Dan Kelly has won many prestigious fiddle contests; was Roy Acuffs last Smoky Mountain Boy fiddle player on the Grand Ole Opry; and has developed a successful career as a sideman, touring with Country stars Pam Tillis, Steve Wariner, Faith Hill, Lonestar, SheDaisy, Alan Jackson, and currently with Clint Black. He has performed on the stages of the Kennedy Center; the Grammy, CMA and ACM Awards shows; the Tonight Show; the David Letterman Show; Good Morning America; and Carnegie Hall. A native Connellsville boy, Dan began playing fiddle at age eight, and by the age of twelve he had won the Canadian National Open Fiddle Championship. During his contest career, he went on to win the state championships of Pennsylvania, Indiana, Ohio, Maryland, Kentucky, Tennessee, and West Virginia, as well as the Mid-America Championship twice. In 1983, at the age of seventeen, Dan won the most famous fiddle title in the nation, the Grand Masters. Dans favorite career highlight, aside from winning the Grand Masters and being a member of Roy Acuffs Smoky Mountain Boys, was playing Carnegie Hall with Alan Jackson. When Dan is not touring with Clint Black, he divides his musical time between performing with the Tennessee Mafia Jug Band; doing session work around Nashville; maintaining a private teaching schedule; and teaching a violin class at a local private school.
Posted on: Fri, 14 Mar 2014 23:50:51 +0000