2018 is off to a roaring start in our CBA music world. As I am typ- ing this we are packing for another Great 48 Hour Jam in Bakersfield. Next up is A Night at the Grange (2/25/18 Morgan Hill) and a Con- cert in Shingle Springs (2/24/18 Placerville Area) featuring Volume Five and both have tickets available on line. The Quale and Khader families in Alameda and John & Loretta Hettinger in Folsom and Lucy Smith in Chico are planning concerts this winter. Kim Smith in Grass Valley and Larry Phegley in Monterey are helping book blue- grass bands. The Central Valley Area under Stan Allen has blue- grass events in Clovis in the summertime. John Green is developing a concert space at the new 5th String in Sacramento. Tickets will be available soon for the Sonoma Bluegrass & Folk Festival (3/8/18 Sebastopol). There are preliminary plans in the works for a CBA presence at the St. Patrick’s Day Parade (3/17/18 San Francisco). Deb Livermore is already planning the Spring Campout (4/16-4/22 Tur- lock). The CBA can help members produce concerts and events, just ask.
We have member produced and /or supported jams in counties all over Northern California. Early Bird Tickets are available for our 43rd Annual Father’s Day Festival in Grass Valley. Registration opens in February both for the CBA Summer Music Camp and the Academy held during our Father’s Day week in Grass Valley. The application process for the IBMA KOB event in Raleigh is posted in this Break- down. Plans are underway for more events and parades. We continue to “partner” with the Berkeley Old Time Music Convention, the Berkeley Bluegrass Festival, The California State Old Time Fiddlers Association, the Freight & Salvage Coffee House, the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival and the Clover- dale Fiddle Festival. We love that other events welcome the CBA to suggest bands, organize jams and promote the CBA. Helping other organizations and events be successful is part of the CBA Mission. We will enthusiastically support events that introduce and promote bluegrass and old time music to a larger audience. We have been promoting the music for over 40 years and are delighted that more and more events featuring bluegrass and old time music are being proposed and implemented by our member volunteers. Our definition of “inclusion” includes producing more events in more areas to reach more people to promote our music.
Some have asked recently what the CBA Role is for regional events. We have expertise, we have insurance, we have ASCAP/BMI connections, we have a newspaper and a website and Facebook/Instagram/Twitter accounts to help with publicity. We have online ticket sale capability. We have non- profit status. We can help account for money raised via public fundraising platforms. The Board of Directors will consider any proposed bluegrass/old time event that meets the CBA Mission. We welcome any member/group of members from all the geographic areas of California to propose events that introduce and promote our music to a broader audience. We continue to encourage members to remain in contact with their Area Vice Presidents (name change coming) to plan for more activities. We are aware of many “under served” areas in need of a bluegrass injection!!
The Annual CBA Youth Pro- gram Scholarship Fund Drive has ended and we met our $8000 goal for this year. We are again able to help financially support our member children attend our CBA instructional and performance events. It takes a village to raise the next generation of pickers and you stepped up once again to show support. The CBA Youth Program is funded by your donations and is not an expense of the CBA General Fund. The Program consists now of: Kids on Bluegrass, The Academy, the Darrell Johnston Kids Instrument Lending Library, KidFest and FunGrass at Grass Valley and performances and jams held during the year in various locations. We have a website, a NewGen News page in the Bluegrass Breakdown, a Facebook page and a brochure and can refer families to music schools and teachers throughout the state. We are working on a CBA Youth Program Songbook. All our ac- tivities are managed by volunteers whose only goal is to support families and children. Thank you all for your generous support for our Youth.
