagements, Chris Thile and The How to Grow a Band, and Crooked Still. Pikelny’s versatility lies in his unique experience in learning the instrument – beginning not with the three-finger bluegrass style that has drawn so many to the banjo, but with earlier pre-bluegrass techniques.
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Mark Schatz

Nickel Creek

Mark Schatz is a prominent figure in the New Acoustic Music scene. Twice named IBMA Bass Player of the Year, he has worked and/or recorded with an impressive variety of artists including Bela Fleck, Jerry Douglas, Maura O'Connell, Tony Rice, John Hartford, Emmylou Harris, Linda Ronstadt, and Tim & Mollie O'Brien. Mark is currently touring with Nickel Creek playing bass. He also acts as Musical Director for the internationally-acclaimed Footworks Percussive Dance Ensemble, which showcases his other talents such as clawhammer banjo and Southern Appalachian clog dancing. Mark has recorded two solo albums for Rounder Records. His solo debut, Brand New Old Tyme Way, was produced by Fleck for Rounder Records in 1995. The effort featured Schatz's clawhammer banjo and original compositions. Schatz studied music theory and composition at Haverford College and the Berklee School of Music. During this time, he picked up the banjo and learned to clog, inspired by his work with a Boston folk dance group. Mark is returning to the RockyGrass Academy to teach intermediate and advanced clawhammer banjo.
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Sara Watkins

Nickel Creek

"When I was four, I requested the song 'Long Black Veil.' The mandolin player asked me to come up and sing it, so I just went on up and sang on the chorus. From that point on, pretty much every Saturday night, they'd ask me up to sing." Her distinctive style on the fiddle was largely influenced by her studying with Dennis Caplinger. When she was fifteen, she became the Arizona State Fiddle Champion. In addition to Nickel Creek, Sara has toured with Darol Anger's Republic of Strings and recorded with The Chieftains, Bela Fleck, and Hank Williams, jr. She plans on releasing a self-produced solo album in the spring of 2007.
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Jason Carter

Del McCoury Band 
When Jason Carter was 16 years old he heard Del McCoury for the first time...and that's when he picked up the fiddle. Upon graduating from high school in 1991, he landed his first professional job as a musician. He worked six months for The Goins Brothers playing fiddle and traveling mostly on the East Coast. In February of 1992 The Goins Brothers played in Nashville, TN with Del McCoury; Jason asked him for a job. Two weeks later he was back in Nashville trying out. They played in Nashville, West Memphis and Garland, TX and when they got home they told him that he had the job. He's been with the band ever since. Since then Jason has relocated to Nashville and it's been more than a dream come true for him. He feels very fortunate to be able to play with some of his musical heros and to travel the world playing bluegrass music.
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Richard Greene
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Richard Greene & Brothers Barton
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Richard Greene grew up in Los Angeles and studied classical music until his encounter with the pyrotechnic fiddling of Scotty Stoneman. Richard first attained prominence with Bill Monroe and the Bluegrass Boys in 1966 as one of Monroe's first "Northern" band members. Monroe once said of Richard, "There's not a man in the country that can do what Richard can do." After leaving the Bluegrass Boys, Richard went on to found the revolutionary Folk-Rock group Seatrain, pioneering the use of the electric violin in Rock. As one of Los Angeles' premier string session players he founded the trailblazing Greene String Quartet creating an amalgam of Jazz-Folk-Rock-Chamber music. His many acclaimed releases in the folk and bluegrass world have been honored with Grammy and IBMA awards. Last year marked the debut of Richard Greene's Piece for Bluegrass Violin and Orchestra entitled "What If Mozart Played With Bill Monroe?"
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Rob Ickes

Blue Highway / Three Ring Circle

Rob Ickes (rhymes with "bikes") is one of the top session Dobroist in Nashville. In 1996 Rob performed on two Grammy winning recordings: Alison Krauss and the Cox Family's, I Know Who Holds Tomorrow, and the all-star Dobro release produced by Jerry Douglas, The Great Dobro Sessions. Rob was the youngest player to be invited to participate in the project, a virtual "who's who" of Dobro players. Since then, Rob has gone on to win IBMA Dobro Player of the Year a total of eight times. In addition to his steady job gigging with Blue Highway, he has performed with Earl Scruggs, Dolly Parton, Patty Loveless, Ricky Skaggs and others. Rob's four solo albums on Rounder showcase his fusion of hard-core bluegrass, blues, and jazz. In 2006, Rob was nominated for 10 IBMA awards - with Blue Highway, Three Ring Circle, and as Dobro Player of the Year. Born and raised in the San Francisco Bay area, Rob comes from a musical family; his grandparents played old-time fiddle music, and Rob trained his young musical ear at their weekly jam sessions.
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Sally Van Meter

Hillman & Pedersen / The Jeff Finlin Band

Since 1977, Sally's slide guitar work has gained respect and recognition among peers and audiences for her commitment to staying true to playing music with heart and soul. She is well-known for her performances & recorded works ranging from solo work to collaborations with artists such as Jerry Garcia, Chris Hillman, Cyril Pahinui, Jerry Douglas, Mary Chapin-Carpenter, Alison Brown, Taj Mahal, Peter Rowan & the Rowan Brothers, Yonder Mountain String Band, Tony Rice, Kathy Kallick, the Nashville Bluegrass Band, Gerry O'Beirne, Maura O'Connell, the inimitable Leftover Salmon and more. From 1977-1996, Sally was a member of the Good Ol' Persons, a much-beloved San Francisco- based band. She has been an IBMA Finalist Nominee for Dobro Player of the Year from 1990-1997 and in 1996 won two IBMA awards, Best Instrumental Recording and Recorded Event of the Year (The Great Dobro Sessions). For nearly three decades, Sally's musical journeys have taken her from the US to the United Kingdom, Europe and Japan. Alongside touring, you can find her wearing the Producers Hat producing recordings for national touring acts that include The Yonder Mountain String Band and the Open Road Bluegrass Band.
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Missy Raines

Claire Lynch Band

Missy Raines is the first woman to be named the International Bluegrass Music Association's Bass Player of the Year, an award she has now received five times - 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, and 2006. She was named the 1999 Bass Fiddle Player of the Year for the Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music in America and she was voted Fan's Choice Bass Player of the Year by the readers of Bluegrass Now magazine. Missy's solo debut CD, "My Place in the Sun" was named one of the Top 5 Bluegrass Albums of 1998 by the Chicago Tribune. A West Virginia native, Missy began playing guitar at age 10 but switched to bass age 12.
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Alan Bartram

Del McCoury Band

As a child Alan learned to sing by listening to his mother and singing along in church. At fourteen his dad started teaching him guitar. He was introduced to bluegrass by an uncle who had a band called Special Blend. When Alan was 19 he went to his first festival, the Delaware Valley Bluegrass Festival in Woodstown, NJ. From then on he was hooked. The next year at the same festival he met some other young pickers and together they started a group called 2nd Edition. When their first bass player left to spend more time with his wife and their new baby, Alan decided to give the bass a try and wound up loving it. After 2nd Edition decided to go their separate ways, Alan joined the Kenny and Amanda Smith Band and moved to Nashville, TN. Alan has freelanced with other artists such as Ronnie Bowman, Jim Lauderdale, Lee Ann Womack, The Nashville Stringdusters, Melonie Cannon, Alecia Nugent, and Randy Kohrs. In August, 2005, Alan joined the Del McCoury Band and he looks forward to making great music in the years to come.
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Joel Landsberg

Kruger Brothers

Beginning from his early days growing up in New York City, Joel Landsberg was surrounded by varied musical influences. With a cultural mixture of musical styles ranging from Broadway to Classical, to Jazz and Rhythm and Blues, Joel began his bass playing career at the ripe old age of 12. After several years of classical training on piano, Joel devoted his full attention to the bass and has been playing nothing else since. Soon after moving to Switzerland in 1989, Joel began a successful career as a sideman with various Country/Rock and Jazz acts throughout Europe. It was during this time that he met up with the Kruger Brothers and developed what would turn into a deeply rewarding musical alliance and friendship. In early 1995 Joel was initiated into the 'Brotherhood' and has been performing full time with the band ever since.
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Claire Lynch

Claire Lynch Band

Dolly Parton credits Claire with "one of the sweetest, purest, and best lead voices in the music business today." Claire's harmonies have graced the recordings of many stellar musicians, including Ralph Stanley, Emmylou Harris, Linda Ronstadt, Patty Loveless, John Starling, and Kathy Mattea. Equally gifted as a songwriter, her songs have been recorded by The Seldom Scene, Patty Loveless, Kathy Mattea, The Cherryholmes, April Verch and others. She has earned 2 Grammy nominations for best Best Bluegrass Album and in 1997 she received the IBMA award for "Female Vocalist of the Year."
The Claire Lynch Band is now touring with a moving and impressive CD, "New Day."
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Del McCoury

Del McCoury Band

Among the most distinguished practitioners of traditional bluegrass, Del McCoury was the epitome of the "high lonesome sound" for over three decades. In 1963, he served an apprenticeship with Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys, and it was Monroe who switched McCoury from banjo to guitar and first recognized his distinctive tenor was well suited for lead vocals. McCoury's yearlong stint with the Blue Grass Boys took him around the country. In 1967, he formed his own band, Del McCoury and the Dixie Pals. Under this name, he performed and recorded for several years while working at jobs in logging and construction to support his family. By 1992, he had relocated to Nashville, performing alongside his sons in the Del McCoury band. He has won a total of 31 IBMA Awards, including four Male Vocalist of the Year Awards. Del joined the cast of the Grand Ole Opry in 2003.
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Claire LyncH Band

By any measure, the Claire Lynch Band is high on the bluegrass world's A-List, with musicians whose accolades include International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) Female Vocalist of the Year and two Grammy nominations for Best Bluegrass Album (Claire); five IBMA Bass Player of the Year awards (Missy Raines); and two IBMA Guitar Player of the Year awards (Jim Hurst). Claire's collaboration with Missy Raines and Jim Hurst dates back to the days of the Front Porch String Band, resulting in a seasoned sound that is simultaneously unpretentious and rickly textured. It's a down-home, front porch sensibility - until you realize that it's a rare front porch, indeed, that has ever hosted musicians of this caliber.
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Nickel Creek


Guitarist Sean Watkins, fiddler Sara Watkins (his younger sister), and mandolin/banjo/bouzouki player Chris Thile first started performing together in 1989, when all three were preteens and taking music lessons in their native San Diego. Since that time the group has released five albums (three major releases) and won a Grammy Award in 2003 for Best Contemporary Folk Album for their release, This Side. Their first 2 major releases have both been certified gold, and their third album, Why Should The Fire Die? was nominated for the 2006 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album. They have appeared on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, sold out countless shows across the country, had thit videos on CMT, been named in TIME Magazine as one of five "Music Innovators for the Millennium", and been profiled in the prestigious New York Times with the headline, "Bluegrass That Can Twang And Be Cool Too..."
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Del McCoury Band
The Del McCoury Band are undeniably one of the most talented, revered and vital groups in bluegrass history (and one of the most potent bands in any field today). No less than The Washington Post recently called Del “a national treasure”, while numerous music publications have credited The Del McCoury Band with increasing the bluegrass “hip factor," generating much of the genre's steady upswing in popularity with a more youthful crowd. The Del McCoury Band has now won more International Bluegrass Music Association awards than any other artist in the genre’s history with a total of nearly 40 individual and group citations from the IBMA--including a whopping nine “Entertainer Of The Year” honors, been nominated for six Grammys—and just won his first in February, has seen his videos welcomed by CMT, joined the venerated Grand Ole Opry, represented the cream of the bluegrass crop on national television, making appearances on Austin City Limits, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, and The Late Show with David Letterman.
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Kruger Brothers
The Kruger Brothers from Switzerland have been performing professionally since 1973. Almost twenty years later, after playing together in various formations throughout Europe, Uwe Kruger on guitar, and Jens Kruger on banjo, teamed up with bassist Joel Landsberg to form the band. Although each of these musicians has earned high credit for his skills individually, it is the interaction of the three together which makes their music so uniquely special. Although rooted in traditional American Folk and Bluegrass music, their sound combines their own musical personalities along with their Classical European musical influences. The Krugers have been appearing regularly in the U.S. since 1997 at such prestigious events as, Merlefest, Doc Watson Music Fest, Wayne Henderson Festival, Walnut Valley Festival, Greyfox, and the IBMA World of Bluegrass. Hundreds of Arts Council and Theater concerts, plus appearances on national and international radio and television, have earned the Brothers the love and respect of the international music. Since permanently moving to North Carolina in the fall of 2003, the Kruger Brothers have been concentrating their efforts on performing year-round throughout the United States.
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Kate Hamre

Bearfoot Bluegrass Band

Kate started playing music when she was about eight years old. Her first instrument was piano, which she played for a number of years, until she discovered that she would never grow big enough to carry it to jam sessions. She began playing the fiddle in sixth grade, taking private lessons with Mary Schallert and Frank Solivan II. The following year, she started playing bass for her school since its orchestra had no bass players. Soon after, she became interested in playing bluegrass bass, and Bearfoot increased her musical growth dramatically when they started touring her freshman year of high school.
Kate spent three years managing “Bluegrass Camps for Kids”, a program that instructs more than 250 kids every summer on how to play bluegrass music. She now owns this business, and runs the camps around the U.S., Canada, and Ireland. Kate also acts as Bearfoot’s manager as well as being a full time Elementary Education student. When Kate isn’t playing bass, she likes to downhill ski, hike, fish, eat coffee ice cream, and call Angela about band matters.
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Mike Mickelson

Bearfoot Bluegrass Band

Mike Mickelson provides Bearfoot's rhythm and flat-picking guitar work on his 1948 Martin D-18. In addition to playing his guitar, Mike writes songs about his adventures in Alaska. His claim to fame is that he has about 40 half written songs, and one day he will sit down and hash them out.
Born and raised in Cordova, Alaska, he spent most of his childhood ten miles out of town by boat at his family's birding lodge. Without distractions like electricity or a real bathroom, he concentrated on playing guitar, exploring the wilds of Alaska, skiing, snowboarding, surfing, or fixing what was broken around the house. Mike is notorious for his great story telling, so if you ever have the need to get your Alaskan story fix, Mike is the man to talk to. You will most likely find him doing homework for his Elementary Education degree or under the hood of his ’69 Ford, broken down on the side of the road. Unfortunately his truck is not all that breaks.
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Jason Norris

Bearfoot Bluegrass Band

Jason Norris is known for being the “I’m gonna go out and jam with everyone at this festival” guy in the band. He started playing mandolin at age 9, learning from Alaskan locals. His enthusiasm for the mandolin and bluegrass music is infectious. He is often seen at Alaskan festivals yelling “Happy Bluegrass!!!” to everyone he sees. Currently Jason is working on a framing job in the tiny town of Nome, AK, usually acknowledged as the Home of the Iditarod. When he isn’t pounding nails or playing music, Jason can be seen scaling Alaska’s mountains, snow machining, or carrying Kate’s bass.
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angela Oudean

Bearfoot Bluegrass Band

Angela Oudean grew up in Anchorage, Alaska with a family of musicians. She had been influenced to sing and play music through various family activities like going to church, music festivals, and even singing along with the radio on long road trips. She learned to play the fiddle and guitar by taking lessons, attending acoustic music camps for kids, listening to CDs, and watching her family and friends play. Angela was in many childhood bluegrass and folk bands that performed all over Anchorage. When she was 16, Angela became a part of Bearfoot and began to get more serious about playing bluegrass fiddle after traveling and performing more than she had ever done before. After graduating high school, Angela decided to attend East Tennessee State University. While in Johnson City, Angela plays fiddle with an up and coming singer/songwriter group called the Everybodyfields. Angela is planning on graduating college May of 2006 with Bachelor of Science in Sociology, and a minor in Bluegrass.
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annalisa Tornfelt

Bearfoot Bluegrass Band

Annalisa Tornfelt started playing violin at the ripe old age of three, under the careful instruction of her mother. Her musicality grew in her early high school years, after years of music lessons and attending camps, maturing into a fine singer/songwriter. She released her first solo album her senior year, and her sophomore album three years later. Known for her sultry voice and touching lyrics, she had made a name for herself in the folk and bluegrass world.
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Michael Hornick

Shanti Guitars

Michael Hornick is the builder of Shanti Guitars. After building his first guitar in 1985, he worked at Santa Cruz Guitar Company, and presently works alone in his shop in Avery, California, building about twelve instruments a year. Michael has built the first place guitar prize for the nationally recognized Telluride Troubadour contest from its inception in 1991, and helped design the original mandolin and mandola kits. His love of lutherie is reflected in the high quality of craftmanship found in each of his custom instrument. Michael has assisted students in the building of well over one hundred mandolin kits over the past fourteen years.
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Dan Roberts

Santa Cruz Guitars

Dan Roberts has been intimately involved in instrument production for both Gibson and Flatiron. He spent five years as production manager and builder at the Santa Cruz Guitar Company. He presently lives in Montana and is the service manager and repairman for the Santa Cruz Guitar Company. He has offered his expertise at the RockyGrass Academy for the last eight years.
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Bobby Wintringham

San Juan Mandolins

Bobby Wintringham is returning for his fifth year as an instructor at the Academy's mandolin building experience. He is a full time luthier building San Juan Mandolins in his shop in Dolores, Colorado. Says Bobby, "The only thing more rewarding than building instruments is being able to share that knowledge with others."
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Gary Lundy

Lundy Guitars

Gary Lundy has been assisting Michael and Dan in the Mandolin Building class since 2000. He apprenticed with Dan and has now built three mandolins and two guitars. The third guitar is on its way. In 2005 Gary began Lundy Guitars and has begun taking orders. In his other life he's a
Professor of English at the University of Montana-Western. He lives inDillon, Montana.
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Chuck Midgley


Chuck has known Michael Hornick since 1992, owns a Shanti guitar, and has
assisted Michael with the mando building class since 2002. Each year Chuck
produces a mandolin while assisting other students with theirs. In his other
life, he is a master mechanic building hot rods in California.
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Philip Zanon

Kruger Brothers

Philip grew up in Switzerland and got into sound systems just like many
others, as the guitar player for a local band. He developed his skills,
got a masters degree in electrical engineering at the Swiss Federal
Institute of Technology - Zurich. He soon started to record and produce albums
for children where he met up with Jens Kruger for some overdubbing work
in 1995. They became friends and in 1996 he started to run live sound
for the Kruger Brothers. In 1997 Double Time Music was formed and the
activities expanded into producing albums with the Kruger Brothers and
working on the road building the Kruger's live sound. In between, he
works as a consultant for large installed audio projects. His recents
mixing work includes Merlefest's Midnight Jams 2004 and 2005, mixing Doc
Watson at venues in North Carolina, and being responsible for the sound
of two performances of the Kruger Brothers together with the Bangor Symphony
Orchestra in 2006.
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- Telluride Bluegrass Festival, June 21-24, 2007
- RockyGrass Academy, July 22-26, 2007
- RockyGrass, July 27-29, 2007
- Song School, August 12-16, 2007
- Folks Fest, August, 17-19, 2007
- Festival of the Mabon, September 22, 2007
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- 3-day and Saturday passes for RockyGrass are now sold-out!
- Telluride NightGrass tickets are on sale now
- Preliminary lineups posted for the Folks Festival and the Song School
- Construction begins on the Wildflower Pavilion on Planet Bluegrass
- Counting Crows, Guster, and Los Lobos added to Telluride Bluegrass Festival lineup
- Help preserve the Valley Floor in Telluride
- Become a Festivarian. Join the community at our new Festivarian Forum
- Planet Bluegrass jean jacket and hoodies added to our newly redesigned Festivarian Mercantile
- A few spaces still remain in the RockyGrass Academy
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