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Ben Wright is a founding member of the Henhouse Prowlers, taking the band on the road for more than 15 years and proudly leading Chicago’s robust bluegrass scene.
The Prowlers have recorded 8 albums and tour relentlessly, having garnered a large following across the planet. The band blends their own original material with songs written in multiple languages, learned from their extensive travels.
In 2013, the Henhouse Prowlers began working with the US State Department as musical diplomats, to date they have traveled to more than 25 countries. During these tours, Ben started to see the opportunities for education and diplomacy at home were just as valuable as the international exchanges, inspiring him (and his business partner Jon Goldfine) to start the 501(c)3 non-profit Bluegrass Ambassadors.
The band now works through this entity to bring cross-cultural music education to children in low-income schools, college students in universities, and festival attendees; striving to remind people that diplomacy isn’t just for diplomats; blending global folk music traditions with cultural awareness and understanding.
Since Covid, Ben was hired by American Voices, the implementing partner for the State Department cultural programs, to help transition musical diplomacy work into the virtual setting.
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This week on Deerling Live, we are joined by Bob Taylor, co-founder of Taylor Guitars. Greg Deering and Bob Taylor have known each other since the late 1960's when they were both key members of the American Dream cooperative - a collection of musical instruments repair specialists and builders here in San Diego.
In this episode, we sit down with Bob Taylor, Greg Deering, and Janet Deering to learn about the remarkable story of two of the worlds most respected names in stringed musical instruments today.
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This week on Deering Live we are happy to have classical banjoist, John Bullard. John is a classically trained musician and has published several books including Bach For Banjo. Come listen to him play and share in a transformative revelation: to experience the artistic marriage of banjo and classical music.
As always you can ask him questions in the live chat.
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We are excited to feature bluegrass banjoist Mike Munford on Deering Live this week. Mike is a past IBMA Banjo Player of the Year winner and currently plays with the Grammy Nominated band Frank Solivan and Dirty Kitchen. Besides being one of the top banjoists on the scene today, Mike is also a very highly regarded banjo setup technician.
Don't miss this episode and be sure to come armed with your bluegrass banjo or banjo setup questions that you can post in the live chat!
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We are excited to feature progressive banjoist Andy Thorn of Leftover Salmon to Deering Live this week. Andy is a killer player who continues to push the banjo envelope. Hailing from North Carolina, Andy honed his skills in scene that included players such as Ryan Cavanaugh and Rex McGee. In time, Andy moved out to Colorado and waded deep into the Colorado jamgrass scene, eventually landing the banjo chair in Leftover Salmon which he has held for over a decade. This is sure to be a fun and inspiring show.
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Bennett Sullivan is a fantastic banjo player, teacher, and songwriter who is always pushing to create something new and interesting. No matter what direction Bennett goes, it is always done on a very high level. Join us today for what is sure to be a fantastic Deering Live episode and be sure to ask him questions in the live chat!
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This week, join us for a very special episode of Deering Live as we reveal the 2021 Steve Martin Banjo Prize winners. We will be featuring some very special guests, so be sure to tune in!
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In partnership with the Freshgrass Foundation and Compass Records.
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