Michael Cleveland (bluegrass musician)
Encyclopedia
Michael Cleveland is a blind bluegrass
Fiddle
player.
Cleveland was born in Henryville, Indiana
. His skill was recognised at an early age, with appearances on the Grand Ole Opry
, A Prairie Home Companion
and before the United States Congress
in his early teens.
After graduating from the Kentucky School for the Blind
he performed with various musicians including Dale Ann Bradley and Rhonda Vincent
.
His first solo project on Rounder Records
, Flame Keeper, won the International Bluegrass Music Association
Instrumental Album of the Year in 2002, and he shared the same award with Tom Adams
in 2004 for Tom Adams and Michael Cleveland Live at the Ragged Edge. His third award came for his 2006 album Let 'Er Go, Boys!.
Cleveland won the IBMA 2008 Fiddle Player of the Year and the 2010 Instrumental Group of the Year with his band Flamekeeper, for the third year. Cleveland had previously won Fiddle Player of the Year in 2001, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011.
With Tom Adams
Michael Cleveland and Flamekeeper
Bluegrass music
Bluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and a sub-genre of country music. It has mixed roots in Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish traditional music...
Fiddle
Fiddle
The term fiddle may refer to any bowed string musical instrument, most often the violin. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including classical music...
player.
Cleveland was born in Henryville, Indiana
Henryville, Indiana
Henryville is a census-designated place in Clark County, Indiana, United States. The population was 1,905 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Henryville is located at ....
. His skill was recognised at an early age, with appearances on the Grand Ole Opry
Grand Ole Opry
The Grand Ole Opry is a weekly country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, that has presented the biggest stars of that genre since 1925. It is also among the longest-running broadcasts in history since its beginnings as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM-AM...
, A Prairie Home Companion
A Prairie Home Companion
A Prairie Home Companion is a live radio variety show created and hosted by Garrison Keillor. The show runs on Saturdays from 5 to 7 p.m. Central Time, and usually originates from the Fitzgerald Theater in Saint Paul, Minnesota, although it is frequently taken on the road...
and before the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
in his early teens.
After graduating from the Kentucky School for the Blind
Kentucky School for the Blind
The Kentucky School for the Blind is an educational facility for blind and visually impaired students from Kentucky up to age 21.Bryce McLellan Patten founded the Kentucky Institution for the Education of the Blind in 1839 in Louisville, Kentucky...
he performed with various musicians including Dale Ann Bradley and Rhonda Vincent
Rhonda Vincent
Rhonda Lea Vincent is a bluegrass singer, songwriter, mandolin player, guitarist, and fiddle player.Her musical career started as a child in her family's band, The Sally Mountain Show, and has spanned almost four decades...
.
His first solo project on Rounder Records
Rounder Records
Rounder Records, originally of Cambridge, Massachusetts, but now based in Burlington, Massachusetts, is a record label founded in 1970 by Ken Irwin, Bill Nowlin and Marian Leighton-Levy, while all three were still university students...
, Flame Keeper, won the International Bluegrass Music Association
International Bluegrass Music Association
The International Bluegrass Music Association, or IBMA, is a trade association to promote bluegrass music.Formed in 1985, IBMA established its first headquarters in Owensboro, Kentucky. In 1988 they announced plans to create the International Bluegrass Music Museum as a joint venture with...
Instrumental Album of the Year in 2002, and he shared the same award with Tom Adams
Tom Adams (musician)
Tom Adams is a bluegrass musician born in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Featured as a banjo player on recordings made between 1974 and 2006 with The Adams Brothers, The Johnson Mountain Boys, The Lynn Morris Band, Blue Highway, Rhonda Vincent, Dale Ann Bradley, Michael Cleveland and many others, the...
in 2004 for Tom Adams and Michael Cleveland Live at the Ragged Edge. His third award came for his 2006 album Let 'Er Go, Boys!.
Cleveland won the IBMA 2008 Fiddle Player of the Year and the 2010 Instrumental Group of the Year with his band Flamekeeper, for the third year. Cleveland had previously won Fiddle Player of the Year in 2001, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011.
Discography
Solo Albums- Flame Keeper [Rounder Records] 2002
- Let Er Go Boys (Rounder Records) 2006
With Tom Adams
- Live at the Ragged Edge (Rounder Records) 2004
Michael Cleveland and Flamekeeper
- Leavin' Town (Rounder Records) 2008
- Fired Up (Rounder Records) 2011