KET Pressroom Releases

Next on Jubilee from the IBMA Fan Fest in Nashville: Della Mae, Dale Ann Bradley, Laurie Lewis and the Right Hands

10 Jul 2013 00:00:00 GMT

On the next edition of Jubilee, recorded live at the 2012 International Bluegrass Music Association Fan Fest in Nashville, three acts take the stage: five-time IBMA Female Vocalist of the Year Dale Ann Bradley, Boston-based Della Mae, and folk-bluegrass group Laurie Lewis and the Right Hands. The program premieres Tuesday, July 9 at 8/7 p.m. on KET and Saturday, July 13 at 11/10 p.m. on KET2.

A former Coon Creek Girl and mainstay at Kentucky's Renfro Valley Barn Dance, �Daughter of Bluegrass� Dale Ann Bradley grew up in Eastern Kentucky in a shack near Loretta Lynn�s childhood home. Her childhood helped to form the music she sings today, which is a mix of first-generation bluegrass classics and new songs.

In a relatively short period of time, the band Della Mae has become a sensation in the music world. With vocal, instrumental and songwriting talent, the Boston-based combo creates contemporary bluegrass music. The group won a following through high-energy live performances at festivals around the country, and they released their first album in 2011.

Laurie Lewis, who was born in California, fell in love with American folk music as a teenager. In her early 20s, she discovered the bluegrass scene in the San Francisco area. She has since performed with several bands throughout her music career, has twice won California�s Women�s Fiddling championship, and won a Grammy award in 1997 for the album True Life Blues: The Songs of Bill Monroe.

After airing, each episode is available to watch at www.KET.org/jubilee

Jubilee is a KET production. Nick Helton is the producer/director and Teresa Day is the executive producer.

KET is Kentucky�s largest classroom, serving more than one million people each week via television, online and mobile. Learn more about Kentucky�s preeminent public media organization on Twitter @KET and facebook.com/KET and at KET.org.

Next on Jubilee from the IBMA Fan Fest in Nashville: Steep Canyon Rangers, Sleepy Man Banjo Boys

03 Jul 2013 00:00:00 GMT

On the next edition of Jubilee, recorded live at the 2012 International Bluegrass Music Association Fan Fest in Nashville, two acts take the stage: North Carolina bluegrass band Steep Canyon Rangers and the young picking stars Sleepy Man Banjo Boys. The program premieres Tuesday, July 2 at 8/7 p.m. on KET and Saturday, July 6 at 11/10 p.m. on KET2.

The Steep Canyon Rangers are an American bluegrass band from Brevard, North Carolina, and this year their album "Nobody Knows You" won a Grammy for best bluegrass album. In 2011, the band released its first collaborative album with Steve Martin, and over the past few years, the band has headlined popular festivals like MerleFest and Bonnaroo alongside Martin, and they�ve appeared with him on �Late Night With David Letterman,� �The Colbert Report� and �Austin City Limits.� They�ve also performed as a quintet at Telluride and RockyGrass, in addition to performing on �A Prairie Home Companion� with Garrison Keillor.

The Steep Canyon Rangers were named the IBMA Emerging Artist of the Year in 2007, and in 2012, they won IBMA Bluegrass Album of the Year.

Members of Steep Mountain Canyon include: Charles R. Humphrey III, Nicky Sanders, Mike Guggino, Graham Sharp and Woody Platt.

The Sleepy Man Banjo Boys, who are from western New Jersey, were inspired by the music of Flatt & Scruggs & The Stanley Brothers. The band is made up of three young brothers: 11-year-old Jonny Mizzone on banjo, 14-year-old Robbie Mizzone on fiddle, and 15-year-old Tommy Mizzone on guitar. Their second album, released in October, reached number four on Billboard's bluegrass album chart.

After airing, each episode is available to watch at www.KET.org/jubilee

Jubilee is a KET production. Nick Helton is the producer/director and Teresa Day is the executive producer.

Next on Jubilee from the IBMA Fan Fest in Nashville: The Boxcars, Skip Cherryholmes, The Chapmans

26 Jun 2013 00:00:00 GMT

On the next edition of Jubilee, recorded live at the 2012 International Bluegrass Music Association Fan Fest in Nashville, three acts take the stage: IBMA 2012 Instrumental Group of the Year The Boxcars, rising star Skip Cherryholmes and his band, and first-generation family group The Chapmans. The program premieres Tuesday, June 25 at 8/7 p.m. on KET and Saturday, June 29 at 11/10 p.m. on KET2.

The Boxcars is a quintet made up of members who have been part of well-known bluegrass groups, such as Alison Krauss & Union Station, J.D. Crowe & The New South, Blue Moon Rising and others. The group is the IBMA 2012 Instrumental Group of the Year, and in 2011, the band was named the IBMA Instrumental Group of the Year and Emerging Artist of the Year.

The Boxcars performs, among other songs: �Head Over Heels,� �Girl I Love Don�t Pay Me No Mind� and �I�m Over You.�

Members of The Boxcars include: John R. Bowman on fiddle, banjo, guitar and vocals; Keith Garrett on guitar and vocals; Harold Nixon on bass; Adam Steffey on mandolin and vocals; and Ron Stewart on banjo, fiddle and vocals.

The Skip Cherryholmes Quintet is a bluegrass band out of Raleigh, N.C., that is led by Cherryholmes, a five-time Grammy nominee and the 2005 IBMA Entertainer of the Year.

Members of The Skip Cherryholmes Quintet include: Gena Britt on banjo, guitar and vocals; Molly Cherryholmes on fiddle; Skip Cherryholmes on guitar and vocals; Chris Harris on mandolin and vocals; and Beth Lawrence on bass.

Based out of Ozark, Mo., members of The Chapmans perform a mix of Americana, bluegrass and acoustic country music that appeals to audiences of all ages. In 2002, the family band won the IBMA Emerging Artist of the Year award.

Members of The Chapmans include: Bill Chapman on banjo; Jason Chapman on bass and vocals; Jeremy Chapman on mandolin and vocals; and John Chapman on guitar and vocals.

After airing, each episode is available to watch at www.KET.org/jubilee

Jubilee is a KET production. Nick Helton is the producer/director and Teresa Day is the executive producer.

Next on Jubilee from the IBMA Fan Fest in Nashville: Doyle Lawson plus The Rambling Rooks

19 Jun 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Bluegrass music Hall of Famer Doyle Lawson and his group Quicksilver plus The Rambling Rooks perform on the next edition of Jubilee, recorded live at the 2012 International Bluegrass Music Association Fan Fest in Nashville. The program premieres Tuesday, June 18 at 8/7 p.m. on KET and Saturday, June 22 at 11/10 p.m. on KET2.

Lawson and Quicksilver have produced nearly 40 albums together and have won multiple music awards throughout the years. Lawson, who grew up in Tennessee, was influenced early on by Bill Monroe�s �high lonesome� sound.

When Lawson was a child, his father sang gospel music in an a cappella quartet, which helped to influence his love of music. In a Jubilee interview, Lawson talks about other musical influences.

�What makes me want to continue to do this and makes it satisfying, it�s really easy to answer that � it�s the love of music,� Lawson said.

Quicksilver performs, among other songs: �Love on Arrival,� �Tennessee Banjo Man,� �Country Store� and �I�m That Country.�

Members of Quicksilver include: Jason Barie on fiddle; Joe Dean on banjo; Corey Hensley on bass/vocals; Lawson on mandolin and vocals; Mike Rogers on guitar/vocals; and Josh Swift on dobro/vocals.

The Rambling Rooks features three former members of Lonesome River Band. Ronnie Bowman, Don Rigsby and Kenny Smith played music together for years in the 1990s and have been talking about a reunion for several years after not playing together for almost a decade.

The Rambling Rooks performs, among other songs: �When You Go Walking After Midnight� and �Mary Ann.�

Members of The Rambling Rooks include: Bowman on bass/vocals; Rob McCoury on banjo; Rigsby on mandolin/vocals; and Smith on guitar/vocals.

After airing, each episode is available to watch at www.KET.org/jubilee

Jubilee is a KET production. Nick Helton is the producer/director and Teresa Day is the executive producer.

KET partner in developing middle school math resources for $2 million grant from Corporation for Public Broadcasting

17 Jun 2013 13:45:00 GMT

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) recently announced a nearly $2 million grant to expand middle school math content available through PBS LearningMedia, a free digital media service with more than 30,000 resources, including videos, games, images, audio files and lesson plans to help teachers enhance learning in classrooms nationwide. The grant was awarded to public television station WGBH in Boston; and KET is one of four total producing partners for the grant, along with WGBH, WNET in New York City and KQED in San Francisco.

The grant allows these stations to address a critical need in middle school math education and provide new teaching tools for educators who use PBS LearningMedia resources. KET and the other public television producing partners will contribute and oversee the development of more than 400 new and repurposed digital resources focused on math at the middle school level.

KET, which already has a large collection of resources available on PBS LearningMedia, will be the second-largest contributor to this project by creating 50 pieces of content devoted to middle school math. Mary Duncan, director of K-12 instructional resources at KET, said that all resources will be created with a strong focus on how a conceptual approach to math through digital learning can benefit students.

�The traditional approach to math education often doesn�t explain to students the �why� behind the formula,� Duncan said. �With these new PBS LearningMedia resources, it�s the �why� we�re trying to help students discover.�

Many of the 50 resources KET will create for PBS LearningMedia will be designed with a diverse student audience in mind. Duncan said there will be different �entry points� for the resources, allowing students of varying skills and abilities to benefit.

The main content adviser for the project is Dr. Linda Sheffield, professor emeritus from Northern Kentucky University and a nationally known math education expert. An advisory group has also been formed to help KET develop the resources. This group includes a Kentucky Department of Education consultant and three Kentucky classroom teachers. KET plans to complete all 50 resources by spring 2014.

All of the new math tools on PBS LearningMedia will be aligned to Common Core State Standards, which provide a consistent, clear understanding of what students are expected to learn so that teachers and parents know how best to support their academic achievement.

KET training on promoting positive behavior offered to all school employees

17 Jun 2013 13:45:00 GMT

Produced in partnership with the Kentucky Department of Education, Promoting Positive Behavior in Schools, KET�s latest professional development training for teachers, gives teachers and other school personnel statewide the opportunity to take required training online.

The training is in response to the new Kentucky regulation enacted to protect the welfare and safety of children, school personnel and visitors in public schools. The first of four self-paced modules describes the rationale and overview of the new regulation and the benefit of reducing restraint and seclusion. Subsequent modules focus on some of the attributes of effective school-wide positive behavior programs and ways to predict and prevent behavioral crises, including what adults in schools can do to prevent negative behavior and de-escalate situations before crises occur.

Like all KET online professional development, Promoting Positive Behavior in Schools features authentic school video showing models of best practices featuring Kentucky teachers. Due to the subject matter, the training also includes dramatizations of students engaged in problem behavior. The videos show teachers how to predict and prevent behavioral crises and to de-escalate problem situations. These dramatic scenarios feature actors from the School for the Creative and Performing Arts in Lexington.

The training is free of charge and accessible on PBS LearningMedia at www.pbslearningmedia.org.

KET productions and programs nominated for 19 regional Emmys

12 Jun 2013 18:04:00 GMT

The Ohio Valley Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences has nominated KET productions and programs for 19 Regional Emmy Awards. There were 751 total entries, a record number, and 291 received nominations.

Nick Helton received a nomination in the category of �Arts/Entertainment� for Jubilee, a series currently in its 17th season that features the performances of nationally known artists and popular local musicians at summer and bluegrass folk music festivals in Kentucky and elsewhere. The nomination was for the episode �Sam Bush Band,� which features the legendary newgrass musician on stage at the 2011 International Newgrass Festival.

KET received two nominations in the category of �Documentary � Cultural/Topical.� Frank Simkonis was nominated for �Tracks of Imagination,� a Kentucky Muse program that explores the creative team at the Alexandria, Kentucky-based studio Applied Imagination, whose holiday and seasonal train displays meld botanical design and architecture, delighting crowds at botanical gardens across the United States.

Matthew Grimm was nominated for Ted Bassett: A Kentucky Gentleman, which profiles the extraordinary life of the longtime Keeneland executive, a native Kentuckian who was a decorated World War II marine and former head of the state police.

Brandon Wickey and Dave Shuffett received a nomination in the �Magazine Program� category for the Kentucky Life episode �13th Kentucky Infantry,� a program dedicated to host Shuffett following in the footsteps of his great-great-grandfather Michael Shuffett, who in 1861 joined the 13th Kentucky Volunteer Infantry Regiment during the U.S. Civil War.

KET received five nominations in the �Magazine Feature/Segment� category. Paul Smith received a nomination for the Kentucky Life segment �The Battle of Richmond,� which features a group of individuals taking up the fight to preserve and protect the battlefield site as the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Richmond approached. Smith also received a nomination for the Kentucky Life segment �The Chitlin� Circuit,� which explores Hopkinsville�s role as a main stop along The Chitlin� Circuit, a national string of clubs where black recording artists could travel and perform during the days of segregation.

Brandon Wickey received a nomination for the Kentucky Life segment �Migratory Songbirds at Red River Gorge,� which explores the state�s remarkable songbird biodiversity.

Valerie Trimble and James Piston received a nomination for the Kentucky Life segment �Good Shepherd Cheese � Say Cheese!� which features a Bath County couple who began the first licensed sheep-milk dairy in Kentucky.

Frank Simkonis received a nomination for the Kentucky Life segment �Zombie,� which featured the Louisville Zombie Attack, one of the largest zombie walks in the United States.

Dan Taulbee received a nomination in the category of �Editor � Program,� for the Kentucky Muse program �Tracks of Imagination.�

Tim Farmer received a nomination in the �Program Host/Moderator/Narrator� category for his work as host of Kentucky Afield. Farmer, along with Scott Moore, was also nominated in the �Human Interest � Program� category for the Kentucky Afield episode �Bank Fishing with Axton.� In addition, Kentucky Afield received two nominations in the �Photographer � Program� category for Brian Volland and Scott Moore.

Obie Williams received a nomination in the �Graphic Arts� category for the animated opening for Tim Farmer�s Country Kitchen.

Amy Hess, co-host of the KET series Kentucky Collectibles, received three nominations. She received one in the �Program Host/Moderator/Narrator� category for her work as host of The Local Traveler. She received two nominations, along with Mike Benton, in the �Magazine Program� category for two episodes of The Local Traveler. The program is produced by Beloved Productions and Courage Media.

Matt Hilton and Robert L. Shrader of Bluegrass & Backroads, which is produced by Kentucky Farm Bureau, received a nomination in the �Magazine Feature/Segment� category for a Bluegrass & Backroads segment.

�It�s a privilege and honor to once again be recognized by our industry peers,� said KET Executive Director Shae Hopkins. �These nominations are a testament to the important role public media plays in homes, classrooms and communities throughout Kentucky. These honors are also a strong acknowledgement of KET's individual and team creative efforts.�

The Ohio Valley Regional Emmy Awards recognize excellence in the areas of local news, programming and individual achievement and are considered to be one of the industry's highest honors. The Ohio Valley Chapter includes 13 television markets from a four-state region, including parts of Ohio, West Virginia, Indiana and Kentucky. The awards ceremony will take place on Saturday, July 20 in Cincinnati, Ohio.