I'm very grateful to Terry Holland, he changed the whole direction of my life, and I will very much miss him at the Bluegrass festivals I tend to habituate.
After a serious injury in the mountains I was relaxing with my wife in a Lake District campsite in the mid 90s when I heard the sound of a banjo. I'd played one sporadically for many years and this guy sounded like Earl Scruggs so I wandered over. He had a spare banjo, and his wife Janet had a guitar so we played a few tunes and he filled me in on the British Old Time and Bluegrass scene which I didn't even suspect existed. He lit a fuse in my brain and since then I've made many friends in Old Time and Bluegrass music and played with many good people.
He and Janet brought up their twin daughters Beth and Lucy to be superb musicians on bass and mandolin respectively, and had a family Bluegrass band called Missing Strings.
His annual Telfest festival in May was a "must do" for me. It was in a beautiful campsite with a pub at Holt Fleet, on the banks of the Severn. The atmosphere, sessions, workshops, concerts, real ale and food were first class.
So long Terry - it was great to know you.
Ray