C & T Bluegrass



“Without the Bluegrass Fans there would be no Festivals to play at: Our deepest heartfelt, appreciation to the fans.”

Carl Kithcart leads this group with his hard driving Banjo playing and sings bass. He has been playing the bluegrass circuit for many years and adds some humor to the stage show. Terry Patrick on Mandolin helps drive the tunes with her great shuck, making it easy for the group to keep time, and adds a powerful vocal for lead and harmony. She and Carl joke with each other and include the audience in a way that makes them feel like they are part of the show, too. Darryl Lesh is fantastic on both Guitar and Dobro. He helps sing lead, and adds a third part harmony that will send chills up the back of your neck. He has played bluegrass since he was just a young fella with his father and brother and adds a great deal to the group. Mary Williams keeps the rhythm going on Guitar when Darryl is playing his breaks and adds fullness to the band. Mary sings wonderful lead and harmony, and the vocal blend she gets with Terry will keep you wanting to hear more and more. With his great vocals and timing, Lance Trotter rounds out the band on Bass. He also plays in other bluegrass groups throughout the bluegrass season.

Don’t miss this opportunity to see one of the area’s top bluegrass groups.


Slewfoot



Slewfoot was formed in the Fall of '07. We are a 4 piece band, focused on 3-part harmonies, mixing bluegrass with a bit of a country twist. We enjoy taking traditional and well known tunes from all genres and giving them that driving Bluegrass sound. You will hear a mix of tunes recorded by the likes of Buck Owens, Merle Haggard, Credence Clearwater Revival, Bob Wills and many, many more as well as standard bluegrass tunes. The band consists of Jim Decker on lead guitar, vocals and harmony, Jim Osborne on dobro and vocals,Lou Cicconi on upright bass, vocals and harmony, and Stan Ink on 5-string banjo, vocal harmony,original tunes and emcee.


The Diamondback Rattlers

The popular band that played throughout the Northeast U.S. and Ontario during the mid 70’s and into the early 80’s, reunited in 1994 and just keeps pickin' and pickin' into the new millennium! The quartet, whose memorable concerts and festival shows have won the hearts of live music lovers wherever they have performed, plays their distinctive blend of Bluegrass. Their lively show and many recording projects are filled with powerful vocals and harmonies, energetic picking, novelty tunes, and a rich mixture of influences from traditional and modern Bluegrass, Swing, Country, Dixieland, and a host of other music sources. The Rattlers are equally comfortable playing the straight, driving tunes of Flatt and Scruggs, firing the intricate rhythms of New Acoustic music, or poking fun at whatever seems a likely target. Whether the music is Bill Monroe’s, George Gershwin’s, or a Diamondback original concoction, there’s a chance you might hear it in a DBR program. The line-up is still the same as it was when they started back in the spring of 1977: Fiddler Dean Goble, "BanjoMan" Roy Mathews, flatpicker Marc Chevalier, and Curt Albertalli on the upright bass. They are enjoyable to listen to, fun to laugh with, and just the kind of band that brings folks back…. again and again.

The Mathews Family Tradition



The Mathews Family Tradition (MFT) is a quintet of talented musicians from the southern tier of NY State whose concerts and festival shows have won the hearts of bluegrass music lovers wherever they have performed. When you come to a MFT performance, you’ll be treating yourself to some of the best traditional and contemporary bluegrass music that the area has to offer. The members of the group are Roy Mathews (banjo) – Calvin Mathews (rhythm guitar) – Jason Mathews (mandolin) – Jim Osborne (bass) – Doug Trotter (lead guitar).

MFT ingredients: Calvin with one powerful lead vocal, a serving of heart pounding mandolin by Jason, Roy with a dollop of mind-numbing banjo, a pinch of family style harmonies, one hard driving flat top by Doug and Jim with a healthy portion of rock solid bass playing. Take all the ingredients and place them together on a hot stage, turn ‘em loose for 45 minutes, then lavish on the applause, and you’ll have given rise to a well-matched musical partnership called the Mathews Family Tradition.

Black Diamond Bluegrass

...started out as the Southern Tier Bluegrass Band. The group is also a who’s who of the STBA. Ken Pierson, on guitar, has held the STBA President’s office many times, as he does currently. Bill Anderson, on dobro, has been Vice President many times. Jolene Anderson plays upright bass and has been active and currently is active in the association. Wayne Pierson plays mandolin, fiddle, and can play banjo and guitar as well. Jim Hartman, on banjo, rounds out the band. The Black Diamond Bluegrass Band upholds the vow of passing on the tradition in the memory of Jim’s brother, Charlie. No fancy, souped-up re-mastered tunes for them. If you want to hear bluegrass tunes played the way your grandpa heard them, tune in to the Black Diamond Bluegrass Band.