CTBA 2020 END-OF-YEAR SURVEY

Sunday night, the CTBA Board convened via Zoom for our first meeting of 2021. We had some time to reflect on the many lessons learned adapting to a virtual world and what that will look like for the year ahead. It is truly inspiring to be surrounded by such a talented group of Bluegrass lovers from all walks of life. This year, you can expect a quarterly newsletter, virtual performances by member bands, competitions, and more ways of staying connected.

While we get started planning, it would be greatly appreciated if you took a couple minutes to fill out our end-of-year survey. While we can’t physically engage in the many counties of central Texas, it is important we have any and all feedback so we know how we can best serve our community in the coming year.

The survey is available here or at http://tinyurl.com/2020-ctba-survey.

As always, we are grateful for your continued support. Looking forward to a very grassy 2021!

Happy pickin’ y’all.

Libby Brennan

President, CTBA

IBMA GRANTS AND SCHOLARSHIPS

And with the dawning of 2021 it's a great time to swing on over and check out the grants and scholarships available this year from the IBMA Foundation.

There are scholarships for student songwriters and collegiate-level musicians studying bluegrass, as well as bluegrass-related project and scholarship grants available. The most pressing deadline is for the IBMA Foundation's Arnold Shultz Fund Grant, which "[supports] activities that increase participation in bluegrass music by people of color." Applications are due January 31st, best get on it!

And don't forget the CTBA Scholarship program, available to Texas residents aged 12-21. More information is available at CentralTexasBluegrass.org/Scholarship.

CTBA ANNUAL MEETING 2020

The CTBA Annual Meeting for 2020 is THIS SUNDAY, November 15th!

The meeting will be held at Nomadic Beerworks (3804 Woodbury Dr, Austin 78704) from 5-7PM.

If you are interested in coming, please note there will be very limited in-person attendance. Please plan on wearing a mask and social distancing. And as there will be limited seating available, please consider bringing your own chairs, blankets, etc.

If you can't make it in-person, no worries! Just tune into the livestream on the CTBA Facebook and YouTube pages!

Here's the lineup:

5:00 Opening remarks

5:10 Performance by Celebrindal Roberts

5:40 ArtistWorks scholarship drawing

5:45 Performance by UT's Burnt Orange Bluegrass

6:15 Board election results

6:30 Performance by the Greenlawn Rangers

7:00 Closing

More information is available on our Facebook event page.

NEW CTBA MERCH!

And - hey! - just in time for the Annual Meeting, we have brand-new CTBA bandanas! Mask up the CTBA way, or go for that CTBA-inspired Springsteen sorta look... Available now at the CTBA store!

ARTISTWORKS DRAWING

A reminder that we are holding a drawing for a one-year scholarship to ArtistWorks! If you would like to enter the drawing, please enter your name and email address at http://tinyurl.com/ctba-scholarship. If you are not a member of the CTBA, we would kindly request you consider joining or making a $5 donation.

2021-2022 BOARD ELECTIONS

There is still time to vote in the 2021-2022 CTBA Board Elections! Ballots may be cast online or in-person until 6PM on Sunday, November 15th. If you haven't received your ballot or have any questions whatsoever, please give us a holler over at ctba@centraaltexasbluegrass.org.

And, of course, anyone joining or renewing their CTBA membership before November 15th will be able to vote as well.

Regarding membership:

If you are now or have ever been a member of the CTBA, you have an account at CentralTexasBluegrass.org that you can access at CentralTexasBluegrass.org/Login.

If you are unsure of your membership status, here is how to check:

Navigate to CentralTexasBluegrass.org/Login

Enter your email address

Click “Recover Password”

You will receive an email with a link to the page where you can create a password for your account

After creating your password, you can log in and access your account

It is important to check your membership status. While we have made dramatic improvements to our membership management over the past year, there is still a chance your membership may have lapsed without your knowledge. And, if you prefer, you are of course welcome to submit a printed application and any payments by cash or check.

If you are not a member of the CTBA, please consider joining! You can read all about the benefits and privileges of membership at CentralTexasBluegrass.org/Join.

The CTBA is a membership organization; we are only as successful as our membership is strong. Your modest membership fees go a long way to promoting and supporting Bluegrass in Central Texas, be it through performances, scholarships, or our website and social media support. Please consider renewing or joining today.

Again, if you have any questions whatsoever, please contact us at ctba@centraltexasbluegrass.org, we’ll be happy to help you sort it all out.

CTBA ANNUAL MEETING 2020

The CTBA Annual Meeting for 2020 will be held, entirely outdoors, at Nomadic Beerworks (3804 Woodbury Dr, Austin 78704), on November 15th, from 5-7PM. The event will be livestreamed on the CTBA Facebook and YouTube pages - please tune in!!! If you are interested in attending in-person, please note there will be very limited in-person attendance. Please plan on wearing a mask and social distancing. And as there will be limited seating available, please consider bringing your own chairs, blankets, etc. More information is available on our Facebook event.

ARTISTWORKS DRAWING

At our annual meeting, the CTBA will be holding a drawing for a one-year scholarship to ArtistWorks!!! If you would like to enter the drawing, please enter your name and email address at http://tinyurl.com/ctba-scholarship. If you are not a member of the CTBA, we would kindly request you consider joining or making a $5 donation.

2021-2022 BOARD ELECTIONS

There is still time to vote in the 2021-2022 CTBA Board Elections! Ballots may be cast online or in-person until 6PM on Sunday, November 15th. If you haven't received your ballot or have any questions whatsoever, please give us a holler over at ctba@centraaltexasbluegrass.org.

And, of course, anyone joining or renewing their CTBA membership before November 15th will be able to vote as well.

Regarding membership:

If you are now or have ever been a member of the CTBA, you have an account at CentralTexasBluegrass.org that you can access at CentralTexasBluegrass.org/Login.

If you are unsure of your membership status, here is how to check:

- Navigate to CentralTexasBluegrass.org/Login

- Enter your email address

- Click “Recover Password”

- You will receive an email with a link to the page where you can create a password for your account

- After creating your password, you can log in and access your account

It is important to check your membership status. While we have made dramatic improvements to our membership management over the past year, there is still a chance your membership may have lapsed without your knowledge. And, if you prefer, you are of course welcome to submit a printed application and any payments by cash or check.

If you are not a member of the CTBA, please consider joining! You can read all about the benefits and privileges of membership at CentralTexasBluegrass.org/Join.

The CTBA is a membership organization; we are only as successful as our membership is strong. Your modest membership fees go a long way to promoting and supporting Bluegrass in Central Texas, be it through performances, scholarships, or our website and social media support. Please consider renewing or joining today.

Again, if you have any questions whatsoever, please contact us at ctba@centraltexasbluegrass.org, we’ll be happy to help you sort it all out.

CTBA ANNUAL MEETING 2020 - SAVE THE DATE!

The 2020 CTBA Annual Meeting will be held on Sunday, November 15th, at Nomadic Beer Works (3804 Woodbury Dr, Austin, TX 78704). Due to Covid-19 restrictions, there will be limited in-person attendance (masked, socially-distanced, etc...) and livestreaming video on the CTBA social media platforms. Details to come, but please do mark your calendars!

2021-2022 BOARD ELECTIONS - JOIN OR RENEW TODAY!

Which means it is time to elect our Board of Directors for 2021-2022! There are five seats up for grabs, and six candidates. Which is to say: NOW IS THE TIME TO JOIN OR RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP. Ballots go out on Thursday, October 15th, giving us one month to collect and count ballots. While anyone joining before the cutoff of 6PM on Sunday, November 15th, will be able to cast a ballot, we are strongly encouraging you to get your membership in order before October 15th! The election winners will be announced after the 6PM cutoff at our Annual Meeting.

If you are now or have ever been a member of the CTBA, you have an account at CentralTexasBluegrass.org that you can access at CentralTexasBluegrass.org/Login.

If you are unsure of your membership status, here is how to check:

1.Navigate to CentralTexasBluegrass.org/Login

2. Enter your email address

3. Click “Recover Password”

4. You will receive an email with a link to the page where you can create a password for your account

5. After creating your password, you can log in and access your account

It is important to check your membership status. While we have made dramatic improvements to our membership management over the past year, there is still a chance your membership may have lapsed without your knowledge. And, if you prefer, you are of course welcome to submit a printed application and any payments by cash or check.

If you are not a member of the CTBA, please consider joining! You can read all about the benefits and privileges of membership at CentralTexasBluegrass.org/Join.

The CTBA is a membership organization; we are only as successful as our membership is strong. Your modest membership fees go a long way to promoting and supporting Bluegrass in Central Texas, be it through performances, scholarships, or our website and social media support. Please consider renewing or joining today.

If you have any questions whatsoever, please contact us at ctba@centraltexasbluegrass.org, we’ll be happy to help you sort it all out.

Congratulations to our CTBA Summer Sounds 2020 winners!

Solo Instrumental: "New Camptown Races" by Shawn Spiars

Group Instrumental: "After Me" by Bobby Giles & Texas Gales

Youth: "Blackberry Blossom" by Jackson Wreden

The winning videos are posted at CentralTexasBluegrass.org as well as on our YouTube "Summer Sounds 2020 Winners" playlist.

Thanks so much to everyone who made a video and participated in the competition, it was so fantastic and such fun. Let's do it again soon!

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The dog days of summer are here but that isn’t going to stop this community from doing what we do best, keepin’ Texas grassy!

CTBA board elections are right around the corner. We are currently seeking passionate bluegrass fans and musicians to serve the community for the next two years as CTBA Board members. Our Board meetings occur once a month with the possibility of a few additional hours depending on what next year looks like.

We are also seeking non-board members to serve on our Election Committee. If you are interested in running for a Board position or serving on the Elections Committee, please send an email to President@CentralTexasBluegrass.org by September 15th.

Again, we would like to take the time to thank and congratulate all of our CTBA Summer Sounds 2020 entrants and winners. And stay tuned: next month we will have a CTBA swag pack giveaway, so make sure to follow the CTBA on our Facebook page for more details! In the meantime, show your Texas bluegrass pride with a CTBA t-shirt, hat, or sticker available at CentralTexasBluegrass.org/Store.

On behalf of the 2020 CTBA Board we are grateful for your continued support.

Happy pickin’ y’all!

Libby Brennan, CTBA President

Summer Sounds voting is now live!

To vote, go to the Central Texas Bluegrass YouTube page and like your favorite videos. There are three categories: solo instrumental, multi-instrumental and youth/family.

Voting will end at 11:59PM on Sunday, August 16th and winners will be revealed on Monday, August 17th.

The video in each category with the most votes will be posted on the CTBA website, Facebook, and Instagram pages!

Thank you to everyone who took time to submit a video (or two)!

And, heck, while you're on the CTBA YouTube page, please take a second to subscribe.

Happy Pickin’ Y'all!

To our CTBA community,

While this certainly has been an unconventional year to be a Board Member, we are doing everything we can to ensure that music continues to bring joy to our friends in the community.

Our Summer Sounds Video Competition submission date has been extended to July 31st! Voting will take place August 1-4th on the official CTBA YouTube page.

For more details about submitting videos, the entry guidelines can be found at Tiny.cc/Summer_Sounds.

Thank you to everyone who has put so much time and effort into creating the wonderful videos we have received thus far. We can’t wait to share them all! Remember - we will feature winning videos on the CTBA website as well as the CTBA social media sites.

For those of you who may be looking to refine or learn some new tunes during these dog days of summer, we have a stellar lineup of pickers on our Instructor Page that we highly recommend you look into for lessons. And almost everybody teaches online! On the other hand, if you are teaching lessons and would like to be listed, please drop us a line at CTBA@CentralTexasBluegrass.org. For more information visit CentralTexasBluegrass.org/Instructors.

We are happy to announce that over the last ten months we have more than doubled our membership!!! We take great pride in being able to support our growing Bluegrass communities through education, engagement, and scholarships. Your memberships help us continue to serve you, our members and friends. If you or someone you know would like to join, renew, or become a lifetime or band member, you can do so at CentralTexasBluegrass.org/Join.

Last but not least, here are some fun facts about the CTBA, by the numbers...

The CTBA awarded seven CTBA/ArtistWorks Scholarships in June.

CTBA Scholarship recipients ranged in age from 13 to 72.

The CTBA was formed 42 years ago.

The CTBA membership extends beyond Austin, with 48% living outside Austin City Limits.

The CTBA living furthest from CTBA headquarters in Austin is 258 miles away in Vidor, TX.

We hope all of you are well and staying safe. We look forward to being able to sit out under the Texas stars enjoying bluegrass together soon. Happy pickin’ y’all!

Libby Mayfield Brennan

President, CTBA

The Central Texas Bluegrass Association exists in order to celebrate, promote, and preserve Bluegrass music. Along with this, we hold a responsibility to encourage diversity and inclusion within the Bluegrass community. Standing in solidarity with the Black community and all people of color, we, the CTBA board, commit to the following:

• Recognize the important and impactful contributions that People of Color, e.g. Deford Bailey, Arnold Shultz, Rhiannon Giddens, and many others have made to Bluegrass music.
• Emphasize the spirit of inclusion at CTBA events, without regard to race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, age, ability, or financial status.
• Promote​ ​just and fair treatment for all people.
• Contribute to a spirit of unity within our community through connection, education, tolerance, and, of course, through music.

To our CTBA community,

Even in these challenging times, the CTBA board continues to brainstorm new ways of adapting to life while promoting and supporting bluegrass communities across the globe. While pickin’ circles and bluegrass nights have all been postponed, we are utilizing new technology that continues to keep us united. We have modified our scholarship program to represent a wider group of promising young pickers and even have some exciting perks for our active members!

While we are all doing our best to socially distance ourselves, please know that we are here for you. Feel free to reach out at any time, whether through social media, email or if you want to talk on the phone.

Let’s look ahead to days when porches are filled with pickers and two steppers dance into bluegrass nights.

Thank y’all for the continued support. Happy pickin!

Libby Brennan
President, Central Texas Bluegrass Association

2020 SCHOLARSHIP UPDATE
Due to the cancellation of bluegrass camps and workshops, we have modified the Willa Beach-Porter scholarship to adapt to online learning courses. We are partnering with ArtistWorks, an online community that provides a series of lessons from introductory to advanced courses. Each scholarship will be awarded a year-long membership.

There will be a total of five scholarships awarded. Three scholarships will be awarded to students ages 12-21; the remaining two scholarships awarded to those 22 and older who are active members of the CTBA. All scholarship recipients must currently live in Texas and submit (1) the online application and (2) two letters of recommendation no later than May 15th, 2020.

To learn more and apply today please visit CentralTexasBluegrass.org/Scholarship.

MEMBERSHIP PERK
Are you currently an active member of the CTBA? If so, ArtistWorks is offering $80 off a year-long membership! All you have to do is email President@CentralTexasBluegrass.org to get your redemption code. This offer expires April 30th, so don’t wait!

Not a member yet and want to take advantage of this opportunity? Join the CTBA today at CentralTexasBluegrass.org/Join.

Don’t forget to follow us on Instagram and Facebook for updates, pick-a-longs, livestream schedules and more!

CTBA BUSINESS MEMBERS
We would also like to take a moment to thank the businesses who have shown their support of bluegrass in Central Texas by hosting events, promoting bluegrass, or just supporting our community. If you are able to support them by purchasing to-go items, gift cards, merch...or heck just following them on social media, please do consider doing so. Every action counts!

CAPITAL CITY BUSINESS CONSULTING
COUNTRY GUITAR ONLINE
EASY TIGER BAKE SHOP & BEER GARDEN
HEARTS & HANDS MASSAGE
JESTER KING
ST. ELMO BREWING CO
TEXAS MUSIC DUDE
TEXAS BLUEGRASS MUSIC AT SALMON LAKE
VISTA BREWING