Bluegrass -- EWOB Program is now online

 Bluegrass jam session at European bluegrass festival in La Roche, France, 2009. Photo (c) Ruth Ellen Gruber

The program for the annual European World of Bluegrass festival and trade fair is now online. EWOB takes place May 13-15in Voorthuizen, Netherlands. More than 40 bands, jam sessions, merchandise, books, CD, workshops....It is a focal point of International Bluegrass Month -- May.

I wrote about this last year in an article in the IHT/NYTimes web site about bluegrass in Europe:

In Europe, dozens of bluegrass concerts, festivals, workshops and jam sessions take place throughout the year. Homegrown bands take center stage, but American musicians also often tour. And local bluegrass associations, Web sites, blogs and publications promote the music and chronicle events. Scotland, the Czech Republic, Norway and other locations have even had bluegrass programs in public schools.

The scene is small but intensely active, said Dennis Schut, a Dutch musician who has been involved in bluegrass since the 1970s. “I see it as a sort of religion or something,” he said. “You get addicted to bluegrass. The first time you hear it, you’re hooked.”