The End of the Beannick Concert Series

Posted on 2014-04-30 by Rod Wilson

With the David Francy concert tonight (Wednesday April 30, 2014) at the Studio / Stage Door the Beannick Concert Series unfortunately, like all good things, comes to an end. The Musical Director, Gord Johnston, is moving onto other challenges thus bringing the series to a close. Over the past seven series the following performers have graced the stage at The Studio / Stage Door:

Series #1

Heather Bush and the Uppercuts
Martyn Joseph
Travelin’ Light

Series #2

Matt Anderson
Marc Atkinson
Colin Hay

Series #3

Stephen Fearing and Andy White
John Cruz
Suzie Vinnick

Series #4

Garnet Rodgers
Sue Foley and Peter Karp
Kelly Joe Phelps

Series #5

Cahalen Morrison and Eli West
Carlos del Junco (The Blues Mongrels)
Stephen Fearing

Series #6

Dave Gunning
Woody Holler and his Orchestra
Suzie Vinnick and Rick Fines

Series #7

Martyn Joseph
Michael Jerome Brown
David Francy

Gord Johnston is retiring from his career at the Boy’s and Girl’s Club and is ready to move on to new adventures. It’s been a good run and we can’t thank Gord Johnston and Terry Miller enough for enriching Cranbrook`s cultural landscape. We should also thank the audiences who`s support of the series and made it such a success. Thanks too, to Ben Blomander for keeping things sounding great, to Jean Ann and Joe Debreceni for keeping us in drinks, to Kris Aasen and Rusty Gahr and a few others for keeping the lights on and, once again, thanks to the patrons who keep on supporting live music at every opportunity.

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

Please note the following:

Lotus Books is hosting ‘in store’ concerts of very talented musicians. Erin and Ferdy are Beannick members and their guest artists consist of an eclectic and talented line up. Their next show is on Friday. That’s right, May 2 with Tom Holliston, who is known for his connection with NoMeansNo, bringing his own acoustic sensibility to the store. Lotus Books, 8pm, tickets at the door (or in advance, I’d guess)..

Mike and Corinne Robinson, also Beannick members are creating a concert series that is similar to Beannick. They have already hosted Old Man Luedecke and have Sept and Oct dates booked at the Stage Door. For more info, contact Mike at music@lotic.co

There is also a couple in Kimberley hosting house concerts. They’ve had an impressive lineup and there may be a few seats available. You can try them at driftwoodconcerts@gmail.com.

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

Symphony of the Kootenays – Celebration of Excellence

Posted on 2014-04-13 by Rod Wilson

Open Rehearsal, Saturday April 12, 2014, 12-2pm: Key City Theatre, Cranbrook. Why? It is actually a rhetorical question. With around 100 musicians and 6 orchestral configurations in the performance it was an opportunity for the orchestra and its organizers to demonstrate the complexities of putting together the evening’s concert. Apart from the music it was a case of getting the logistics smoothed out. Judging from the smooth performance later in the evening it achieved its goal while connecting with potential audiences and patrons. Here are some images from the rehearsals.

Rehearsals are over, it’s time for the boots to hit the pavement ……..

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

Last Concert of the Season, Saturday April 12, 2014, 7:30:pm: Key City Theatre, Cranbrook with guest conductor Evan Bueckert and the following program:

William Tell Overture – Gioachino Rossini
Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 – Johann Sebastian Bach
Caravan – Juan Tizol / Duke Ellington arr. Saucedo
Blue Rondo a la Turk – Dave Brubeck
Harry Potter Orchestral Suite – John Williams
Waltz #2 – Dimitri Shostakovich
Concerto for Cello in E minor – Edward Elgar : featuring Jeff Faragher

The common wisdom is to start a program with something strong and familiar and Rossini’s William Tell Overture certainly filled that bill. Every person who grew up in front of the Saturday morning TV cartoons would be familiar with the thunderous brass and percussion fanfare that is the signature of that piece. After the fanfare of the overture died away the logistics crew swung into action and reconfigured the orchestra for the string ensemble of Martine denBok, Sanja Suplevska, Robin Grewcock (violins); Graham Tagg, Alexis Moore, Duarte Silva (violas); Jeff Faragher, Anne Scott, Liz Trembley (Cellos) and Alex Nichol (bass). The string ensemble, without the usual harpsichord continuo, was grouped on stage in a small semi-circle. It achieved the ambience of a private performance in a some old country estate and was perfect for the Brandenburg Concerto. Earlier in the afternoon, during the rehearsals, Barry Coulter (editor of the Townsman) had entered the theater just as the concerto rehearsal started and he could barely contain his excitement. His response was justified; the performance literally bounced and sang with a vibrancy that is such a characteristic of the music of Bach. This Brandenburg concerto was written in 1721 and, here we are nearly 300 years later, and the music is still exciting to hear. Students from the MBSS music program kicked off the jazz and concert band portion of the program with Juan Tizol’s Jazz classic Caravan. Although often attributed to Duke Ellington the Puerto Rican valve trombonist Juan Tizol, a member of Duke’s orchestra for many years, wrote the piece in 1936. Not quite as long ago as the Brandenberg Concerto but still going strong after 78 years in the standard jazz repertoire (click on the link for a taste of the original Juan Tizol’s Caravan). A more recent composition is the 1959 Blue Rondo a la Turk by Dave Brubeck that is in 9/8 with a swing 4/4 feel. The piece was incorrectly thought to be based on Mozart’s Rondo alla Turca The piece was actually inspired by a street performance by a Turkish musician. Turkish music is very big on “eighth” rhythms such as 7/8, 9/8, 11/8. etc. The MBSS musicians finished off their selection with the film music from the Harry Potter series – Harry Potter Orchestral Suite. Once again the musicians of the MBSS music program, under the direction of Evan Bueckert, continued to amaze audiences with their level of musicianship and their ability to integrate into the symphony orchestra. Dimitri Shostakovich is a Russian composer of the Stalinist era so it was surprise (to me) to hear such a Germanic composition as Waltz#2 coming from such an unlikely source. With the tubas, bass drum and percussion it was Oomph-pa music of a superior quality. When I heard that Jeff Faragher was going to perform Edward Elgar”s Concerto in E Minor I deliberately refrained from revisiting the definitive recording by the late great Jacqueline du Pre. I wanted to approach the evening’s performance with a clear mind unclouded by any vivid memories of that recording. I was amply rewarded by the live freshness of Mr. Faragher’s performance. For the encore percussionist Robin Clegg reworked some Bach melodic motifs into an impromptu Celtic inspired romp for cello and orchestra. It was a fitting end of an evening’s “Celebration of Excellence”. Here are some more images of the evening’s performances.

So ends a Season of Excellence. The Symphony of the Kootenays is once again back on a solid musical and financial footing and the following program for the coming 2014-2015 season promises more of the same.

Concert #1 – From Old Worlds to New : Finlandia (Jean Sibelius); Holberg Suite (Edvard Grieg); Symphony No. 9 “From the New World” (Antonin Dvorak).
Concert #2 – A Celtic Christmas featuring Harpist Keri Lynn Zwicker.
Concert #3 – A Night at the Movies
Concert #4 – Classical Greatness featuring pianist Susan Gould playing Robert Schumann’s Piano Concerto in A minor (it is a pity we have to wait a whole year for this). Also on the program Rossini’s Barber of Seville and Beethoven’s Symphony No.7

So sign up and gear up for another exciting season.

@@@@@@@@@@@@@

The “Reel” Deal – Caladh Nua

Posted on 2014-03-26 by Rod Wilson

This is the real deal – check the Caladh Nua Documentary

and the YOUTUBE clips The Cruel Lowland Maid, The Templehouse Reels, The Banks of the Lee, and Richard Thompson’s Beeswing

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

The East Kootenays are not exactly the center of the Celtic universe, and yet, over the years we have been treated to some of the finest Celtic musicians that the planet has to

offer. We have seen the likes of Andy Irvine (a legend in Irish music), Ron Kavana, the Irish bands Dervish, Four Men and a Dog, and Danu ; the Alberta band Celtara; The Harbour Trio (with Don Ross) from down east; Cape Breton fiddlers Natalie McMasters, and in a week or so, Ashley MacIsaac. This list does not include those musicians that have a little bit of green in their repertoires and performance styles. The ones who immediately come to mind are Dehli to Dublin (D2D) and that incredible acoustic guitarist Martin Simpson. Now we can add to the list the band that has just performed at Centre 64 – Caladh Nua (“new harbour” or “new sheltered place”). This quintet of musicians include Lisa Butler (vocals and fiddle), Paddy Tutty (fiddle, viola and bodhran), Derek Morrissey (button accordion), Colm O’Caoimh (playing a beautiful cedar top Lowden guitar) and on Irish tenor banjo and Irish whistle, probably one of the tallest Irish speaking men on the planet, Eoin O’Meachair. Just to set the mood and get the feet tapping the band kicked off a night of brilliant music with a set of reels followed by a set of jigs. For the first traditional song of the evening Colm provided some light opening guitar textures for The Cruel Lowland Maid followed by Eoin joining in with some nice chugging banjo rhythm behind Lisa Butler’s vocal. Colm’s guitar playing threw me for a bit. At the beginning I thought he may have been using an open tuning. As it turns out he plays in standard tuning and uses an unorthodox “baseball bat grip” technique that guitar teachers warn you against. They claim it is awkward and inefficient. Yet it works well for Colm and his playing is a study in how to add magnificent bass lines to highly rhythmic accompaniments. By the way, Lisa’s voice is very reminiscent of Dervish’s Cathy Jordan and Eoin’s banjo playing brings back echoes of the legendary Dubliners. That pretty well set the pattern for the evening. Lots of dance sets, solo pieces and great songs scattered in between. For me the standout performances of the evening were the reworking of Bill Monroe’s The Goldrush coupled with the tune Terry Teagan; My choice of the vocals was Lisa’s The Banks of the Lee and Colm O’Caoimh’s outstanding outstanding interpretation of Richard Thompson great narrative song Beeswing.

For the last set of dance tunes the band offered a free CD for the best dance performance in front of the band area. A young dancer responded with a spontaneous performance that was out standing. I only know her as “Joe the Plumber’s Daughter”. I always hope for at least one “Money Shot” from each performance I cover. Here it is for the Caladh Nua concert and an outstanding shot it is, if I do say so myself.

Here are some more images from the evening.

Thanks should go, first of all to the musicians, then the volunteers and staff of Centre 64 and the Kimberly Arts Council. Thanks to the sponsors Pedal and Tap for feeding the musicians and Mountain Spirit for the accommodations. Thanks to Terry for the lights and thanks to Ray and Marty for the sound and also to Keith Nicolas for the being the MC and chief organizer.

After Thoughts: Have you ever wondered why Bluegrass, Old-Timey and Celtic musicians, while reworking essentially the same common ore body of traditional material, come up with such distinctly different outcomes? Some of it has to do with the instrumental configurations employed. Bluegrass with its standard instrumentation of guitar / banjo / dobro / standup bass/ mandolin and fiddle approach the music in a different way to the Celtic reliance on fiddle / accordion / flute / Irish Bouzouki / bodhran combinations. In fact there is no standard Celtic configuration. Often musicians just take what is available and blend or bend it into the notion at hand. Even the guitar (not a traditional Celtic instrument) is approached in a different way with the use of odd open tunings ( DADGAD, Dropped D or open G) that enable accompaniments that would not work in a Bluegrass setting. The banjo in Celtic music is an entirely a different beast to its American cousins. It’s a four string instrument tuned like a mandolin (GDAE) and played with a plectrum to duplicate or enhance the melody line of the tune. Old-timey music is closer to the Bluegrass tradition in material and temperament than to its Celtic roots. The vocal traditions are similar but, of course, reflect their own specific cultural and geographical conditions. I think the big difference is how each tradition handles the instrumental music. Celtic music is more emphatically dance music so therefore there is a tendency to string together a whole “swack” of tunes to keep the dance momentum going and that imposes a different set of conditions. Bluegrass and Old-timey music tends to stay with a single tune that allows for the performers to indulge in more significant variations and solo opportunities. The end result is that the these traditions favor more “open” tunes with lots of space in the melodies for altering the melodic line and a reliance on standard chordal cadences (IV-V7-I) to keep everybody on track. In Celtic music the melody is king and very few Celtic musicians will tamper with the melody on the fly. The only musicians who immediately comes to mind who willing favor melodic variations are the American fiddler Liz Carroll and Cape Breton’s Ashley MacIssac. Because of the harmonic modal nature of Celtic music the standard IV-V7-I cadences may not work (a dominant 7th chord may lead you in the wrong direction). As I said melody is king in Celtic music so that it is imperative that the performers know the tunes inside out so that when one melody ends the new melody is picked up immediately. There is no reliance on the chordal cadence to keep you on track. The secret of a good performance lies in how smooth the transitions from one tune to the next is a accomplished. It can be so smooth that the audience may not be aware or it can be like a racing car shifting gears. Maybe that’s what drives the dancers.

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

Music, Music, Music

Posted on 2014-03-26 by Rod Wilson

Maybe it is the first real sign of spring. Who needs a ground hog looking for his shadow? A jam packed weekend of live music may just be a better indicator. I attended three venues of live music over the weekend and who knows there may have been more spread around town. The Heid Out in Cranbrook (Friday), The Creekside Pub (Saturday) in Kimberley, and The Stemwinder Bar and Grill at the Kimberley Ski Hill (Sunday) were all alive with “live” music.

@@@@@@@@@@@@@

Dave Prinn, at the Heid Out in Cranbrook, Friday March 21, 2014, 7-10pm

The Heidout is a noisy room but one with great ambience, great food, superbly crafted beers and, on this particular night, graced by one of Cranbrook’s finest interpreter of classic rock and folk/rock. Dave ripped through two sets for a very responsive audience before inviting his partner in crime from the duo Vested Interests, Bill Renwick, to join him for some bluesy classic tunes and originals. Bill has one of those voices reminiscent of Neil Young but much better. If Neil Young had a good voice he would sound like Bill Renwick. It seems that Heidi’s intends to make live music a staple on the Cranbrook scene and it it most welcome. Let live music rule!!

@@@@@@@@@@@@@

TUCKERS TROUBADOURS, at BJ’s Creekside Pub in Kimberley, March 22, 2014 7-11pm

I’m not a big fan of “star-spangled Nashville” country music but I do like the rolled up sleeves down to earth country music that favor great songs and great tunes delivered with impeccable musicianship and style. Tuckers Troubadours fills that criteria to the nth degree. The usual line up (Larry Tuck- bass ukelele, Doug Simpson – rhythm guitar, Dave Carlson – mandolin, and Bud Decosse – lead guitar) was on stage at BJs, and a fine group of individuals they are, but for this evening they were outshone by the guest appearance of Bud’s daughter Stacey. She has been kicking around the local music scene for many years, in fact ever since she was a teenager, and it was good to see and hear her in such a pleasant setting. Let’s hope we see and hear more of her at BJ’s Creekside Pub in the future

@@@@@@@@@@@@@

APRE SKI JAM SESSION, at the Stemwinder Bar and Grill (Kimberley Ski Hill), Sunday,March 23, 2014, 3-8pm. This was part of the ski resort’s regular apre live music session. There was a great turn out of local musicians in age groups that spanned the spectrum from teenagers to the geriatric. The music was mostly classic rock with some folky stuff and a few Irish tunes on Cittern thrown in for good measure.

@@@@@@@@@@@@@

Social Cement

Posted on 2014-03-14 by Rod Wilson

“T’was a dark and stormy night”, and then some. The drive out to the metropolis of Wardner was like driving on the inside of a black hole. Every glimmer, every reflection, every photon of light seemed to be literally sucked up in the black void of night. Staying on the road was a matter of keeping one’s eyes glued to the white line on the edge of the highway and adjusting one’s navigational skills accordingly. Strangely enough this was my first visit to Wardner and I didn’t know what to expect. Although I have only had a passing acquaintance with the notion of traditional dancing this trip to Wardner was a chance to enlarge my experience. The town was so small that I was through it and out the other side of the “city limits” before I even ventured to look around to see if I could find the Community Hall. As it turned out it was on a side street, there is only one, and once on it there was no mistaking the Community Hall. The street was jammed packed with vehicles and finding a spot to park was a challenge (parking difficulties in Wardner on a Saturday night who would have thought it was possible). In this black void of night the hall was a blaze of light, with the walls pulsating to sound of stamping feet, laughter and the wail and screech of fiddles, mandolins, guitars and banjos. To use an old jazz expression – the joint was jumpin’. And, as such, for most of us, it was not a normal situation. It was a reflection of circumstances and situations of a time long gone. By that I mean there was a time when music had a social context and a lively night of live music was a more normal thing. It was a time when music was a social cement that bound together families and communities. It was different to our modern concept of music in clubs, discos and pubs. Although even those situations, for most of us, also seem to be fading into the past. There was a time when music was more entwined with our daily lives. A time for friends, family and straight forward socializing. A time when a night out at a dance or picnic meant a trip to the local school house or community Centre and, heaven forbid, LIVE MUSIC. It was a time for friends, family and heaven forbid (again) a night of fun unadulterated by the commercial motives of image and spectacle. The Square Dance at Wardner Community Hall was a throwback to those simpler times of music, dancing and socializing. The actors in this grand mish/mash of fun were the dance caller Leslie Gotfrit from Calgary, the dancers (of course) and a collection of local musicians collectively known as The Kootenay String Benders that appeared to be led by Mike and Anie Hepher. The band also included Van and Shelagh Redecopp, `Gus` MacDonald`, Shauna Plant, Drew, `PotLuck Steve`, Steve Jones, Rod Wilson, Reg Parsons, Heather Gemmell (trying her hand on fiddle) and many, many more. The large number of young musicians in the ensemble proved that the fate of acoustic music, particularly mandolin players, in this area is in good hands. The musicians kept dancers on their toes with lots of those familiar melodies that must be encoded in our DNA. Such tunes as The Soldiers Joy, Blackberry Blossom, Swannoa Waltz, Big Sciota, Whiskey Before Breakfast, Old Joe Clark, Squirrell Hunters, Nail the Catfish to the Tree, Liberty, etc. The steady pulse of familiar melodies and rhythm kept the feet moving. The flow of bodies was controlled by the deft instructions of caller Leslie Gotfrit. The dances may not have been familiar but that didn`t matter. Just follow the shouted instructions to avoid the traffic hazards of dances such as The Torpedo and after that just have fun.

Apart from the fun objective the dance was a benefit to raise money to support 14 year old Jenna Homeniuk in Calgary’s Childrens Hospital. Jenna is receiving treatment for Leukemia. So apart from the good cause it was a chance to re-establish something that has been long lost. The chance to give music it’s true value as a social cement in our daily life. And, you never know, it was just so much fun that we will want to do it again.

@@@@@@@@@@@@

ps. Need a dance caller contact Leslie Gotfrit at 403-200-3300 or Lgotfrit@me.com

@@@@@@@@@@@@

Be There and Be Square

Posted on 2014-03-03 by Rod Wilson

SPECIAL EVENT

For most of us it would be before our time. By that I mean a time when music had a social context. And I don’t mean a time at the local disco, club or pub. Although those situations, for most of us, also seem to be fading into the past. There was a time when music was more entwined with our daily lives. A time for friends, family and straight forward socializing. A time when a night out at a dance or picnic meant a trip to the local school house or community centre and, heaven forbid, LIVE MUSIC. It was a time for friends, family and heaven forbid (again) a night of fun unadulterated by the commercial motives of image and spectacle. Although I have only had a passing acquaintance with the notion of traditional dancing I do have a hankering for the experience. Well, this coming Saturday evening that hankering is about to become reality. A group of well known local acoustic musicians and friends have organized a Square Dance. The event is a benefit to help raise money to support 14 year old Jenna Homeniuk in Calgary’s Childrens Hospital. Jenna is receiving treatment for Leukemia. So there’s the motivation of a good cause but more than that there is the chance to re-establish something that has been long lost. The chance to give music it’s true value as a social cement in our daily life. And, you never know, it maybe just so much fun that we will want to do it again.

So, DARE TO BE SQUARE and come out to the Square Dance at Wardner Hall on Saturday March 8, 2014. There will be fiddlers, mandolins, banjos, guitars, dancers, callers, kids, families and fun. And, to paraphrase and old saying, BE THERE AND BE SQUARE.

@@@@@@@@@@@@

Beannick Subscription Series #7 – The Last One

Posted on 2014-02-22 by Rod Wilson

Terry Miller and Gord Johnston have just released the line up for the Beannick Subscription Series #7.

Monday March 24, 2014: MARTYN JOSEPH, Marty returns – he performed in the second concert and left a huge impression and it will be good to have him back. Click on Review of Martyn Joseph Concert

Monday April 7, 2014: MICHAEL JEROME BROWNE is a highly acclaimed and recognized roots musician. Check his website by clicking on Michael Jerome Browne

Wednesday April 30, 2014: DAVID FRANCEY. “One of Canada’s most revered folk poets and singers”, David is a multiple Juno winner who performed in Cranbrook some years back. This is a fitting finale for the series.

All shows are at 8:00pm at the Stage Door.

Note that this is a fully subscribed series but occasionally a few tickets may be available at the door.

Series 7 of the Beannick Concert Series will be the final series.

Gord Johnston is retiring from his career at the Boy’s and Girl’s Club and is ready to move on to new adventures. It’s been a good run we can’t thank Gord and Terry enough for enriching Cranbrook`s cultural landscape. We should also thank the audiences who`s support of the series and made it such a success. Thanks too, to Ben Blomander for keeping things sounding great, to Jean Ann and Joe Debreceni for keeping us in drinks, to Kris Aasen and Rusty Gahr and a few others for keeping the lights on.

Thanks again and keep on supporting live music at every opportunity.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Geoff Berner at Lotus Books

Posted on 2014-02-09 by Rod Wilson

Geoff Berner at Lotus Books, February 8, 2014, 8pm. Check Geoff’s website at Geoff Berner and also Youtube video Play, Gypsy, Play. Also his wikipedia entry Geoff Berner wikipedia“Geoff Berner (born in Vancouver 197) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and accordion player from Vancouver, British Columbia. Due to his insightful humour, politically inflammatory compositions and showmanship, Berner has gained a cult following over the years, especially in Canada and Norway, where he recorded his first live album, Live in Oslo (2004)………” – Wikipedia entry.

The “show” at Lotus Books was as much a literary event as a musical performance. Although he is labelled as a singer / songwriter, with the publication of his novel Festival Man last October, he has also established his literary credentials. He is a more than a step away from the run-of-the-mill guitar totting songster. His performance, although in no way manic, lives up to “a wild combination of menace, madness, and genius… .” – Vue Weekly, Edmonton. His music has been described as “new Jewish drinking songs” or “Klezmer Punk” but despite some Jewish elements in the music I don’t think Klezmer is a good descriptor. Maybe, when people see the accordion they feel the need to apply some sort of ethnic label to give the music a specific dimension. Rather, I think his music is more geocentric than ethnocentric. By that I mean his music comes specifically out of the politics and geography of his home base, Vancouver. His interpretations of that milieu , while personal, definitely have universal applications. His The Official Theme Song of the 2010 Winter Olympics with its somewhat chilling chorus “the dead children were worth it” expresses a sick notion that continues to be played out when ever big sport events displace priorities (and money) away from the public good. The song That’s What Keeps the Rent Down Baby is another edgy piece that could easily be associated with the East Hasting Street area of Vancouver Youtube version. Something with more of a Jewish overtone would be the Russian song Dalloy Polizei (literal translation “Fuck the Police”) Youtube Version of Dalloy Polizei . Interspersed though out the evening were several readings by Geoff and Ferdy Belland from Geoff’s novel Festival Man. Ferdy was in his best “Papa” Hemingway mode. Here are some images from the evening.

This was a more than pleasant evening spent in the intimate confines of The Lotus Book Store listening to a unique performance . Thanks should got to Geoff Berner for his unique brand of music and satire and his low keyed accordion playing. Also, of course, thanks to Ferdy and Erin for bringing Geoff to the bookshop. Please also note that the novel Festival Man is available from the Lotus Bookshop.

@@@@@@@@@@

Symphony of the Kootenays: Sultans of String

Posted on 2014-02-07 by Rod Wilson

Symphony of the Kootenays and the Sultans of String rehearsals, Key City Theatre, February 1, 12 noon, February 1, 2014.

” And then the man, he steps right up to the microphone.
And says at last, just as the time bell rings,
“Goodnight, now it’s time to go home.”
And he makes it fast, with one more thing:
“We’re the Sultans,
“We are the Sultans of Swing.” Songwriter: KNOPFLER, MARK

Mind you there is no connection between the Dire Straight album and the Symphony of the Kootenays concert. There is just the resonance of the song title and the name of the symphony orchestra guests – THE SULTANS OF STRING – that has so much appeal. Dire Straights was a rock band singing about musicians from another era. The Sultans are not about rock music. Their musical arena is more about a whole mixed bag of World music, Latin, Gypsy, Swing etc. The Sultans of String are Chris McKhool (6 string violin, mandolin), Drew Birston (electric bass), Kevin Laliberte (carbon-fibre guitar) and Alberto Suarez (percussion). This rehearsal was the fore runner of what promised to be a very unique night of music. Unfortunately I was double booked (again) and not able to make the Saturday night concert. However, I did make the afternoon rehearsals and the Sunday Fiddle Fire (concert for kids). It was pretty exciting and entertaining stuff to hear the Symphony exploring a whole new approach to making music. The music is the brain child of Chris McKhool and Kevin Laliberte with orchestrations by Rebecca Pellett. Although the rehearsal didn’t present the music in a program coherent form there were enough snippets to entice the visiting rehearsal audience to maybe come back later that evening for the full concert. For me there were a number of outstanding moments. In the exploration of the mandolin the unexpected and joyous snippet from a Vivaldi mandolin concerto was so amazingly fresh and startling that it certainly made me sit up. Kevin Laliberte’s guitar solos were some other high points. His Carbon-Fibre guitar, with it’s odd shape, looked way different from a conventional classical guitar yet, despite the on-board amplification, produced, when required, a pure classical sound. It also appeared to be amendable to the sound manipulation that we associate with most electric guitars. His technique ran though the whole spectrum of guitar music – flat pick, finger picking, classical, jazz, flamenco etc. Drew Birston’s electric bass is, obviously, a central part of the Sultan’s Sound and added a different bass dimension (pizzicato bass melody) to the orchestrations. Being an amateur musician who tinkers with percussion I was completely captivated by the Cuban musician Alberto Suarez’s rhythmic excursions on the Peruvian Cojon (basically a wooden box), snare drum, brushes, cymbals, rattles and the middle eastern Darbuka (Turkish Goblet drum). His role in the music was re-enforced by the symphony percussionists Robin Clegg, Sven Heyde and Bruce Hunter. Their arsenal of drums and percussion would be enough to fill your average basement. The Sultans of String were obviously having fun playing with a symphony and the orchestra pit was just a sea of smiling faces. I am sure the evening concert lived up to the promise of the rehearsals. Here are some more images from the rehearsal – enjoy:

Chris McKhool’s Fiddle Fire, Key City Theatre Sunday February 2, 2014, 2pm.

@@@@@@@@@@

Anja / Dan / Hannah at Centre 64

Posted on 2014-02-03 by Rod Wilson

These three musicians are definitely CFAs (“Come from Away”). The fact they kept their outside jackets on for the sound check should have been the first clue. Anja McCloskey (vocals, pianio and accordion) is a German American girl originally from Des Moines, Iowa, now resident in Hamburg Germany; Dan Whitehouse (vocals and guitar) is a singer song writer from Birmingham; Hannah Moulette (cello, vocals and guitar) is from Sommerset, England. How these three CFAs originally got together is probably a story worth telling but it suffices to say that this tour was probably thrown together on a whim. Anja has a brother in Vancouver and the only way she could make the trip was to tie it in with a concert tour. So she trolled through her musical friends and managed to line up Dan and, at the last minute, Hannah to commit to an off the cuff tour of Canada in ……. January!! What were they thinking? They say ignorance is bliss and it could not be more true than in this case. They landed in Canada, rented a cello and guitar for fifty bucks, borrowed an accordion, rented a vehicle with all- season radials and hit the road. On mentioning the all-season radials you could hear an almost inaudible gasp from the audience. So far they have been to Banff, Calgary, Pincher Creek, Kimberley and are heading further west for the rest of the tour – snow, ice and avalanches be dammed. So far no problems. As I said “ignorance is bliss”. Appropriately, Hannah and Anja kicked off their portion of the evening with Songbird, a charming vocal duet about traveling. Hannah, with her impish looks and demeanor could have stepped out of a J.R.R.Tolkein novel. The red cape picked up at thrift store en route was an inspired touch. The on stage persona she projected well suited her musical style. Hannah continued the show with a number of solo pieces that included The Night is Young (“and there is plenty of rum”), Devil of Mine, Circle Song, and Blood and Thunder. Anja returned to the stage for an accordion/cello instrumental entitled Seven and continued with Too Many Words, Italian Song, and, with piano accompaniment, Cross the Seas. The trio, Dan, Hannah and Anja, came together for The Calm and Instigated. The final selections of the evening featured Dan’s songs including A Light, The Fire of Lust (“an Ode to Testosterone”), Three Bodies (about tourist photographs), Born to Run, Somebody Loves You, Sleeping and probably the strongest song of the evening Why Don’t We Dance. That last mentioned song deserves a view of the YouTube version. Here are some images from an evening of music that was definitely “outside the box”.

Special thanks should go to the opening act Daze of Grace (Sharon Routley, Jubal Routley and guest percussionist, yours truly, Rod Wilson); sound techs Ray and Marty; Terry on lights; the MC Keith Nicholas, and all the staff and volunteers of the Kimberley Arts Council. Also extra special thanks should go to the corporate sponsors The Burrito Grill for feeding the musicians and Mountain Spirits for provide accommodation for the CFA musicians.

@@@@@@@@@@@@@

Rod Wilson's Blog

Tag Archives: live music

The End of the Beannick Concert Series

Symphony of the Kootenays – Celebration of Excellence

The “Reel” Deal – Caladh Nua

Music, Music, Music

Social Cement

Be There and Be Square

Beannick Subscription Series #7 – The Last One

Geoff Berner at Lotus Books

Symphony of the Kootenays: Sultans of String

Anja / Dan / Hannah at Centre 64