TO BLUES MUSICIANS:
The Greater Twin Cities Blues Music Society is sponsoring a solo/duo act and a band to compete in the International Blues Challenge (IBC) in Memphis on February 2-5, 2011.
We will hold our Road to Memphis Challenge on Sunday, April 25, 2010, at Whiskey Junction and judges will select the band and the solo/duo act our society will sponsor. APPLICATIONS MUST BE POSTMARKED NO LATER THAN MARCH 15TH. SEE APPLICATION. You can enter as a solo/duo act even if you enter as a member of a band, BUT you can only advance to the IBC under one category. Each entry must have a separate application form. If you think you would like to sign-up for the Road to Memphis Challenge, please fill out the application form. The following lists qualifications to compete in the Road to Memphis Challenge:
- Individuals are not permitted to compete if their names have ever been included on a Blues Music Award (formerly Handy Awards) ballot. This does not apply to sidemen of these individuals. See the Blues Foundation website for more details at www.blues.org.
- Eligibility to compete in our Society's Road to Memphis Challenge requires at least one musician from each band/act be a member of the Greater Twin Cities Blues Music Society. We have membership forms on this website under "Join GTCBMS".
- You must be a professional musician(s) or band from the State of Minnesota to compete. For this purpose, professional musician is defined as a musician who has been booked and paid to play at established music venues.
- We ask that applicants be capable, both physically and financially, of travel to Memphis for the purpose of competing in the 2011 IBC. If you place at the IBC, we ask that you are dedicated to representing our Society at IBC sponsored functions.
- Each application must include the application fee. The fee is $5.00 for each musician in your act. All application fees will be dedicated to the Get Out of Town Fund for travel-related costs for those selected to compete in the IBC. The fee is tax-deductible.
- We require all musical acts to arrive at the beginning of the Road to Memphis event on Sunday, April 25,2010. Start time is the same for everyone and we will draw straws for order of performance. We ask that the musicians support one another.
- Applications must be mailed and postmarked (or submitted online) with membership and/or fee enclosed no later than Monday, March 15, 2010, midnight.
- At the end of the day (or on the day of finals if number of applicants warrant) we will announce 1st and 2nd places.
- Competitors will be asked to provide a brief bio along with a photo prior to the Road To Memphis competition. We will send details once you have completed registration.
Our Society does not have funds available to assist the band with IBC-associated costs but we will cooperate with you to help raise funds by sponsoring "Get Out of Town" fundraisers. It is the musician's responsibility to set up the fundraiser's gigs and let the society know the dates and venues for GOOT fundraisers.
Our Mission Statement: The Greater Twin Cities Blues Music Society seeks opportunities to research and document the history of local blues music; to chart the evolution of the blues community located in the Twin Cities region of Minnesota; to teach, interpret, archive, catalog and otherwise preserve the history of blues music in this metro region; to provide learning opportunities related to this American-roots music genre; and to enhance and celebrate the existing blues music environment in the Greater Twin Cities Metropolitan Area of the State of Minnesota.
Please pass along this information to other musicians who may not be on our email list and let them know they can be on our musicians email list for the asking.
Questions? Contact us: jim@gtcbms.org
(2/3/10)
Contact GTCBMS: info@gtcbms.org
page last updated:
Thursday, February 18, 2010
