New stars starting to shine
BUTLER TWP — The next generation of bluegrass musicians blended the traditions of the genre with modern influences this past weekend at the 19th annual January Ice Jam Bluegrass Festival at the Days Inn.
People of all ages took the stage, including a number of younger artists.
Amy George, lead organizer, said the festival is a great way for the new artists to get a taste for the bluegrass lifestyle.
“They can get a better feel of what the bluegrass community is all about,” she said. “Until you experience a bluegrass festival, you just don't understand.”
George said bands came from across the tri-state area for the winter festival, one of four in the region.
“I've been so thrilled that younger bands are contacting us to play here,” she said, adding the younger artists add a different sound to the concerts.
The Echo Valley band from Beaver County is one of the more popular youth acts in the region.
The family band consists of seven siblings from the Anderson family, ranging from ages 7 to 21.
“We've been playing for most of our lives,” said Lizzy Anderson, the oldest of the siblings. The band has been together for about six years.
Anderson said the family plays at other festivals in Oil City and Clarion as well as at churches.
The family takes music seriously and practices every day, including up to two hours per day whenever there is a concert coming up.
The music also makes for good bonding time.
“We mostly practice together,” Anderson said. “We take classical lessons by ourselves, but we always play bluegrass together.”
Emily Anderson, 17, said she has been playing the fiddle since she was 4. While hundreds of people were watching at the festival, she said she doesn't get too nervous to perform.
“You get used to it,” she said. “But it also depends on who is watching.”Those watching included musicians with decades of experience like Lew Scheinman of Pittsburgh.Scheinman was one of the founding members of the Western Pennsylvania Bluegrass Committee in 1969.“There is a mix of ages,” he said of the festival, which attracted hundreds of people on Friday night and throughout Saturday. “But the older people are interested in helping along the younger people. If they appreciate the music, they are accepted at any age.”While the age difference between performers can span decades, Scheinman said the only thing that matters is the music.“One time we met a kid who was good at mandolin at age 14, and he was up on stage jamming with us,” he said.Scheinman said outside influences often will bring in new musicians to bluegrass.“The popularity goes up and down depending on certain things happening in pop culture,” he said, citing the “Beverly Hillbillies” TV show as one example of spiking an interest in the music in the 1960s.He said the movie “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” and the folk band Mumford and Sons are popular influences for younger generations.Bob Artis of Pittsburgh, who has spent more than half a century in bluegrass bands and is a member of the Allegheny Drifters, said the younger generations keep the music fresh.“As each generation comes along, they bring with them what they like,” he said. “Whatever that might be. And that's the way it should be.”Artis said that traditional bluegrass still has its place, but said the diversity attracts a wider crowd.“If it was all traditional, we'd really see the audience get smaller,” he said. “That's not the case.”The North Allegheny School District's N.A. Fiddlers helps introduce students to the genre.Clay Sheleheda, 12, said he has been with the group for a year.“I like to learn new songs,” he said. “And it's fun to go along on trips and play with friends.”Clay said he plays for about 30 minutes per day, although it's not always the fiddle.“I'm also learning electric guitar,” he said. “I like rock and new wave music.”Clay said he has been playing violin for years but was introduced to bluegrass through the school“I already played violin and my fifth grade teacher asked me to try it out (for the Fiddlers),” he said. “It was fun.”
