Akira, My Heartiest Congratulations! I'm extremely proud to call Akira a genuine friend. And that happened long before I was thrilled to see him nominated among other greats and win in the category! Over the last year, we talked a lot as he created the entire history of Bluegrass 45's journey from Japan to the United States by translating his entire diary for a   Read I've known Akira for well over a decade, meeting him at Grey Fox where he was an instructor for the Bluegrass Academy for Kids.  Watch   I never met him before that, but photographed him at the 1972 Country Gentlemen Festival with his band, Bluegrass 45. Akira and I have been sharing our love for not only the music, but for its history, as well as photography, audio/hifi, and computers. As a photographer he's recently posted many stunningly historic photo shows. Here's one small sample..    Watch He also the co-produced the John Duffey tribute project "Epilogue" with the late Ronnie Freeland, available from ... Smithsonian Folkways Recordings He co-wrote the included 38-page booklet with Katey Daley, Dudley Connell, and Jeff Place. I had the pleasure of recording the Epilogue workshop at Grey Fox in 2018, with stories by Akira, Tim Kruzic, Ron Thomason, Kitsy Kuykendall, and Jerry Douglas.  Watch In 2010 he put together a 4-part video series on John Duffey's mandolins...  Watch Duffey made a Duck for Akira. and Akira let me hold it (although I only knew chord!) Akira, kudos for your accomplishments & recognition, and thanks for our longtime friendship. September 30, 2022

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