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Katrina Pearce Katrina Nicolayeff is a 3 time National Champion. She was born in Nampa and now lives in Boise with her husband Alex and their son, Alexander James. In October 2007 she competed in Nashville and won the title of Grand Master Fiddler Champion where she got the honor of playing at the Grand Ole Opry. She has been teaching fiddle for over 10 years. She serves as the Co-director for the Idaho Junior Jammer Fiddlers. TD>

Sarah Smith Sarah is 25 years old and has been playing the fiddle for the past 16 years. She began playing fiddle with the Jr. Jammers at the age of 9 and played with them until shortly after high school graduation. She played in many competitions throughout the northwest taking top rankings in multiple contests. Throughout college Sarah taught fiddle lessons while performing in the NNU string quartet and orchestra. She has played with orchestra groups in musicals such as Annie Get Your Gun and Secret Garden. When not working as a Registered Nurse in the Emergency Department, Sarah enjoys spending time outside taking photographs and playing music with her husband and brother.

Katherine Beck Katherine Beck lives in Boise, Idaho where she teaches fiddle and singing lessons out of her North End home. Katherine is currently attending Boise State University and working on a major in music. She is 20 years old, and has been playing the fiddle since the age of two. Katherine participated with the Idaho Jr. Jammers for 16 years, and with Harmony Corral for 13 years. She won the Showcase Division in 2004, placed 2nd in the Young Adult division in 2008, and placed 2nd in the Celtic Division in both 2007 and 2008.

Malinda DeBry Malinda (Fried) DeBry has been playing the fiddle since the age of 5. She has competed in and won numerous contests throughout the Northwest including winning the Young Adult Division at Weiser in 2001 and has consistently placed in the top five there. Along with competing, Malinda teaches several students from her home and also loves performing. She is part of the group Freshly Squeezed which consists of her Mom, Tamie Fried; sister-in-law, Jeni Fried; cousin, Kali Webb. Malinda attended BYU where she played with the American Folk Ensemble group and travelled with them. Currently, Malinda stays busy with her four children and is married to Mark DeBry

Monique Ruwe Monique Ruwe is a fifth generation fiddle player from the Boise, Idaho area. She started playing fiddle as a child, traveling with her family to bluegrass festivals all over the Eastern U.S. After moving back to Idaho in the early 1980's, she learned the old time fiddling style of her grandfather (Marion Moore, oldest fiddler at Weiser in 2009). As a teenager, she began taking lessons and competing in fiddle contests. Her recent trophies include 2008 Idaho Open Adult Champion, 2010 NW Regionals Adult Champion and 2nd place in the Adult division at Weiser last year. She is a fiddle teacher and stay at home mom to three children. She and her husband Ruston enjoy performing with the band Out of Order. Monique and a team of volunteers put on the Wild West Fiddle Contest and Show every July in the Kuna, Idaho park. This year's contest will be held on July 17th.

Tammy Taneka Byrnes I am Tammy Tanaka Byrne, I started playing old-time fiddle music when I was seven, fell in love with Texas-style fiddle music and began competing in fiddling contests soon after. Currently I am the fiddler in Kornbred, a traditional bluegrass band. I also own Fiddlin Frog String Studio in Boise, Idaho where I teach fiddle and guitar. I’ve learned music from many fabulous musicians which include Norman Solomon, Orville Burns, Dale Morris Sr., Joe Sites, Amy Stukenholtz, Danita Gardner, Roberta Rast, Gayla Bollinger, Matt Hartz, Bartow Riley, Bobby Christman, Anthony Mature, Warren Lemmon and Rex Guillentine. The musical influences in my life are infinite, but my favorite fiddler is Carl Hopkins. I enjoy teaching, writing music, creating programs for my students and putting together community concerts. Mostly, I love spending time with my children Akira and Adrianna and playing music with my many talented friends!

Skeeter Meyers Skeeter Meyers has been playing the fiddle for over 30 years. Having played Old Time style for most of those years, she discovered Celtic fiddling about six years ago and found her musical calling. She has studied the Celtic genre of fiddling since then. Irish fiddling has been at the heart of her musical journey and she has studied the art of Irish fiddling including the musical differences between counties in Ireland, and enjoys playing a Scotts tune here and there. She is a three time Idaho State Champion and two time Idaho Open Celtic Champion. She enjoys music, reading, gardening, and spending time with her family.

Idaho Open Fiddle Contest • Roberta Pearce, Chairman