Several Vermonters had a chance to take home the top prize in music at the 68th annual Grammy Awards on Sunday.
Barre native Adam Tendler’s album Inheritances was nominated for Best Classical Instrumental Solo, marking the composer and pianist’s first solo Grammy nod. Waitsfield’s Grace Potter also snagged a nomination, her fourth, for her duet with Maggie Rose, “Poison in My Well,” which was up for Best Americana Performance. And Jericho native Erin Bentlage was hoping for a remarkable third Grammy win in three years with her Los Angeles-based group säje for Best Arrangement, Instrumentals and Vocals.
In the end, only Bentlage was able to go home with the glory, as säje did indeed make it three for three. The a cappella group, formed by Bentlage, Sara Gazarek, Amanda Taylor, and Johnaye Kendrick in 2019, won for “Big Fish,” a collaboration with composer, producer and drummer Nate Smith. (Smith is set to play the Vermont Jazz Center in Brattleboro on Saturday, February 21.)
While Tendler and Potter didn’t come away with trophies — losing to Yo Yo Ma and Mavis Staples, respectively — their nominations continue a strong run for Vermont artists, as the likes of Noah Kahan, Caroline Rose, Anaïs Mitchell and even U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) have been up for Grammys in recent years.
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