In thinking about bringing in the New Year, I thought it might be fun to come up with a list of what you can do to indulge bluegrass in our region:

1. Despite feeling lazy after that heavy winter supper, throw on the old coat and gloves and go out and see some local bluegrass. SWBMAI currently has 16 member bands who have shows many nights of the week. You can find their shows on our SWBMAI member bands page.
2. Do some research. Pick a classic bluegrass musicians and learn something new by or about them. Maybe it’s a new song you always liked, or maybe it’s how they got their first instrument.
3. Head out to own of the winter bluegrass festivals. There are many festivals in the Midwest, from the MBOTMA Winter Bluegrass Weekend in Minnesota to the Greater Downstate Indoor Bluegrass Festival in Illinois.
4. Add 30 more minutes of practice time on your instrument every week. I know, I know. There is only so much time in the week and most of us seem to lie down at night and wonder what happened to it all. But there are 10,080 minutes in a week, so 30 minutes of additional practice isn’t really that large a chunk of time…..
5. Take an opportunity to share music with someone in need. Whether it’s your pickin’ buddy who really needs to hear that new fiddle tune, or the neighbor who just loves the sound of backyard pickin’, take an extra minute to share music with someone in your life.
6. Let the folks who you play with or listen to know how much you appreciate their music. Let them know what a great break they took or what a nice harmony they say. Even the most seasoned musicians love hearing compliments. And as for those of us who haven’t been playing that long, well, we need our encouragement sometimes.