25th Omagh Festival nominated for IBMA Special Award

The International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) issued yesterday a press release listing the nominees for the Special Awards at this year's World of Bluegrass (26-30 Sept.) in Raleigh, NC. Paul Schiminger, the IBMA's executive director, writes:

The Special Awards honour and celebrate the outstanding annual contributions of those who are the backbone of the bluegrass community.

So it's something for the whole bluegrass community in Ireland to celebrate that the 25th Bluegrass Music Festival at the Ulster American Folk Park, Omagh, Co. Tyrone, is one of the five nominees for Bluegrass Event of the Year, and the only one from outside the USA. Richard Hurst, head of the festival organising team at the Folk Park, writes:

We are very happy here today up in Omagh! Thinking now of banjo master Al Batten, Jerry and Tammy Sullivan, Mike Auldridge, Miss Ethel Elliott, the great Ralph Blizard, Jim Irvine, Tarmo Vardja, as well as our own Tony McAuley, Ronnie Crutchley, and gentleman Rodney McElrea who would all be happy to know about this fabulous nomination for our Festival!

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The categories for IBMA Special Awards include Broadcaster of the Year, Bluegrass Event of the Year, Best Graphic Design for a Recorded Project, Best Liner Notes for a Recorded Project, Print/Media Person of the Year, and Bluegrass Songwriter of the Year. Nominees in each category are selected by a specially appointed committee of bluegrass music professionals who know that field well; and the recipient of each award is selected by the Panel of Electors, an anonymous group of over 200 veteran bluegrass music professionals selected by the IBMA Board of Directors.