Lindsay Craven, the festival’s artist relations manager, reached out to see if some artists would like to share a special song and a memory of the iconic blind folk guitarist, who passed away on May 29, 2012, and received what she called an “amazing “response. “More than 60 artists “have taken time to record a video and send in a song for us to share with our fans,” she noted.

Extending from 9 a.m. on Monday, May 25 to 8:30 p.m. on Friday, May 29, the remembrance event known as #DocWatsonWeek can be viewed on MerleFest’s Facebook page (https:facebook.com/MerleFest), as well as via its Twitter and Instagram accounts (both at @MerleFest) during the week. Each video will be posted at the top of the hour, starting at 9 a.m. daily, according to Craven. DocWatsonWeek will close out with a recording of Watson’s final performance on the festival’s Creekside Stage in 2012.

Here’s the artist lineup: MONDAY: Joe Smothers Music, One Fret Over, Cordovas, Sweet Potato Pie, Piedmont Blūz Acoustic Duo, Hogslop String Band, Happy Traum, Kelsey Waldon, Mary Flower, Chatham Rabbits, Chatham County Line, Tara Nevins of Donna the Buffalo with Richie Stearns, Tommy Emmanuel with Jason Isbell; TUESDAY: Kevin Russell of Shinyribs, Iron Horse Bluegrass, Steep Canyon Rangers, The Williams Brothers Band, James Nash of The Waybacks, Liam Purcell & Cane Mill Road, Alison Brown, Rob Ickes and Trey Hensley, The Local Boys, Pete Wernick, Jerry Douglas, Peter Rowan, Andy May; WEDNESDAY: Terrapin Creek, David Holt, Bill and the Belles, Kruger Brothers, Robbie Fulks, musician, Tony Williamson, Dennis Stroughmatt with Creole Stomp, Gangstagrass, Nefesh Mountain, Dave Bruzza of Greensky Bluegrass, T Michael Coleman, Scythian, Carol Rifkin; THURSDAY: The Barefoot Movement, Kathy Mattea, Charles Welch, Mitch Greenhill, None of the Above, Presley Barker, Paul Thorn, Jody Carroll, Billy Strings, Wayne Henderson, Amythyst Kiah, Sierra Hull, Darin & Brooke Aldridge; FRIDAY: The Steel Wheels, Brothers Egg, Sierra Ferrell, Mark Bumgarner Music, Wyld Fern, Jim Lauderdale, Anna Lynch, Fireside Collective, Sam Bush, John McEuen, and Doc Watson.

Founded in 1988 in memory of the late Eddy Merle Watson, Doc’s son and an instrumental virtuoso in his own right, MerleFest was initially created to celebrate “traditional plus” music – a mix of music based on the traditional, roots-oriented sounds of the Appalachian region — but has come to embrace Americana, country, blues, rock and other musical styles as well. The annual four-day event, originally scheduled for this spring on the campus of Wilkes Community College in Wilkesboro, North Carolina, has been postponed until April 29-May 2, 2021 due to public health concerns surrounding the Coronavirus (COVID19) pandemic.

This year’s contest attracted nearly 750 entries in four categories (bluegrass, country, general and gospel). Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Jim Lauderdale served as volunteer contest chairperson and led a songwriting mentoring session, along with the on-site judges, in which all of the finalists took part.

The winners in the bluegrass and general categories are listed below.

Bluegrass: First Place: Aaron Biebelhauser (Louisville, KY) for “Blue Collar Dreams,” Second Place: Courtney Rorrer (Madison, NC) and Asa Gravely (Beckley, WV) for “Midnight Tears,” and Third Place: Cindy Giejda (Farmingdale, NJ) for “Jail Break.”

General: First Place: Sarah Sample (Sheridan, WY) for “A Heart That Falls apart” and Adam Bonomo (Brooklyn, NY) for “Redshifted,” and Second Place: David Morris (Gaithersburg, MD) and Chris Dockins (Burke, VA) for “Weeds.”

Although AcousticMusicScene.com generally does not cover country and gospel music, the winners in those categories are as follows:

Country: First Place: Buddy Guido (Mohawk, NY), Paul Kelly (Santa Fe, NM) and Willie Scheollkopf (Buffalo, NY) for “This Livin’ May Be Killing Me,” Second Place: Sarah Morris (Shoreview, MN) for “I Go Back,” and Third Place: Meris Gantt of Handlebar Betty (Blowing rock, NC) for “House of Cards.”

Gospel/Inspirational: First Place: Marcy Each (Cedar Rapids, IA) for “On the Cross Built for Me,” Second Place: Austin Stanley (Nashville, TN) for “The Face of God,” and Third Place: Corey Smith and Allen Smith (Fayetteville, NC) for “The Road.”

The Chris Austin Songwriting Contest was established to honor the memory of Chris Austin, a songwriter and former sideman for Ricky Skaggs. Austin’s life was tragically cut short when a private plane carrying him and six other members of Reba McEntire’s band, as well as her tour manager, crashed in California in 1991. In the contest that is open to those whose primary source of income is not derived from songwriting or publishing, songs are judged based on originality, lyrics, melody and overall commercial potential. Previous winners of the contest include Gillian Welch, Tift Merritt, Michael Reno Harrell, Adrienne Young, Martha Scanlan, David Via, Eliot Bronson and Johnny Williams. Net proceeds from the contest help support the Wilkes Community College Chris Austin Memorial Scholarship that has provided financial support to 81 students since its inception.

Founded in 1988 in memory of the late Eddy Merle Watson, son of American music legend Doc Watson, MerleFest is considered one of America’s premier music festivals. Initially created to celebrate “traditional plus” music – a mix of music based on the traditional, roots-oriented sounds of the Appalachian region — the four-day event now embraces Americana, country, blues, rock and other musical styles as well.

Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Jim Lauderdale chaired a volunteer panel of music industry professionals that selected the writers of 12 songs from among nearly 600 entries in four categories (bluegrass, country, general and gospel) for the opportunity to compete on the Austin Stage at MerleFest on Friday afternoon, April 25. The finalists in the bluegrass and general categories are listed below.

Bluegrass: Jim Crews (Boone, NC) for “Crossties,” Paul Harrigill (Murfreesboro, TN) and Amber Nugent (Ferriday, LA) for “I’m Blue,” and Chelsea McBee of The Random Assortment & the Christian Lopez Band (Shepherdstown, WV) for “Gone-A-Rye”).

General: Clint Alphin (Dunn, NC) for “Nobody Knows My Name,” Sarah Potenza and Ian Crossman (both of Nashville, TN) for “My Turn,” and Joseph Terrell of Mipso (Chapel Hill, NC) for “Angelina Jane is Long Gone.”

Although AcousticMusicScene.com generally does not cover country and gospel music, the finalists in those categories are as follows:

Country: Dan Buchner (Salt Lake City, UT) and Ben Childs (Oxford, MS), both of Hollering Pines, for “Cadillac,” Kelsi Robertson-Harrigill (Murfreesboro, TN) for “If You Never Let Me Go,” and Becky Warren (Nashville, TN) for “Call Me Sometime.”

Gospel/Inspirational: Gary Alan Ferguson (Alexandria, VA) for “Time To Praise the Lord,” Frank Hurd (Raleigh, NC) for “Light,” and Allen Smith and Corey Smith of Ash Breeze (Robbins, NC) for “Without Love.”

Each of the finalists will be provided with free admission and lodging for three nights at MerleFest and will participate in a mentoring session with Lauderdale. First place winners in each category will perform on the Cabin Stage on Friday night during the festival. Noted songwriters Darrell Scott, Charles Humphreys III (Steep Canyon Rangers) and Niall Toner will be among the second-round judges who determine this year’s winners.

The Chris Austin Songwriting Contest was established to honor the memory of Chris Austin, a songwriter and former sideman for Ricky Skaggs. Austin’s life was tragically cut short when a private plane carrying him and six other members of Reba McEntire’s band, as well as her tour manager, crashed in California in 1991. In the contest that is open to those whose primary source of income is not derived from songwriting or publishing, songs are judged based on originality, lyrics, melody and overall commercial potential. Previous winners of the contest include Gillian Welch, Tift Merritt, Michael Reno Harrell, Adrienne Young, Martha Scanlan, David Via, Eliot Bronson and Johnny Williams. The contest was established to honor the memory of Chris Austin, a songwriter and former sideman for Ricky Skaggs. Austin’s life was tragically cut short when a private plane carrying him and six other members of Reba McEntire’s band, as well as her tour manager, crashed in California in 1991.

Founded in 1988 in memory of the late Eddy Merle Watson, son of American music legend Doc Watson, MerleFest is considered one of America’s premier music festivals. Initially created to celebrate “traditional plus” music – a mix of music based on the traditional, roots-oriented sounds of the Appalachian region — MerleFest now also embraces Americana, country, blues, rock and other musical styles as well. More than 130 artists and acts will perform on 13 stages during the four-day event.This year’s festival will feature what’s being billed as a “BanjoRama” — a one-time only assembly of some of music’s top banjo players in performance together. More information on the festival may be found at www.merlefest.org.

Brothers Eric and Leigh Gibson, along with their band (Mike Barber, Clayton Campbell and Joe Walsh) also were honored for Gospel Recorded Performance of the Year” for “Singing As We Rise.”

Other top winners of this year’s International Bluegrass Music Awards, which are voted on by the professional membership of the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA), included Junior Sisk & Ramblers Choice whose The Heart of a Song was named Album of the Year, while “A Far Cry from Lester & Earl” took Single of the Year honors. Russell Moore (of Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out) and Dale Ann Bradley were named male and female vocalists of the year, respectively. The Emerging Artist of the Year Award went to Joe Mullins & The Radio Ramblers, while Doyle Lawson and the late Ralph Rinzler were the 2012 inductees into the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame.

Steve Martin and other top bluegrass musicians participated in a star-filled tribute to Earl Scruggs, the legendary banjo player who died earlier this year, that capped off the gala event that was hosted by Del McCoury and Laurie Lewis.

The IBMA Awards Show is considered the centerpiece of the trade association’s annual World of Bluegrass Week, which also included an IBMA business conference and Bluegrass Fan Fest.

A complete list of award winners follows:

Bluegrass Hall of Fame Inductees: Doyle Lawson, Ralph Rinzler
Distinguished Achievement Award Recipients: Byron Berline, Joe & Lil Cornett, Orin Friesen, Pee Wee Lambert, Kitsy Kuykendall
Entertainer of the Year: The Gibson Brothers
Vocal Group of the Year: Blue Highway
Instrumental Group of the Year: The Boxcars
Emerging Artists of the Year: Joe Mullins & The Radio Ramblers
Male Vocalist of the Year: Russell Moore
Female Vocalist of the Year: Dale Ann Bradley
Song of the Year: “A Far Cry From Lester & Earl” Junior Sisk & Ramblers Choice
Album of the Year: Heart Of A Song, Junior Sisk & Ramblers Choice
Gospel Recorded Event of the Year: “Singing As We Rise” by the Gibson Brothers w/Ricky Skaggs
Instrumental Performance of the Year: “Angeline The Baker” by Lonesome River Band
Recorded Event of the Year: “Life Goes On” by Carl Jackson, Ronnie Bowman, Larry Cordle, Jerry Salley, Rickey Wasson, Randy Kohrs, D.A. Adkins, Garnet Bowman, Lynn Butler, Ashley Kohrs, Gary Payne, Dale Pyatt, Clay Hess, Alan Bibey, Jay Weaver, Ron Stewart & Jim VanCleve (artists); Jerry Salley, Carl Jackson, Larry Cordle, Jim Van Cleve & Randy Kohrs (producers); Rural Rhythm Records
Banjo Player of the Year: Sammy Shelor
Bass Player of the Year: Marshall Wilborn
Fiddle Player of the Year: Stuart Duncan
Dobro Player of the Year: Rob Ickes
Guitar Player of the Year: Doc Watson
Mandolinist of the Year: Adam Steffey
Broadcaster of the Year: Kyle Cantrell
Bluegrass Event of the Year: ROMP, produced by the International Bluegrass Music Museum; Owensboro, KY
Print Media Person of the Year: Marty Godbey, author of Crowe on the Banjo: The Music Life of J.D. Crowe (Univ. of Illinois Press)
Best Graphic Design: Bedrock Manufacturing (designer) for Nobody Knows You, by the Steep Canyon Rangers (Rounder Records)
Best Liner Notes: Marian Leighton Levy (liner notes), for Tony Rice: The Bill Monroe Collection, by Tony Rice (Rounder Records)
Bluegrass Songwriter of the Year: Jon Weisberger

IBMA’s new Momentum Awards, designed to recognize promising new talent – artists and business people in the early years of their careers in bluegrass music, were presented earlier in the week This year’s recipients are:

Band of the Year: Monroeville
Vocalist of the Year: Emily Bankester (performs with The Bankesters)
Instrumentalists of the Year: bassist Samson Grisman (son of legendary mandolinist David “Dawg” Grisman, performs with The Deadly Gentlemen), fiddler Alex Hargreaves (performs with Sarah Jarosz), and fiddler Christian Ward (performs with Sierra Hull)
Event/Venue of the Year: Appalachian Uprising, produced by Steve Cielic (a new festival in Scottown, Ohio)
Industry Achievement: Crash Avenue publicist Emilee Warner
Mentor of the Year: Five-time IBMA Bass Player of the Year and producer Mike Bub

The newest of the five regional affiliates of Folk Alliance International, SERFA (www.serfa.org) exists to promote, develop and celebrate the diverse heritage of roots and indigenous music, dance, storytelling and related arts in the Southeastern United States. Its annual conference is a primary means of doing that. SERFA opted to move the event from the fall to the spring after holding its last two conferences at the Ozark Folk Center in Mountain View, Arkansas during the autumn of 2009 and 2010. That decision appears to be paying off.

“We have 180 [people] registered and expect a few walk-ups,” says Christine Stay, co-director of the conference and one-half of the modern folk duo Friction Farm. “We’re still new and small, but we’re growing fast,” she says, noting that this year’s advance registration represents a 75% increase over last year’s conference attendance figures.

Workshops on a variety of topics will be offered each day. In addition to music business-oriented sessions focusing on such topics as radio, publicity, working with arts councils and social networking, Stay says SERFA is “pleased to offer a number of workshops related to community building, easy harmony singing to create community choruses, songs of service, and writing and presenting political and activist songs in a way that builds bridges rather than divisions.” Mentoring sessions are slated for Saturday afternoon. A group of elementary school students also will get an introduction to folk and acoustic music, including a little hands-on time with the instruments. “We are also having our first-ever dance workshop,” says Stay.

A number of artists have been selected to present official showcases from 7-10:15 p.m. each evening. Thursday’s lineup (in order of appearance) includes Elise Witt, Grant Peeples, Deb Cowan, Twilite Broadcasters, Tater Diggers, Chuck Brodsky, Michael Troy, Loralyn Coles, Adler & Hearne, and Molasses Creek. Slated to perform on Friday night are Jon Shain, Ellen Bukstel, Greg Horne, Sisters 3, Kath Buckell, Mary Reynolds, Jon Brooks, Jacob Johnson, Al Petteway & Amy White, and David Holt. Saturday night’s official showcase artists are Deirdre McCalla, Marc Black, Beaucoup Blue, Louise Mosrie, Andrew McKnight & Beyond Borders, Brian Ashley Jones, Danny Darst, Eliza Lynn, Dylan Sneed, and The YaYas. Following the official showcases, late-night guerilla showcases will take place in various conference rooms between 10:45 p.m. and 2 a.m. Conference organizers are inviting the public to attend the showcases for $10 a night or $25 for all three nights. The conference concludes on Sunday morning with a continental breakfast and community sing.

Editor’s Note: During the SERFA Conference, I will participate in a panel discussion entitled “Performers and Presenters: Partnering to Pull in People,” along with Tracey Delfino (Trespass Music) and folk & Americana singer-songwriter Andrew McKnight. I also will be a mentor offering advice and counsel on public relations, strategic communications, websites and social media, and other topics.

Celebrating the music of the late instrumental virtuoso Merle Watson and his father Doc Watson, the “traditional-plus” music festival features sounds of the Appalachian region and beyond — ranging from bluegrass and Americana to old-time, country and roots music. It takes place April 29 – May 2 on the campus of Wilkes Community College in Wilkesboro, North Carolina.

Among the more than 100 acts performing on 15 stages during the festival — in addition to Doc Watson and his son Richard — are The Avett Brothers, Bearfoot, The Belleville Outfit, Diercks Bentley, Roy Book Binder, Brave Combo, Sam Bush Band, Elvis Costello and The Sugarcanes, Dailey and Vincent, Donna The Buffalo, The Duhks, Great Big Sea, The Greencards, John Hammond, David Holt, Jeni and Billy, Si Kahn, The Lovell Sisters, Taj Mahal, Harry Manx, Steve Martin with the Steep Canyon Rangers, The Travelin’ McCourys, Nashville Bluegrass Band, Missy Raines and The New Hip, Red Molly, The Tony Rice Unit, Peter Rowan Bluegrass Band, The Steeldrivers, Rhonda Vincent and The Rage, and The Waybacks.

Unique musical collaborations and spontaneous jam sessions have been highlights of MerleFest since its inception 23 years ago. The festival also features the finals of the Chris Austin Songwriting Contest, instrument contests, a Friday night songwriter showcase coffeehouse and open mic, heritage crafts by regional artisans, children’s activities, and plenty of pickin’ opportunities.

In keeping with the festival’s tradition, both established and emerging artists will be featured. Pushing the musical boundaries, Friday’s lineup includes Iron and Wine, Jay Farrar (Son Volt, Uncle Tupelo) and Benjamin Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie), as well as Band of Heathens, Hoots & Hellmouth, Po’ Girl, Jer Coons, and Nervous But Excited. Saturday night’s lineup hones closer to folk and roots traditions with artists like Rosanne Cash, Richie Havens and Doc Watson. Also slated to perform on Saturday night are Raul Malo, Hot Club of Cowtown and, for fans of Celtic rock, Enter the Haggis. The music gets under way each night at 6:30 p.m., with singer-songwriter Patty Larkin as emcee.

Tickets are priced at $30 and $45 for a single night and $50 and $80 for both nights. For more information and to order tickets, call (734) 763-TKTS or log-on to www.theark.org.