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International Bluegrass Music Museum

International Bluegrass Music Museum

About Me

HIGH LONESOME GOES HIGH TECH AND WORLDWIDE RBI (Radio Bluegrass International) Launches May 18
• OWENSBORO, KY May 7th, 2007– While it might seem ironic that a musical art form known for its resistance to any electric instrument would benefit from the world’s most recognized state-of-the-art electronic medium, those who run the International Bluegrass Music Museum are confident that their new internet service is going to be bluegrass heaven to fans old and new around the globe. RBI Radio Bluegrass International, a non-commercial, 24-hour internet radio station, makes its debut Tuesday May 1, 2007 and will stream from the museum’s website at Bluegrass Museum
• The fully licensed and encrypted stream, emanating from the only international bluegrass museum in the world, will feature programming based on the museum’s personality and collections—with input from bluegrass fans around the world.
RBI will consistently expand its content, utilizing the museum’s daily contact with legends, luminaries, and up-and-coming artists to provide bluegrass news, classic tracks, new releases, disc reviews, in-studio performances, international recordings, archived radio shows from around the world, vintage vinyl, festival announcements, festival recordings, and museum news.Interactive extras such as forums, blogs, and calendars will be added as the station grows.
Longer range plans include multi-lingual bluegrass programs from around the world, vintage and classic music from the museum’s vast collection of rare recordings, a fully translated multi-lingual RBI host website, and streaming the museum’s exclusive audio and video interviews with iconic musicians from bluegrass music’s first generation. “With RBI, we will provide listeners a satisfying, educational bluegrass experience while serving as a worldwide electronic extension of the museum,” said the museum’s Assistant Director, Mike Lawing.
• After a free trial period RBI listeners will pay $4 per month to access an uninterrupted stream. Members of the bluegrass museum, however, will receive unlimited access as part of their annual membership. Although the May 1 launch will serve as something of an “Open House” to the new station, the official “Grand Opening” will begin Friday, May 18 at 8:30 AM Central with a show hosted by Lawing and engineer/program director Rob Calhoun.
• Bluegrass music is so named because of Kentucky native Bill Monroe and his band, The Blue Grass Boys. Monroe’s birthplace and grave are only a short drive from the museum in Owensboro. The music he created has become so universally associated with the State of Kentucky that on March 19, 2007, Kentucky Governor Ernie Fletcher signed Kentucky House Bill 71 into law, designating bluegrass as Kentucky’s official state music. “This is a great opportunity to share Kentucky’s music, Bluegrass, with the entire world,” said Governor Fletcher. “The International Bluegrass Music Museum has opened new doors in sharing Kentucky’s music heritage worldwide.”
The International Bluegrass Music Museum is the only museum of its kind in the world and is dedicated to the preservation and promotion of bluegrass music for fans around the world.
The official museum of Bluegrass Music features guided tours, interpretive exhibits, bluegrass films, instrument demonstrations and gift shop. Visit http://www.bluegrassmuseum.org or call (270) 926-7891

My Interests

We are most interested in convincing music fans to join the museum for just pennies a day in order to help us preserve this original art form. COMING SOON! Monroe-Style Mandolin Camp Faculty Concert featuring Frank Wakefield, Mike Compton, Roland White, Skip Gorman, David Long and Tom Ewing! Tickets are $20 at 888 MY BANJO.

I'd like to meet:


TRAVELERS!
GROUP TOURS!
Bluegrass is the official state music of Kentucky and Owensboro is home to the world-renowned International Bluegrass Music Museum (IBMM), located in the beautiful RiverPark Complex just a few steps from the RiverPark Center.
The Bluegrass Museum invites you to enter an exciting world rich with culture, art, history, adventure and positive human interaction by experiencing its all-new series of interactive, hands-on guided tours available daily to groups of all ages.
Tours range from introductory one-hour adventures to three-hour in-depth excursions through the museum with musical instrument demonstrations, discussions of music theory, history, Kentucky culture and humanities. Groups can immerse themselves for various time periods in an educational, inspirational, and historical journey through Kentucky’s most famous art form: Bluegrass Music!
All tours are by reservation only, include live music demonstrations, and are designed to accommodate groups of up to 120. Tours last from one to three hours. (Self-guided tours are available in Japanese, Dutch, Czech and Chinese upon request.)
ONE-HOUR TOURS....
1.) THE HISTORY OF BLUEGRASS MUSIC:
This tour begins with a live instrument demonstration in which one of our music teachers will introduce the students to the fiddle, mandolin, guitar and banjo. The demonstration includes history and music theory discussions that cover certain KERA core content as well as a Museum Walk - Through, all of which address musical influences, pivotal artists, the effect of geography on artistic expression, and the influence of electronic media. Cost is $3.00 per person (30 or more) or $6.00 per person (5 or more).
2.) WALK-THROUGH MUSEUM TOURS:
These tours include an extensive guided tour of all the museum exhibits including: The History of Bill Monroe, Music Listening Stations, the Bluegrass Hall of Honor, the Timeline of Bluegrass, the 1950s Café, From Every Stage: Images of America’s Roots Music photo exhibit, the History of Bluegrass Music and Bluegrass Festivals in Europe and Japan, Video Oral Histories and Documentary Films. Questions at each exhibit are encouraged on this tour. Cost is $3.00 per person (30 or more) or $6.00 per person (5 or more).
3.) HANDS-ON MANDOLIN EXPERIENCE:
(Available for a minimum of 10 and maximum of 30 participants only.) Music teachers/historians demonstrate the instruments of bluegrass music and discuss music history, melody, form, timbre, dynamics, tempo and harmony followed by a “Hands-On Mandolin Experience” in which our teacher will distribute Weber “Sweet Pea” mandolins to members of the group and instruct them in chords of a triad. Cost is $7.00 per person.
THREE-HOUR TOURS....
THE BLUE TOUR: This three-hour tour begins with a “Walk-Through Museum Tour” that has extra emphasis on the history of bluegrass music, followed by a screening of the museum’s “Video Oral History Project” films in the Bluegrass Unlimited Theater. After the film, your group will be treated to an extended “Hands-On Mandolin Experience” or “Hands-On Fiddle Experience” in which the teacher/guide will distribute the respective instruments to each member of your group and teach them a bluegrass song! Cost is $8.00 per person (30 or more) and $18.00 per person (5 or more).
THE GREEN TOUR: This tour allows your group more freedom to concentrate on the areas of the museum that most interest individuals. As a group, they will be given the “Walk-Through Museum Tour” followed by their choice of the “Hands-On Mandolin Experience” or the “Fiddle Through the Ages” program. Afterward they will be given one hour to re-visit their favorite exhibits or films, ask questions of their teacher/guide, and shop in our unique gift shop. Cost is $8.00 per person (30 or more) and $18.00 per person (5 or more).
ALL TOURS CAN HAVE A LIVE BLUEGRASS BAND PERFORMANCE UPON REQUEST FOR AN ADDITIONAL FEE.
To Book Your Tours Please Contact: Mike Lawing The International Bluegrass Music Museum (270) 926-7891 or 1-888-MY BANJO Email: [email protected]
Bluegrass Museum .....

Music:

Bluegrass, old-time, blues, country, jazz, jamband, celtic, classic country.

Movies:

We produce our own films under a program called the "Video Oral History Project" known as VOHP .

Television:

The Andy Griffith Show, Blue Highways TV, Jubilee, Cumberland Highlanders

Books:

Bill Monroe Reader, Bluegrass Reader, Blue Moon of Kentucky, Bluegrass Breakdown, Bluegrass, A History, Grassroots, Pickin' on Peachtree, Marion Massacre, Everybody on the Truck!, From Every Stage,

Heroes:

Bill Monroe, Earl Scruggs, Carlton Haney, Louise Scruggs, Gloria Belle, Arnold Shultz, Lester Flatt, Bill Vernon, Terry Herd, Eddie Stubbs, Terry Woodward, Ralph and Carter Stanley, Jimmy Martin, Benny Martin, Howard Watts