Mission, Vision & Values of MBOTMA
MISSION
To preserve and promote bluegrass and old-time stringband music in and around the state of Minnesota, honoring tradition, and encouraging innovation.
VISION
MBOTMA is an association where people are invited to find a sense of belonging through experiencing, teaching, learning and participating in the creation of Bluegrass and Old-Time Music as part of a respectful and collaborative community.
VALUES
MBOTMA believes
- That the love of Bluegrass & Old-Time Music builds communities across generations, backgrounds, abilities, genders, orientations, identities, faiths and cultures
- That enjoyment of the music adds to our collective humanity
- That participation in the creation of the music unlocks creativity and empathy
- That involvement in passing down the music preserves not only a unique art form, but also builds a more resilient and inclusive community
History of MBOTMA
September 1975: First Newsletter
In September of 1975, bass player Tom O’Neill circulated a proposal to a group of people whose names had been gleaned from the personal address books of his bluegrass and old-time music playing friends including Ron Colby of the Platte Valley Boys. He sent out a preliminary newsletter announcing The Minnesota Bluegrass and Old-Time Music Association (MBOTMA), based on the San Diego Bluegrass Club and its newsletter format. MBOTMA got started with its first official newsletter, mailed to a new membership of 40, that October.
The newsletter has been published in one form or another ever since, currently called Minnesota Bluegrass Magazine, and is still distributed 11 times a year to nearly 1,000 subscribing members. A complete archive of the publication is here.
August 1976: Incorporation
During the first year there was a lot to do but the Association’s membership grew steadily and in August of 1976 MBOTMA was incorporated as a non-profit corporation in Minnesota. During the first three years membership grew to over 400 and many events were put on to try to raise money for the fledgling organization.
1980: First Festivals
The organization introduced its first three-day festival at Wildwood Campground in Taylor’s Falls (MN) in August 1980. This event would eventually become today’s Minnesota Bluegrass August Festival, now located near St Cloud (MN). 1980 was also the same year MBOTMA held the very first “Buy, Sell, Swap Meet,” which would develop into the Minnesota Bluegrass Winter Weekend, held annually the first weekend in March at the Radisson Hotel & Conference Center in Plymouth (now the Crowne Plaza Minneapolis West Hotel, where the event continues to this day).
1988: Move to Zimmerman and Kickoff
In 1988, the August Festival moved to Camp in the Woods Resort, near Zimmerman (MN). By the second year at this location volunteers had constructed a permanent stage facility that they were proud of, and over the years countless bands enjoyed performing there to capacity audiences.
The Minnesota Bluegrass Homegrown Kickoff was started in June 1993 at the same venue and provided a forum for MBOTMA Member Bands to show off their talent. This festival also flourished, but in 2001 Camp In The Woods was sold to a housing developer, the stage that the volunteers had worked so hard on needed to be abandoned, and a larger location with a long-range future was sought.
2002: El Rancho Mañana
The goal of moving the two summer festivals to a new home was realized in 2002 with a move to El Rancho Mañana Campground and Riding Stables located in the rolling hills of central Minnesota west of St. Cloud. The venue is large enough to accommodate increased interest in bluegrass and old-time music and offers amenities such as horseback riding and a swimming beach. In 2025, a new 10-year lease was signed, and the June and August Festivals will continue in this beloved space for years to come.
Volunteers designed and contributed much of the labor to build a new concert area and stage, much larger then the old one. It is now considered one of the Midwest’s most beautiful outdoor festival grounds.
Harvest/ Fall Jam & Cabin Fever
In recent years two more indoor festivals were added to the annual calendar. The Minnesota Bluegrass Fall Jam was first celebrated in 2006, is a multi-day festival featuring concerts, band development workshops and jamming in Minneapolis in the fall. The event was originally called Harvest Jam, and was held at a Marriot hotel in Minnetonka. The event has since moved to the Crowne Plaza, the same venue as Winter Weekend.
A late winter gathering was added to the annual calendar in 2011 – Minnesota Bluegrass Cabin Fever, which was held in early April in Duluth, but that has been set aside since the COVID pandemic.
Grass Seeds Academy
MBOTMA also runs the Grass Seeds Academy every March during Winter Weekend. This program, started in 2004, brings young bluegrass enthusiasts together to learn to play in bands, to sing harmony, to solo on their instruments and more. Over 600 kids have participated in the program. A number of past participants have gone on to careers in bluegrass music, and have graced stages across the country.
MBOTMA also sponsors or hosts various jam sessions, educational programs, and helps support many events presented by other organizations or its member bands.
50th Anniversary
MBOTMA is marking its 50th anniversary in 2025. Its monthly publication of the Minnesota Bluegrass Magazine has been voted “Best Newsletter” by the Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music in America (SPBGMA) twice. The International Bluegrass Music Association nominated the Minnesota Bluegrass August Festival “Event of the Year” in 2005, 2007, 2009, 2014 and 2015 — and bluegrass and old-time music have never been better here in Minnesota and the Upper Midwest!