Telluride Bluegrass: Victor Wooten with Bela Fleck and the Flecktones

12 Jun Telluride Bluegrass: Victor Wooten with Bela Fleck and the Flecktones

[click “Play” to hear Eileen’s conversation with Victor Wooten]

by Eileen Burns

Telluride’s 38th Bluegrass Festival will spotlight a host of hall of fame musicians over the four-day celebration, beginning on June 16th, including five-time Grammy® winner Victor Wooten, who will be performing with Bela Fleck and the Flecktones.   Heralded as “the Michael Jordan of the bass, Wooten was recently named in The Top 10 Greatest Bass Players of All Time in “Rolling Stone Magazine’s”  Readers’ Poll, and has won “Bass Player Magazine’s” prestigious “Bassist of the Year,” three times now.  Wooten’s style continues to grow and transform, but he is best known for bringing the electric base to the forefront with a rhythmic freedom unlike any other bassist performing today.

Wooten was recently nominated for the prestigious Audie Award in the “Personal Development” category, for his audio book version of his novel “The Music Lesson:  A Spiritual Search for Growth Through Music,” the story of a struggling young musician who wanted music to be his life and the eccentric teacher who guided him on a musical journey.  As an educator, Wooten, and his wife Holly, founded Wooten Woods, a spring/summer camp that includes Bass/Nature, Music/Nature, Jam Camp and Theory Weekend. 

His newest release “A Show of Hands 15” is from his own record label, Vix Records. This newly re-mastered version of his 1996 solo debut “A Show of Hands,” showcases Wooden’s amazing talents on the 4-string bass guitar with no over dubs and only the accompaniment of vocals. 

Friday, June 17th, Telluride Town Park Stage will ignite, with Bela Fleck and the Flecktones’ unique jazz and new acoustic musical sounds.  After 20 years, the original band is back together, including Bela, Victor Wooten, Roy (FutureMan) Wooten and Howard Levi.  Featuring songs from their new album “Rocket Science,” the evening’s entertainment promises to be out of this world.

To learn more about Wooten, click the “play” button and listen to his interview.