Back to Press Release List > 09/20/2007 - Sam Bush, Jerry Douglas, and Edgar Meyer, 10/31/07

Carnegie Hall presents pioneering multi-genre newgrass innovators Sam Bush (mandolin and fiddle), Jerry Douglas (dobro), and Edgar Meyer (double bass) in an eclectic high-energy concert in Zankel Hall on Wednesday October 31 at 7:30 p.m. Newgrass is the wild bluegrass style that features rock 'n' roll grooves and extended virtuosic jams. These three masters, each known for genre-bending and incomparable musicianship, unite for what is sure to be an unforgettable collaboration.

Known as the “King of Newgrass,” mandolin player Sam Bush co-founded and was the leader of the progressive bluegrass band New Grass Revival in the early 1970s. Over the course of eighteen years, Mr. Bush helped develop the newgrass genre. In 1989, New Grass Revival dissolved and since then he has been at the forefront of reviving this rowdy style of bluegrass. Mr. Bush has influenced and worked with such bands as Nickel Creek, Yonder Mountain Spring Band, and String Cheese Incident. When he is not leading his own group, the Sam Bush Band, Mr. Bush collaborates with Emmylou Harris, Lyle Lovett, Béla Fleck and the Flecktones and works with artists such as Mark O’Connor and David Grisman. In August 2007, The Sam Bush Band released its first DVD, Sam Bush On the Road, which captured one of its dynamic live shows at the Sierra Nevada Brewery.

Twelve-time Grammy winner Jerry Douglas is widely known as one of America’s foremost masters of the dobro (an acoustic guitar used in country music that is usually played on the lap; producing a tremulous, moaning sound.) A native of Ohio, Mr. Douglas’s work draws inspiration from elements of bluegrass, country, rock, jazz, blues, and Celtic music. Mr. Douglas has worked with many noted and diverse musicians including Garth Brooks, Ray Charles, Emmylou Harris, Reba McEntire, Dolly Parton, Paul Simon, Ricky Skaggs, James Taylor, and Trisha Yearwood, and performed on the landmark motion picture soundtrack of O Brother, Where Art Thou? Since 1998, he has been a key member of Alison Krauss and Union Station, with whom he has toured extensively and performed on a series of platinum albums. In addition to his Grammy Awards, Mr. Douglas has been honored by the Country Music Association, the Academy of Country Music, the Americana Music Association, and the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA), and was the 2004 recipient of the National Endowment for the Arts’ National Heritage Fellowship award, the country's highest honor in the folk and traditional arts, for his contributions to the excellence of dobro guitar music. As a solo artist, Mr. Douglas will follow up his latest CD The Best Kept Secret with a new release in 2008 on KOCH Records.

Bass player Edgar Meyer has been widely recognized as a vibrant performer and innovative composer. Mr. Meyer’s technique, musicianship, and gift for composition have brought him recognition by audiences of both classical and traditional American music. Mr. Meyer began studying bass at the age of five under the instruction of his father, and was also a student of Stuart Sankey. In 1994, Mr. Meyer was the recipient of an Avery Fisher Career Grant, and, in 2000, was awarded the Avery Fisher Prize, becoming the only bassist to receive both distinguished awards. In 2002, he was awarded a MacArthur Award for his unique contributions to the music field. Collaborations are an important part of Mr. Meyer’s work. He has worked with Béla Fleck, Joshua Bell, Mike Marshall, Yo-Yo Ma, and Mark O’Connor, among others on several inventive performance and recording projects.

Program Information
Wednesday, October 31 at 7:30 p.m.
Zankel Hall
SAM BUSH, Mandolin and Fiddle
JERRY DOUGLAS, Dobro
EDGAR MEYER, Double Bass

Three masters, each known for genre-bending and incomparable musicianship, unite for what is sure to be an unforgettable collaboration.

Program announced from the stage.

Bank of America is the Proud Season Sponsor of Carnegie Hall.