Bluegrass Music News Archive

The Bluegrass Music New ceased production at the end of the 2023-2024 fiscal year per action by the KMEA Board. Thank you to our readers for many years of faithful service.

The Bluegrass Music News was the quarterly journal of the Kentucky Music Educators Association. Volume I, No. 1 was published on April 1, 1950 under the title KMEA Newsletter. It was a three-page, single-side-only, typed, undoubtedly mimeographed publication, edited by Claude Rose of Western Kentucky University. Volume IV, No. 1 came out in October, 1952, the first to use the current title. It was a twelve-page, professionally printed publication, still under the editorship of Professor Rose.

Past Bluegrass Music News Editors

Bluegrass Music News Archives

Submission Guidelines for Contributors

Guidelines for Feature Articles, Letters, & News Items:

• Feature articles should be no more than 1500-2500 words.
• Please use MS Word for submissions:
  • 12-point, Times New Roman font
  • Line spacing at double
  • Default (Normal) margin
• As a general rule, inserting one space between sentences is preferred, as is the use of the serial (“Oxford”) comma. https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/explore/what-is-the-oxford-comma/
• Use A.P.A. style guidelines for heading levels: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/apa_headings_and_seriation.html
• No figures, tables, illustrations, and images should appear in the MS Word document, but should instead be sent as separate files.
  • In the MS Word document, include a placement indicator where each figure, table, illustration, or image should go — for example, include “INSERT IMAGE 1 HERE” where the specific image should appear.
  • Be sure to name files containing figures, tables, illustrations or images so that the file name corresponds with placement indicators in the MS Word file.
  • All photo/image files should be the highest resolution possible to ensure quality online appearance (JPG, PNG, and PDF files tend to work best).
  • Images from copyrighted works may only be used if written permission from the copyright owner has been secured.
  • It is the responsibility of the author to secure permission to use images of students.
• If the article includes citations/direct quotes, please use A.P.A. guidelines for proper in-text citation and for formatting the reference list: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/general_format.html
• Include a brief (150 to 200-word maximum) author bio as a separate MS Word file (same formatting as the article).

Guidelines for Photography:

• All photo/image files should be the highest resolution possible to ensure quality online appearance (JPG, PNG, and PDF files tend to work best).
• Be sure to include as much information about the image(s) as possible (who, what, when, where, etc.) in the submission email.
• Submissions for the cover should be in portrait orientation.
• Copyrighted images may only be used with written permission from the copyright owner.
• If submitting a photo taken by another person, be sure to include the name of the person to be credited.
• It is the responsibility of the person submitting photos to secure permission to use images of students.

Submission Procedure and Deadlines:

The Bluegrass Music News, the official publication of the Kentucky Music Educators Association, is distributed quarterly; Fall, Winter, Spring, and Summer. Please submit all article and news materials to the Editor, Catherine Wilson at catherine.wilson@wku.edu. Those interested in advertising, please contact Melissa Skaggs at melissa@kmea.org.

Bluegrass Music News Cover Art Contest

Information and Contest Application – PDF