A Westport connection at EBMA awards show

L-r: Richard Weize, Angelika Torrie, Susie Bowe (photo: Robert Bowe)

On 3 July 2012 the BIB reported meeting Robert and Susie Bowe, American musicians resident in Italy, at that year's Westport Folk and Bluegrass Festival. The BIB paid particular attention to Robert's little Ashbory bass, as small as a big ukulele; it was the first instrument of this type we'd seen, though since then Gold Tone and other companies have put micro-basses on the market.

Since then, also, Susie has joined the board of the European Bluegrass Music Association, and last weekend took part in presenting the third EBMA European Bluegrass Pioneers and Personality Awards. In the photo above, taken by Robert, she is seen with Angelika Torrie, the outgoing EBMA chairperson, presenting a Pioneer award to Richard Weize of Germany, founder of Bear Family Records. Another of the Pioneer awards went to French banjo maestro Jean-Marie Redon, who played at the Dunmore East and Omagh festivals in 2006 with Blue Railroad Train (F). The award for European Bluegrass Personality of 2014 went to Rainer Zellner (see the BIB for 22 Dec. 2014); BIB readers will remember that the first Personality award, two years ago, went to Niall Toner.

More of Robert's photos of the occasion are on Bluegrass Today, and others are on the EBMA Facebook page.