The Fourteenth Annual Henry Reed Memorial Fiddlers Convention was held at the Newport Recreation Center in Newport, VA on June 10-11, 2016. This festival honors the life and music of local old-time fiddler Henry Reed and is proud to have grown into it’s fourteenth year! The Henry Reed Memorial Fiddlers Convention is an official Crooked Road Affiliated Festival.
Update: The list of winners has been added below! Thanks to all that participated.
Friday’s activities begin at 5 PM. The Reed Family Band with Alan Jabbour kicks things off, followed by 2 sets each from the featured bands: Blue Connection (bluegrass) and the Sunny Mountain Serenaders (old-time). Individual competitions will start at 3 PM on Saturday, followed by the band competitions.
There are 3 workshops this year: Alan Jabbour 2-day fiddle workshop 10 AM-noon on Friday and Saturday, Mac Traynham old-time banjo workshop noon-2 PM on Saturday (focused on playing for dancers), and John Schwab old-time backup guitar workshop noon-2 PM on Saturday.
WNRV will be on-site again this year to cover all the hours of great live music from the festival on both days.
Admission is $8 per person per day on Friday and Saturday, or $15 for the weekend. All contestants pay $15 (includes admission for the weekend) and they can get a festival t-shirt or $10 back after they compete. No pre-registration is needed, you register on-site.
The competition categories are banjo (bluegrass and old-time), fiddle (bluegrass and old-time), guitar (bluegrass and old-time), banjo-fiddle duet, mandolin, dulcimer, bass, folk song, dance, bluegrass band and old-time band.
Gates open noon on Thursday, admission is free on Thursday. Thursday-Saturday night camping is an additional $10 per person per night (rough) and $15 per person per night (electric, limited number available).
Vendors spots are available for $35. This is for the entire weekend and includes admission and camping for 2 people.
More information on the festival is available at the Henry Reed Convention Facebook page. Contact us if you have any questions about the festival.
Congratulations to all the 2016 Winners and thanks to all that participated!
| Old-Time Fiddle 1. Steve Kruger 2. Melinda Jamron 3. Henry Barnes 4. Mary Jane Epps 5. Lily Turner |
Old-Time Banjo 1. Tim Sauls 2. Russ Boyd 3. Steve Kruger 4. Ron Mullenex 5. Jeff Norman |
Old-Time Guitar 1. Jon Benfield 2. Mike Harrison 3. Dennis McKim |
| Mandolin* 1. Jeff Getz 2. Bob Stepno 3. Mike Fisher 4. Addison Dobbs 5. Dennis McKim |
Banjo-Fiddle Duet 1. Chris Dunavant/Liam Kelly 2. Jeff Getz/Paul Smith 3. Ginger Wagner/Paul Herling 4. Carl Baron/Lieselotte Heil |
Bluegrass Fiddle 1. Paul Herling 2. Henry Barnes 3. Lily Turner |
| Bluegrass Banjo 1. Lane Robertson 2. Garland Finn |
Bluegrass Guitar 1. Jon Benfield 2. Brandon Hilton 3. Mike Fisher |
Folk Song 1. Liam Kelly 2. Tim Thorton 3. Lieselotte Heil 4. Earl Reno 5. Matt Peyton |
| Dulcimer 1. Matt Peyton 2. Tim Thornton 3. David Parks |
Bass 1. Keith Thomas |
Dance* 1. Pat Harrison 2. Leslie Givens 3. Jack Hager 4. Susan Ann Taylor 5. James Burton |
| Old-time Band 1. Little Stoney Nighthawks 2. The Diggers 3. Happy Hollow Stringband 4. Big Lick Stringband 5. Becky and the Buzzards |
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WNRV partnered with the Henry Reed festival again in 2016 to offer a special combined advertising deal. New WNRV customers that take a full-page advertisement in the official Henry Reed festival booklet may be eligible for a discount for their WNRV advertising. Contact WNRV to get details on how we can help you promote your group or business while supporting the local community.
Here is information for the Eighth, Ninth, Tenth, Eleventh, Twelfth Annual Henry Reed Memorial Fiddlers Convention, and Thirteenth Annual Henry Reed Memorial Fiddlers Convention. A few T-shirts and program booklets from previous years are still available for purchase. Let us know if you are interested in getting these great souvenirs from previous years. Get yours while there are still some left!
