< PreviousBLUEGRASS MUSIC ASSOCIATION OF CANADA - 10 Serge Bernard - Prince Edward Island Serge Bernard has been involved with bluegrass music from an early age. He is a muli- instrumentalist including banjo, guitar, bass and mandolin and is also a strong lead and harmony singer. He played with the bluegrass band “Out of the Blue” for six years and has been playing with The Janet McGarry Band since 2001. Serge started the “Bluegrass Island” radio show in 1998 that aired on CFCY for 24 years and is now on CFTA-FM. He has a recording studio and has collaborated on many projects over the years, including recording and producing 13 albums with his wife Janet McGarry. Serge has been a Director with the PEI Bluegrass and Oldtime Music Society in various capacities over the years and was the chair and producer of the 1st Annual PEI Winter Bluegrass Festival held in 2023 Charlottetown, PEI. He is also the Vice President of the Downeast Bluegrass & Oldtime Music Society and is part of the planning committee for the 50th Annual Bluegrass and Oldtime Music Festival. Serge can be seen at many events as the emcee who brings the crowd to life with enthusiasm. Serge is a five-time recipient of the “DJ of the Year” award and the “Emcee of the Year” award at the Eastern Canada Bluegrass Music Awards. His latest endeavour is the founding member of the Island Jubilee Inc. that premiered in February 2023, showcasing the Island’s brightest stars. Please join the BMAC in welcoming Serge Bernard to the Canadian Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame. Mark Jake Lauzon, Luc Puckrin Photo by Roman Romanovich HALL OF FAME SELECTIONS Ontario Musician Marc Roy Passes Popular Ontario bluegrass artist Marc Roy passed away quite suddenly July 25, 2023 at 39 years of age. Marc’s participation in noted groups like Hard Ryde, Backcountry, Sweet Grass, Marc & Phaedra, various Toronto-based groups, plus his memorable “residency” at the Silver Dollar Room in Toronto with “Crazy Strings”, made his name familiar to bluegrass lovers throughout the province, and beyond. While Marc’s outstanding talent with stringed instruments is widely known, it was his incredible and jaw-dropping bluegrass flatpicking that turned heads. Along his way, he was fortunate to have played bluegrass, country and roots music with world class musicians and songwriters who became friends and mentors. Marc was honoured at the Central Canadian Bluegrass Awards with “Guitar Player of the Year” awards from 2007-2011, and “Mandolin Player of the Year” in 2011. He was a remarkable and highly talented musician known for his extraordinary skills with the guitar, mandolin, and fiddle. Marc had a deep connection to bluegrass, country, and Canadian fiddle music, captivating audiences with breathtaking performances. Marc will be remembered throughout the North American bluegrass world not only for his stellar musicianship but also for being a true and loyal friend to all who knew him. Humble and unassuming, kind and gentle, he embraced everyone he met with an open and loving heart. Family and friends were everything to Marc. His untimely passing is a tragic loss to all and has left a void in Canadian bluegrass that will be hard to fill. Gone much too soon - he will be sorely missed in the Bluegrass community. Mike Higgins (editor’s note: we understand that additional remembrances of Marc will be contributed for inclusion in our January 2024 issue.)11 OCTOBER BLUEGRASS CANADA MAGAZINE Emory Lester is an icon in the Canadian bluegrass scene. Although he is a Virginia native, Emory now calls Ontario home. His mandolin playing is revered worldwide. By Emory Lester Emory helps with exploring your fretboard TEMPERANCE REEL in key of ‘A’ In interest of learning more about your mandolin fretboard, and under the subject of ‘mappings’ and finding melodies in unusual places, here is an example of a very popular and known tune called ‘Temperance Reel’, which is usually played by most in the key of ‘G’. This version is shifted over to the friendly key of ‘A’, which isn’t too difficult to work out or find on your fretboard. ‘Listening’ and some good ‘trial and error’ are good and recommended processes for experiments like this one, and isn’t always intended to ‘replace’ playing it in the traditional key. But rather to experiment and learn more about your fretboard and find melodies in other keys, growing your fretboard knowledge and vocabulary for similar tunes. But hey, if you’re into it, tell those ‘capo using’ instruments to gear it up to the second fret, and have them try this with you….never mind the funny looks or reaction!.....ha MANDOLINBLUEGRASS MUSIC ASSOCIATION OF CANADA - 12 My name is Pascal Richard. I’m from Montreal and I play dobro and write tunes for my band “Spooky Ride” By Pascal Richard Pascal breaks down chords and fretting Dobro Elements Hello fellow dobro players and welcome to this second column. Last time we looked at an arrangement for ”Will The Circle Be Unbroken.” I hope you had a good time playing it. I certainly had fun writing it. I also wrote about the elements borrowed from other instruments that helped shape a dobro break. I deliberately did so without getting into details so we could have a closer look at some of them next time. Don’t worry if you haven’t tried my previous lesson. All that’s in this lesson applies to many tunes. I’ve chosen the very familiar and friendly key of G for these examples. The banjo element: As dobro players, we have to be able to cover rolls. Josh Graves certainly put that to good use and made it an essential part of dobro playing. Examples 1 to 6 are forward roll, 2 bar ideas you can apply. In bluegrass, melodies tend to be very tonal and centred around the 1-3-5 of the chord. Make sure you can play rolls on any of the 3 arpeggio notes. Of course, we also need to be able to do the same on the other chords of the tune. Let’s get started… Example 1 is a two bar pattern using the root of the G chord. Example 2 is on the 3rd . Watch for intonation between the fretted and open B notes. Keep in mind that unless you are like Gene Wooten, your 3rds will be compensated; meaning a little flat when using a regular tuner for reference. Adjust the bar position accordingly. Examples 3 and 4 focus on the 5th of the chord. Example 3 is a little further up the neck using only the first three strings while example 4 switches to a lower octave and is centred around the open position. Example 5 is now on the C chord and is played in fifth position. This one is a little more colourful using the 2nd (D). It’s also a little wider on the right hand. Use your thumb to play the 6th and 4th strings. Example 6 is in 2 parts. Both are played over the D chord and use the 6th (B) as a colour tone. The first part is in open position while the second idea is in the 7th position and is, perhaps, more challenging to play. Using the 6th works all the time over a major chord and I like throwing in that extra note for spice. In order to achieve this, bar only strings 6 through 4. I like playing it that way, but you don’t have to. You can bar one string higher (6 through 2) and you’ll get the F# note instead. By doing so, it’s like example 5 but a tone or two frets higher. Easy right? A note regarding the right hand. You can try double thumbing instead of the traditional thumb index middle. This means you can use your thumb on two consecutive strings instead of your index finger to start your roll. That’s a big Jerry Douglas thing and an important part of his sound and drive. Personally, I use it a lot. Sometimes alternating between two bars of a single pattern. The blues element: although it relates to any instrument of the bluegrass family, I tend to think as a guitar player when I think about the blues. The dobro is awesome at playing the blues. Examples 7 through 10 are all about the blues. Now - when and how to use the blues? Although it will always work, ask yourself if the overall feel of the tune is major sounding or calls for a bluesier element. If it’s more major, use the 6th of the scale. In G it means the E note. So, you’d play around G, B, D and E. Kinda like a G run right? DOBRO13OCTOBER BLUEGRASS CANADA MAGAZINE Example 7 is using these notes while example 8 throws in a different note: F. That F note is the b7th of the scale or chord and it really makes it bluesier than using the E note of the previous example. Examples 9 and 10 are a little more challenging and take it a few steps further. Example 9 is another major sounding idea once again using the 6th but this time, it’s right up there on the first string and later an octave lower. That’s a very standard ending lick to know. For the last example, I made it extra bluesy by adding the flat 5th (Db) and minor 3rd (Bb). Now this sure sounds like blues! We could go on forever about this but it’s a start. So that’s it for now. Happy picking and feel free to write or comment on the lessons. Let me know what you would like me to cover. You can do so at DOBRO dobro elements pascal richard & D D ex 1 root œ œ G œ œ œ œ 5 0 0 J 5 J 0 J 0 J œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ 5 J 0 J 5 J 0 J 0 J 5 J 0 J 0 J ex 2 third œ œ œ œ œ œ 4 0 0 J 4 J 0 J 0 J œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ 4 J 0 J 4 J 0 J 0 J 4 J 0 J 0 J D D & D 5 D ex 3 fifth œ œ œ œ œ œ 7 0 0 J 7 J 0 J 0 J œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ 7 J 0 J 7 J 0 J 0 J 7 J 0 J 0 J ex 4 fifth lower octave œ œ œ œ œ œ 3 0 0 J 0 J 0 J 0 J œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ 3 J 0 J 0 J 0 J 0 J 0 J 0 J 0 J D D & D 9 D ex 5 C œ œ œ œ œ œ 5 5 0 J 5 J 5 J 0 J œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ 5 J 0 J 5 J 5 J 5 J 5 J 5 J 0 J ex 6 œ œ D œ œ œ œ 0 2 0 J 0 J 2 J 0 J œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ 0 J 0 J 2 J 0 J 0 J 2 J 0 J 0 J œ œ œ œ œ œ 7 7 0 J 7 J 7 J 0 J œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ 7 J 0 J 7 J 7 J 0 J 7 J 7 J 0 J 44 44 & 44 15 44 ex 7 Œ Œ œ œ 02 œ ˙() œ ˙ 0 3 55 ex 8 Œ Œ œ œ 03 œ ˙() œ ˙ 0 3 55 & 19 ex 9 Œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ 2 J 0 J 4 R 2 R 0 J 2 J 0 J w 0 ex 10 Œ œ œ œ b œ b œ œ œ 3 J 0 J 3 R 2 R 3 J 0 J 3 J w 0BLUEGRASS MUSIC ASSOCIATION OF CANADA - 14 INTERNATIONAL CORNER15 OCTOBER BLUEGRASS CANADA MAGAZINE By Mike Higgins 17TH ANNUAL VALLEY GRASS AWARDS ANNOUNCED THE STORY OF THE OTTAWA VALLEY AWARDS The Ottawa Valley Bluegrass Association announced the winners of the 17 th annual Association awards on August 12 of this year at the South Grenville Bluegrass Festival. This is the first time that Bluegrass Canada magazine has taken the opportunity to publish the awards. We want to thank Dave Porter, editor of Ottawa Valley’s newsletter“Grass Clippings” for supplying us with detailed historical documentation. The winners of the 2023 Awards, as presented earlier this year, are: The David Tinkoff Award, which is awarded to “a person/persons who has made a significant contribution to the Ottawa Valley bluegrass community for a long period of time as a musician. And the winner for 2023: the band “Concession 23”. This is the first time an award has gone to a full band. Members of “Concession 23 “ are: Sherry Philip, Kevin Golka, Jonathon Ferrabee and Nick Strachan. Coinciding with receiving this award, Concession 23 celebrates 20 years as a band, having been founded in October 2003. They describe themselves as “a group of equals; collectively there are 23 strings in the band and we work together.” Congratulations Barb Barideau The Mike O’Reilly Award, which is awarded to “a person/persons who have made a significant contribution to the Ottawa Valley bluegrass community for a long period of time as a promoter or organizer. And the winner for 2023 : Barb Rabideau. Barb is the leader of the hard working and dedicated group which has successfully organized the Galop Canal Bluegrass Festival held at Iroquois, Ontario for 11 years. Presented August 12/23 by the Awards Committee L TO R: Donald Tarte, Barb, Dave Porter , Lynn Thom Photo by Mike Higgins L to R: Kevin Golka, Sherry Philip , Nick Strachan receive their award at the South Grenville Festival August 12 (missing is bass player Jonathan Ferrabee) photo by Sandra Day Congratulations Concession 23BLUEGRASS MUSIC ASSOCIATION OF CANADA - 16 The David Tinkoff Award The awards program was initiated in 2006 with one plaque presented to ‘a person(s) who had made a significant contribution to the Ottawa Valley Bluegrass Community over a long period of time.’ It was called the “David Tinkoff Award” in memory of David Tinkoff, a well-liked and long- standing member of the Association. He was a member of the popular “Back 40” band and an employee at Ottawa’s most beloved acoustic music store, The Ottawa Folklore Centre. David was tragically hit by a car driven by a drunk driver while crossing the street on the way to work in 2004. After the accident he lived in long- term care and died 2 years later from complications resulting from his injuries. The sale of his beloved mandolin, donated to the Association by his family, has funded the awards ever since. From 2006 to 2015 one award was presented each year, in January or February, at a special concert held for that purpose. Commencing 2016, the Board of Directors decided to present two awards each year – one to a musician or group of musicians, the other to a person who had played a significant role promoting Bluegrass or organizing bluegrass events. The Mike O’Reilly Award In 2021, Ottawa lost Canadian bluegrass icon, multi-instrumentalist and great lead singer, Mike O’Reilly, who was almost the Bill Monroe of Ottawa Bluegrass - including the high tenor voice. Mike performed in many bands, all superb, for over 50 years. Voted “Entertainer of the Year” at the Central Canada Bluegrass Awards the maximum of 5 times, Mike hosted his own Ottawa based CTV music show, wrote songs recorded by numerous high profile bluegrass greats such as Rhonda Vincent, Del McCoury and Junior Sisk, and organized many events in the region. In memory of Mike, the award for a promoter/organizer was renamed the “Mike O’Reilly Award.” Award winners are selected annually by a committee chaired by the Ottawa Valley Bluegrass Association Vice-President, Lynn Thom. Other members include David Porter and Pat Moore (both permanent members), Donald Tarte also representing the Association Board, Bill Henry as long-standing non-Board Association member and last year’s winners. The awards are now presented at the Association’s own ‘South Grenville Bluegrass Festival” in early August. OTTAWA VALLEY AWARDS Mike O’Reilly David Tinkiffo 2016 •Pat Moore •Ray and Glen Adams o 2017 •Donald Tarte •Peter and Nancy McGuire o 2018 •Valley Bluegrass Fest. Cttee •Merv Wilson o 2019 •Dave Porter •Doug and Don Hill o 2020 •Kim Wallace & Lisa Pigeau •Mike Holy o 2021 •Al Schutt - Palmer Rapids Festival •Peter Deachman o 2022 •Kate Greenland Bluegrass Mondays •Gilles LeClerc o 2023 •Barb Rabideau •Concession 23 band Category Long time event organizer Musicians Long time Association Board Member Musicians Festival Committee – 23 years Musician Long time Association Board Member, editor Musicians South Grenville Fest. Organizers & Board Members 10yrs Musician, many years, many bands Mike O’Reilly Award – Long-time festival organizer David Tinkoff Award - Long-time Musician Mike O’Reilly Award – 10 year show organizer and promoter David Tinkoff Award - Musician, many years, many bands Mike O’Reilly Award– 10 yr. Galop Canal Festival Org, David Tinkoff Award - Musician, 20 years same personel 17 OCTOBER BLUEGRASS CANADA MAGAZINE o 2006: Sue & Rich McCarthy,Association founding Members o 2007: Garry Greenland,musician, teacher, organizer o 2008: Steve Haines,musician, organizer o 2009: Mike O’Reilly,musician, song-writer, TV and radio personality, organizer o 2010: Graham Fournier,musician, organizer o 2011: Ron Moores,musician, radio broadcaster o 2012: Vic Chartrand,musician o 2013: Bob Johnston,festival organizer - 23 years o 2014: Bruce Davis,musician, Association Board member o 2015: Peter Dawson,outstanding fiddler and luthier Two Single Award era: 2016 to 2020 Two Named Award era: 2021 to 2023+ OTTAWA VALLEY AWARDS PREVIOUS WINNERS Single Award era: 2006 to 2015BLUEGRASS MUSIC ASSOCIATION OF CANADA - 18 “Onion Honey Release First Professional Studio Album Foul Weather Friends” Onion Honey are proud to present their fifth full- length album Foul Weather Friends; written, arranged, and performed by quartet Esther Wheaton (banjo), Dave Pike (mandolin/guitar), Leanne Swantko (guitar/mandolin), and Kayleigh LeBlanc (double bass). The band’s warm harmonies, thoughtful arrangements, and approachable musicianship bring twelve original and three classic Americana folk songs to life. Recorded live off the floor and engineered by Andy Magoffin at the House of Miracles in Cambridge, Ontario, this is Onion Honey’s first professional studio album after a decade of self-produced music.“ Roots Music Canada” praised the album’s “out-of-this- world harmonies and sweet, tart, string-band sound” and the band’s “catchy-as-hell little ditties that could easily pass for traditional, with a sense of humour that sets them apart from their contemporaries.” Foul Weather Friends is sure to appeal to a wide audience, especially fans of classic country and folk, old- time string bands, and bluegrass. The album’s variety means there’s something for everyone - from the tenderly-arranged cover of the late Gordon Lightfoot’s “Steel Rail Blues” which showcases the band’s signature close female harmonies, to minor mountain wailers like “For Old Henry” and “Hellcat Etiquette,” to folk troubadour numbers “Through the Rogers Pass” and “Force of Will,” and unique versions of the standards “Black- Eyed Suzie” and “I’ve Endured.” The Kitchener-based quartet call their sound “mountain music from the Grand River Valley” - retrofitted traditional and original old-time and bluegrass songs reminiscent of the Foghorn Stringband, Alison Krauss, and Uncle Earl. They have been heard on radio stations across Canada and featured in Jan Hall’s “Sunparlour Sessions” - their last two albums, Raisin’ Heck and Earthly Trials, charted on national campus radio in 2017 and 2019. They gig regularly around Southwestern Ontario and have performed at a number of festivals including Banjofest in Guelph, Springtide Festival in Uxbridge, Cambridge’s Mill Race Folk Festival, Winterfolk in Toronto, and many more. “Foul Weather Friends” CD Release Onion Honey’s latest project CD Release courtesy of Onion Honey Find Onion Honey online at or everywhere on Social media @OnionHoneyMusic ONION HONEY NEWS19OCTOBER BLUEGRASS CANADA MAGAZINE sound. Again, the vocals are great. I’d love to see and hear them do this live. Esther is clearly a good writer, and singer. When I Die, and Snallygaster - which gets you up and moving right away - are more examples of her writing skill. The title track, Foul Weather Friends, is written and sung by Dave Pike (with harmonies). It’s a really good folk song. Some of Dave’s other songs on the album include Here in This Town, Justified Shuffle, and Force of Will. Ola Belle Reid’s song I’ve Endured is track 10. When Ola Belle sings the song (for example on Rising Sun Melodies) she sounds like she’s really endured a tough life. I’m afraid that the Onion Honey version of the song does not sound like they are suffering. That said, you’ll often hear the adage “listen to a bluegrass song and you’ll feel happy, until you listen to the words.” So from that perspective I guess they are following script. I’m more from the school of wanting a suffering lyric to sound like suffering. Perhaps slowing it down a little, and using phrasing and vocal texture would help achieve that suffering sound. The band is a really good to excellent string band, and should not be dismissed just because they don’t have the bluegrass sound. I’d suggest that if you are not a strictly traditional bluegrass listener, you should pick up a copy of this fine band’s album Foul Weather Friends and listen for yourself. Their talent is quite evident. If you are looking for hard core true bluegrass, Foul Weather Friends isn’t the album for you. However, it is a fun CD and one to add to your collection if you are looking for upbeat string band style of folk. It’s a great choice for crossover listeners of roots and folk music. Onion Honey is an acoustic string band who keep bluegrass close to the heart. The band is made up of Dave Pike, Esther Wheaton, Leanne Swantko, and Kayleigh LeBlanc. Fowl Weather Friends is a fresh and well put together collection of great songs; 12 of the 15 songs on the album are penned by band members. The covers include I’ve Endured, an Ola Belle Reed song, Steel Rail Blues, by Gordon Lightfoot, and Black Eyed Suzie, a traditional song I first heard done by The Johnson Mountain Boys. The album opens with a catchy upbeat song written by Esther Wheaton, Hellcat Etiquette, followed by Black Eyed Suzie. (I very much like Esther’s version of Black Eyed Suzie.) Through The Rogers Pass, written by Dave Park, a very singable song, comes up next. I had to smile at the title and lyrics of the next song which so contrasts the subject matter of traditional bluegrass (which the band does not claim to be, but since this is a bluegrass magazine I couldn’t help but comment) - the song is Vegetable Love. The chorus is sweet and very nicely harmonized. It’s very catchy and will likely get you singing along. Gordon Lightfoot’s Steel Rail Blues starts off with a very pretty guitar intro. The two female voices carrying the song in lovely harmony are smooth and clear. The arrangement is almost what you’d hear in church, which isn’t really my bag because I’d be looking for more emotion and semblance of storytelling in the song. However, though their choice of interpretation of the song isn’t what I’d be looking for, they execute their choice well. I like the bass intro in Get Out From Under My Feet, another Esther Wheaton song. The song is well written and I like the arrangement - it has a traditional gospel stamp on it, but still their own Foul Weather Friends - Onion Honey July 2023 Pat Moore CKCU 93.1 FM ONION HONEY REVIEWNext >