By Staff
NILES – The Niles Bluegrass Festival this weekend is honored to have back again this year Michael Cleveland and Flamekeeper featuring Audie Blaylock.
Last year it was Audie's band Redline featuring Michael Cleveland on mandolin. This year Michael is playing his fiddle with Flamekeeper. This highly regarded bluegrass band is coming off an amazing year in 2006 in which they were nominated for four IBMA (International Bluegrass Music Association) awards including Album of the Year and Best Emerging Group.
Michael Cleveland has won four IBMA Fiddler of the Year awards including 2006 and has three times been awarded IBMA Instrumental Album of the Year including last year with "Let 'Er go Boys"
Multiple IBMA and Grammy nominated Audie Blaylock has four times been nominated at the IBMA awards for guitarist of the year and in 2001 shared The IBMA Entertainer of the Year Award with Rhonda Vincent.
One of the highlights at last year's Niles Bluegrass Festival, they performed two high-energy sets of traditional bluegrass and then performed an impromptu set on the grass.
They will be featured Friday and Saturday, June 1 and 2 of the Bluegrass Festival as well as Sunday, July 15. The Bluegrass and upcoming summer concert schedules will be included in Thursday's Niles Daily Star.