BOLIVAR, Mo. -- Meyer Bluegrass Band brought home top honors at an international competition in Nashville last weekend. The band is three brothers and one sister who have been playing bluegrass music together since 2008.
Meyer Bluegrass Band won the International Band Contest at the convention and awards contest of the Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music of America. The event was at the Sheraton Music City Hotel.
John, David, James, and Mary Meyer have been playing bluegrass together since 2008. They won the KSMU Silver Dollar City Youth In Bluegrass competition in 2009 with older brothers Joe and Paul.
The family homeschools and has been involved with music since Mary was a baby. John, 19, plays banjo; David, 17, plays rhythm guitar and fiddle; Mary, 15, plays mandolin, and James, 13, rounds out the group with the upright bass. Mary, David and John sing lead and harmony vocals.
This is the 39th year that SPBGMA sponsored the bluegrass awards, and the 30th annual convention. Eighteen bands from around the country took part in two elimination rounds and one final round in hopes of bringing home the $4,000 first place prize.
The four band siblings, along with their six brothers and sisters, are the children of Paul and Lisa Meyer of Bolivar, and have played venues in Iowa, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana, and Arkansas.
