Wimberley Bluegrass Band

Wimberley Bluegrass Band

Wimberley Bluegrass Band is comprised entirely of four siblings based in Southern California! They provide fun and wholesome musical entertainment, and strive to keep the traditional sounds of bluegrass music alive and well by taking it to new audiences. Named one of Los Angeles' Top Five Bluegrass Bands by CBS-LA, the group consists of Danielle Wimberley on the mandolin, James Wimberley on the banjo, Mark Wimberley, his twin, on the guitar, and Michael Wimberley on the fiddle. They all sing, with Michael usually taking the lead and the others singing that tight harmony unique to family groups. They are honored to be endorsing artists with some great companies: Weber Mandolin Company, Deering Banjo Company, Black Diamond Strings, L.R. Baggs acoustic pickups, and G&H Plugs. The band has performed at many bluegrass festivals, such as the Huck Finn Jubilee, and the Big Bear Bluegrass Festival, where they were the headlining act twice. Not limited to California, they have completed several national tours throughout multiple states, including several performances in Nashville, Tennessee. Wimberley Bluegrass Band was featured at the NAMM 2018 show, the world’s biggest music trade show convention which saw an attendance of 115,000 people. They have also performed at various places in Northern and Southern California with award winning guitarist Dennis Agajanian. In February 2015, their song “Hard Working Man” was featured in an episode of ABC’s nationally broadcasted sitcom “The Middle”, and the same year, Danielle and James were featured playing mandolins in a nationally-aired commercial for KFC featuring Darrell Hammond. The siblings have been very involved at Chapman University, where they all attended with various majors; they performed in the nationally televised Christmas program, performed Carol Barnett’s The World Beloved: A Bluegrass Mass with the university choir, and shared the story of bluegrass music at TEDxChapmanU. In May 2016, the siblings gained international attention as all four of them graduated from Chapman University with bachelor’s degrees at the same time! The Wimberley siblings got started in music by listening to Vintage Country and Bluegrass and then soon developed a love for the music. They asked their parents for instruments for Christmas 2006, and taught themselves to play them. They learned many songs by going to jams and by listening to their favorite Bluegrass artists, such as Bill Monroe, Flatt & Scruggs, Doyle Lawson, and Ricky Skaggs. The Wimberleys’ first performance was in January of 2008. The Wimberley siblings did not initially plan to be a professional band, but after receiving much encouragement through many repeated requests to perform, they realized that there was a great demand for a young sibling band that played such a delightful genre of music as bluegrass. Then the siblings, with one mind, wholeheartedly agreed to pursue this as an ongoing business. They continue to delight audiences in and around Southern California on a regular basis, and released their much-anticipated fifth album, “Traveling”, in August 2016. It features six original songs written by the band members as well as some more familiar and classic songs.

Sunday, January 27, 2019 - 10:00am to 10:40am
NAMM Yamaha Grand Plaza Stage