Here is a copy of the Keynote Address delivered by Pete Fisher during the 2009 IBMA World Of Bluegrass convention in Nashville. Fisher, Vice President and General manager of The Grand Ole Opry, gave his address on Monday, September 28 on the first night of IBMA week.

Reprinted with permission from International Bluegrass and Pete Fisher.

I am very grateful and extremely honored to have this opportunity to speak with you this evening. I believe the bluegrass music industry holds tremendous potential to grow. In my years at the Opry, I have personally witnessed how the power of bluegrass music and its artists can win over those who may not consider themselves fans of bluegrass.

It’s hard to believe I’ve been at the Opry 10 years, and what an exciting 10 years it has been! It was around September of 1998 when Steve Buchanan first approached me about the General Manager position at the Opry. At that time I was in my fourth year of artist management, the second phase of my music industry career. To be honest, the call came as quite a surprise to me. Although I had a very high regard for the Opry, I never envisioned in a million years that my career would lead me to that revered institution.

In addition to the obvious musical compatibility, bluegrass music and the Grand Ole Opry have a lot in common. Introduced to the world by Bill Monroe on the Ryman Stage 64 years ago, like the Opry, bluegrass music has a long rich legacy which celebrates excellence and tradition.

Bluegrass music, like the Opry, is truly a slice of Americana. It’s all-American. Bluegrass Music, like the Opry, is multi-generational – the performers and fans alike.

A frequently asked question I get from the media is, “What is country music?” I typically respond by saying country music, at its best, is about real people singing real songs about real life. If country music is that, then bluegrass music is the espresso version of that!  Both bluegrass music and the Opry are real—authentic to the core.

With each and every one of the 200 Opry shows we present each year, we strive to present a diverse array of generations and musical styles. So when one experiences a Grand Ole Opry performance, they are really witnessing the past, present and future of country music, as performed by it’s new stars, superstars and legends. That is our core programming philosophy for the show.

This approach serves us well because it broadens the Opry’s relationship with performers and their representatives as well as those enjoying the Opry in person, on the radio or on television, online, or on satellite radio. This programming philosophy is best for the long-term interests of the Opry, the performers and from a tourism perspective, the city of Nashville and the state of Tennessee. (more…)

Steep Canyon Rangers have a guest spot on tonight’s (9/25) Grand Ole Opry broadcast.

It will be their second visit to the Opry stage, and banjo picker and primary songwriter Graham Sharp tells us that they will be highlighting material from their upcoming album, Deep In The Shade, due from Rebel on October 6.

“We’ll be doing a couple tunes for the 8:00 segment of this Friday’s Grand Ol’ Opry, probably from the new record. We’ve been doing most of the new songs live and folks seem to really like the direction we’ve taken; I think the tunes are pretty distinctive.

It’s exciting times…  our last Opry appearance, I believe, was one of the last shows Porter Wagoner hosted, so we have some fond memories there and are honored to be returning.”

The 8:00 p.m. Graham mentions is Central time, with the Opry show starting up on WSM at 7:00. Jesse McReynolds & The Virginia Boys and The Whites will also appear on tonight’s show.

Tune in to WSM at 650 AM or online to catch all the evening’s great music.

No… these are a different sort of awards.

After winning several armloads of trophies at IBMA 2008, Dailey & Vincent may be accustomed to walking off stage with major awards. But handing them out, not so much.

But that’s just what they’ve done. After the success of their self-titled debut release, and the ‘09 follow-up, Brothers From Different Mothers, the boys wanted to show some appreciation to people who have opened doors for them in the music business.

They presented a Door Opener Award to WSM and The Grand Ole Opry’s Eddie Stubbs on July 30 after their performance at the Springer Mountain Farms Bluegrass Nights at the Ryman show. Stubbs was brought out on stage to accept this expression of gratitude for the support he has shown Dailey & Vincent.

Then  two weeks later on August 11, they presented a similar trophy to Pete Fisher, General manager of The Grand Ole Opry, after their Tuesday Opry show. The duo had played their very first live performance at The Opry on December 29, 2007, and thanked Fisher for having booked them on the show.

We understand that Dailey & Vincent is back in the studio again this summer, working on a Statler Brothers tribute album. Their next Rounder CD is scheduled to be an all a capella project.

No resting on their laurels for these fellas!

This weekend’s Grand Ole Opry has some of the ladies of bluegrass scheduled to perform. Both the reigning Queen and a trio of upstart challengers will be strutting their stuff on the Friday and Saturday night broadcasts.

Rhonda Vincent will be on tonight’s (7/17) show in the 8:00-8:30 p.m. segment (EDT), and The Lovell Sisters will be on Saturday night’s show in the 8:00-8:30 and 10:30-11:00 slots.

Jesse McReynolds and Mike Snider will also perform on Friday night, and Snider and The Whites will appear on Saturday’s show.

CMT had a nice feature about The Lovells on their blog earlier this week, comparing them favorably to The Dixie Chicks. No pressure there…

The Opry is broadcast live on WSM AM 650 in Nashville, on XM channel 11 (XM Nashville), and simulcast worldwide via online streaming at wsmonline.com. Friday’s show runs from 8:00-10:00 p.m., and Saturday’s from 8:00 p.m.-12:30 a.m. All times EDT.