He introduced himself as Dan Boner, Director of the Bluegrass, Old-Time, and Country Music Studies Program at East Tennessee State University.. I love the diversity [of ETSU], we have so many awesome teachers here, its a blessing, said Porchak. of Fiddle Patch, Aynsley is accompanied by Daniel Boner, director of Bluegrass, He writes, Ill forever be grateful to the Bluegrass, Old-Time, and Country Music Studies program. High-res versions are in Flickr. said, My name is Dan Boner, and Im director of the Bluegrass, Old Time and Country Tennessee Bluegrass Band looking for new members, Save Me All the Heartaches first single from Tone Tuesday, ETSU welcomes Aynsley Porchak and Dan Eubanks to bluegrass faculty, Moments in Bluegrass: BG75 #12 Kenny Baker Plays Bill Monroe, Aynsley Plays Kenny on social media in July, Aynsley Porchak wins Canadian Grand Masters, Bobby Osborne & The Rocky Top X-Press at Bluegrass Wednesday Nights, Open Bluegrass Jam // Cinderlands Warehouse (Pittsburgh), Wernick Method Bluegrass Jam Class with Joel Denman Durango, CO, Open Bluegrass Jam // Cork Harbour Pub (Pittsburgh), Bluegrass Beyond Borders: Dave Wright & the Midnight Ramblers from Down Under, Bluegrass Beyond Borders: Bononia Grass plays with an Italian flavor, Russ Hooper: 74 years in bluegrass music and still gigging, Jason Fraley returns to Deeper Shade of Blue for one last show. She decided to compete, telling no one else, not even her mentor, Daniel Boner, director The Tennessee Bluegrass Band is shining a light on the importance of traditional bluegrass. So, I just won the Grand Master Fiddle contest, she said. Two years later, she returned to Nashville and won the U.S. Grand Masters Fiddle Championship. It doesn't always work out that way, but when it does, it's generally, Aynsley Porchak, a recent graduate of the ETSU Bluegrass, Country & Old Time Music program has won the Canadian Grand Masters Fiddling Championship, just one year after winning the US competition last year. She speaks highly of the teachers and the program. Aynsley Porchak. We were in this tiny restaurant a little Eubanks, who holds a masters degree in Jazz Studies fromWebster University in St. Louis, MO, says that it is an honor to join such a stellar team. She graduated in 2017 with an additional bachelors degree in English, and completed her masters degree in Appalachian Studies in 2020. TENNESSEE BLUEGRASS BAND From east Tennessee. She was Blessed to win the Grand Master Fiddler Championship in 2015 in Nashville, Tennessee, and in 2017, she also became the Canadian Grand Master Fiddle Champion, making her the first person to win both competitions. This is a labor of love,but every dollar = a cup of coffee whileI work at keeping this resource up to date.Thanks for whatever you send my way! The group formed as a spin-off of the band Carolina Blue. Studies. Aynsley is also an experienced contest fiddler. Funeral . 24 / 7 Professional Support of Aynsleys all-time favorite fiddlers, Bobby Hicks. but she hesitated because the festival was only two days away, and she had not practiced. The skilled fiddler hopes to even possibly teach at ETSU in the future. She was also given the honor of playing the Grand . Aynsley Porchak, a recent graduate of the ETSU Bluegrass, Country & Old Time Music program has won the Canadian Grand Masters Fiddling Championship, just one year after winning the US competition last year. . I was an only child and a homeschooled student, so I had my qualms about coming to Fiddler Aynsley Porchak didnt grow up in a musical household, but her parents always supported her musical interest. Playing via Spotify Playing via YouTube. Aynsley, a native of Woodstock, Ontario, who is a senior at East Tennessee State University appreciate the care that ETSU has put into its music programs. I've never been more excited about . When she isnt on the road, she teaches privately and in the Junior Appalachian Musician program on the ETSU campus. As I argue, one particular duo of Appalachian musicians, the . Aynsley was taken to see influential Cape Breton fiddler Natalie McMaster. A violin in Porchaks possession that is too precious for public performance belonged to her great-grandfather, Cazmir Porzak, who left Poland in 1913 when he was 16 with only the clothes he was wearing and his treasured instrument. Mission Statement and commitment to Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion, Board of Directors, Meeting Calendar, Meeting Minutes, Elections, The team that runs the organization and its events, Our famous festivals, camps, and online events, Contribute your time, energy and creativity. One year, while she and her parents were in Nashville for the Grand Master contest, Read Aynsley Porchak's bio and find out more about Aynsley Porchak's songs, albums, and chart history. the epicenter of all this music.. Click on one photo to see large photos in sequence. To add another international dimension to her story, Porchak won those competitions playing a fiddle inlaid with ivory and rosewood and crafted by Xiadong Guan, who made and repaired violins for the Beijing Symphony before he moved to Canada. They are: Bobby Powell, guitar; Timmy Jones, mandolin; Reese Combs, bass; James McDowell, banjo (who looks like a young Don Stover); and Aynsley Porchak, fiddle (wearing a 'pillbox' hat that reminded Dr Janie of those ladies used to wear to church). So close to the university, we have this amazing place where so many influential musicians have played, says Porchak. She also played in 2016 on the Grand Ole Opry. For this video performance But when severe weather led to the festivals After all, we've got some of th. I feel like the versatility of the fiddle and its ability to fit into many different genres makes it all the more enjoyable for me to play. Natalie and her music, so when I was 9 years old, I started taking fiddle lessons. Porchak also loves the sense of community here at ETSU; as well as just being around such great music. As Johnson City lies at the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, the perfect location of the Tri-Cities allows bluegrass music to expand its deep roots, yet true bluegrass is not determined by the location; but rather, the heart of the artist. Country Current (above), the premier country and bluegrass group of the U.S. Navy. Boner joined his first southern gospel group when he was eight, and by the age of 11, he was playing fiddle with the Strings of Gospel. Her victory allowed her to fulfill another dream, an appearance on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry, where she played the tune Fiddle Patch.. She also received the 2018 IBMA Momentum Instrumentalist of the Year award. Woodstock, Ontario, native Aynsley Porchak is a perfect example of this very heart and soul. it.. Music really does mean a lot to me. It signed on at five oclock in the afternoon and signed off at eleven. In fact, it is the achievements of musicians like Aynsley Porchak that can promote a spark with aspiring musicians. Oklahoma Stomp, the song was adapted for the fiddle and renamed by Dale Potter, one This man came up to our table and he recognized Buddy. This is an historic first, making her. There have been as many as 42, says program director Dan Boner, himself an accomplished guitarist and fiddle player. Website design and development by Camellia Digital Agency. Logout. John Meador and Hensley have played gigs together although they performed with separate bands, (John with Kentucky Just Us and Lincoln with the Price Sisters), and Meador is married to . Before I came to ETSU, I was familiar with bluegrass music to some degree, but I was still very much learning the ropes of how to be a bluegrass fiddler. The thesis is a lyrical analysis of Louvin Brothers songs and how the brothers bridged the gap between the sacred and the secular, Porchak says. She tours with Carolina Blue, a vintage-inspired traditional bluegrass band and is part of a three-piece Celtic ensemble called Atlantic North. Her parents They made their SOIMF debut in 2018 and we are thrilled to have this award-winning band return to the Roberts Centre this spring. I slowed the record down to 16 2/3 speed. Porchak, who has bachelors degrees in both Bluegrass, Old-Time, and Country Music Studies and English from ETSU, plus a masters in Appalachian Studies, feels humbled to join the faculty at her alma mater. Fiddle contests are a really big deal in Ontario, so I began to compete on the circuit. to talk to Buddy and then realized he hadnt introduced himself. Home-schooled by her mother Jan, a retired high school English and physical education teacher, Porchak had been looking for a college where she could continue learning traditional music. Thank you. as well as Bobby Hicks, whom she has long admired. In order to further hone her craft, Aynsley enrolled in East Tennessee State University's Bluegrass, Old Time, and Country Music Studies degree program in 2013, and . Walking down that hallway, you might hear the lonely, resonating notes of a dobro. Bluegrass Pride and Celtic Pride bands, and has had opportunities to share the stage 16 years old, I went to Weiser, Idaho, for the National Old Time Fiddlers Contest, I went to church every Sunday morning, Sunday night, and Wednesday night, and I played guitar in church., Boner says there was no order of worship in his great uncles tiny church. As a student at East Tennessee State University, I am very aware of the soundscape that surrounds my place in the Bluegrass, Old Time, and Country Music Studies program. Click here for full pdf versions of the 2022-23 print edition. Maybe the newest great love story to emerge, is that of Carolina Blue's James McDowell and Aynsley Porchak, aka "Jaymsley." We asked them to share a bit about how they got their start and we hope you enjoy their "love story" as much as we do. I don't think there's anything wrong with pullin pop into the genre with covers like this. I told him that I had no idea he even liked me and he protested but I sat by you all the time and I always tried to talk to you! Well, James told me that he would like to pursue a serious relationship with me and I said that I would have to pray about it and that I would have to talk to the band about it. of the fiddle players who influenced Aynsley the most as a young musician. In addition to awarding bachelors, masters, and graduate certificates, ETSU bestowed doctor of education (Ed.D. All rights reserved. "We met for the first time when I auditioned for Carolina Blue in December two years ago. At a banjo pickers convention in New Zealand, Trenwith and her band met American folk singer Mike Seeger. 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