July 23, 2020
The State of Tennessee Old-Time Fiddlers' Championships
mourns the sudden death of fiddler Dan Kelly. Dan was a great
friend of our Event, having judged for us several times in the past. He
was a fine fiddler, but more importantly, he was a good man.
(click picture for a larger version)
Dan Kelly
(with Faith Hill)
Dan Kelly won many prestigious fiddle contests; was Roy
Acuff's last "Smoky Mountain Boy" fiddle player on
the Grand Ole Opry; and developed a successful career as a
sideman, touring with Country stars Pam Tillis, Steve Wariner, Faith
Hill, Lonestar, SheDaisy, Alan Jackson, and Clint
Black. He 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 Pennsylvanian, 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.
Dan's favorite career highlight, aside from winning the Grand Masters
and being a member of Roy Acuff's Smoky Mountain Boys, was playing
Carnegie Hall with Alan Jackson. When Dan was not touring, he divided 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.
Dan will be sorely missed.
