Bluesfest Essential Info
The Ottawa Citizen has listed essential information for Bluesfest which includes:
TWEET your thoughts about the festival using the hashtag #bluesfest (and follow @ottawabluesfest)
FIND our reviewers’ and videographers’ daily reviews, videos and profiles of Bluesfest performers at ottawacitizen.com/bluesfest
READ a blog by music fan Evelyn DuBerry at www.ottawacitizen.com/bluesfest
SUBMIT your Bluesfest photos by going to www.ottawacitizen.com/mypics for our daily Bluesfest photo gallery
Get the full list at OttawaCitizen.com: Bluesfest Essential Info
Classical Guitar sensation Daniel Bolshoy in Concert
The Ottawa Folklore Centre presents an afternoon of classical guitar by Classical Guitar sensation Daniel Bolshoy
Sunday, March 27, 3:30 pm
Mayfair Theatre 1074 Bank St.
Daniel Bolshoy, an Ottawa native, is fast becoming one of the most well respected and internationally travelled classical guitar players to ever emerge from Canada. Recently slated to be the new director of the Vancouver Symphony’s guitar program, Daniel is a graduate of Canterbury High School, attended Carleton University and the University of Toronto before taking to touring the world. Don’t miss this excellent young guitar player performing at one of Ottawa’s most unique venues, the Mayfair Theatre, performing works by Saintz De la Maza, Agustin Barrios, Sergio Assad and others.
Tickets are available at the Ottawa Folklore Centre, 1111 Bank St. 613-730-2887.
$25 or $20 for members of the OFC and the Ottawa Guitar Society. Also available at the door while seats are available.
Info: Alan Marsden (613-730-2887 ext 19) amarsden@ottawafolklore.com
Ottawa Symphony Orchestra Concert
Ottawa, March 8, 2011 – On Monday, April 4, 2011, David Currie will conduct the 100-member Ottawa Symphony Orchestra in a concert at 8:00 p.m. in Southam Hall at the National Arts Centre.
For the fourth concert of its season of 7th Symphonies, the OSO will perform Nielsen’s Masquerade Overture, Sibelius’ Symphony No. 7, and Brahms Piano Concerto No.1, featuring pianist Stéphane Lemelin.
Stéphane Lemelin performs regularly across Canada, as well as in the United States, Europe and Asia. He has appeared as soloist with many of Canada’s principal orchestras, including the Montreal Symphony under Charles Dutoit. Mr. Lemelin’s concerts are frequently heard on CBC and his recordings have been broadcast internationally. A pianist with a broad repertoire ranging from the Classical period to the twentieth century, and encompassing a wide spectrum from lieder to the Romantic concerto, his performances have garnered enthusiastic praise. He is now Professor of Music at the University of Ottawa, where he is the Director of the School of Music.
Additional day and new festival site for Ottawa Folk Festival
More music, more accessibility for Ottawa music fans
Ottawa Folk Festival organizers today announced plans to add a day to the 18th edition of the annual event. There will also be a physical move to a new festival site. This means that the 2011 Ottawa Folk Festival will become a four-day event, running from Thursday, August 25 to Sunday, August 28.
Along with an additional day of programming, the festival will be moved from its past location in Britannia Park to Hog’s Back Park. Some of the many benefits cited for the move include the central location of the site, and the fact that Hog’s Back Park offers more flexibility in terms of space, sightlines, and stage settings.
“The festival is not viable in its current location for a number of reasons, but mainly because of accessibility,” says festival supervisor Mark Monahan. “This relocation is imperative to solidify the festival’s future.”
The plan is intended to meet the needs of the festival’s existing patrons for a central location and to attract and develop new audiences by showcasing one of Ottawa’s more beautiful public parks, adjacent to the stunning Ottawa landmark known as Hog’s Back Falls.
“The additional day of programming is intended to do the same in terms of audience development through more music, more to choose from, and more inclusivity,” says Monahan, while adding that the Folk line-up will be announced on May 25, with tickets going on sale Saturday, May 28. This on-sale date for the general public will be preceded by a special pre-sale for Ottawa Folk Festival insiders. To become an ‘insider’ music fans can simply visit www.ottawafolk.com to sign up.
NAC Orchestra Week – March 7-13 – 2 Free Shows!
On Wednesday, Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson will declare March 7-13, 2011 to be NATIONAL ARTS CENTRE ORCHESTRA WEEK. This marks the fifth year in a row for this high-spirited series of events highlighting the role of the NAC Orchestra and its musicians in the local community. Throughout each year, NACO musicians participate in hundreds of educational and outreach events, inspiring and entertaining tens of thousands of students and adults.
This year, for the first time, the full National Arts Centre Orchestra will give two free lunchtime concerts in Ottawa/Gatineau. As always during NAC Orchestra Week, there will also be numerous concerts by smaller ensembles of NACO musicians.
ORCHESTRA CONCERTS – free, open to the public, no tickets required
Tuesday, March 8, noon
Food Court at Place du Centre — 200 Promenade du Portage, Gatineau
Wednesday, March 9, noon
Jean Pigott Hall at Ottawa City Hall – 111 Lisgar Street, Ottawa
*Mayor Jim Watson will be on hand to host the concert.
In both concerts, Richard Lee (Resident Conductor of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra) leads the NAC Orchestra in a 30-minute program featuring Mozart’s Overture to The Marriage of Figaro; Dvořák’s Serenade for Strings (2nd movement); Haydn’s Trumpet Concerto (3rd movement), featuring Ottawa native NACO Second Trumpet Steven van Gulik; and Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony (4th movement).
We hope to see you there!
Special thanks go to the Friends of the NAC Orchestra, without whose help and support NAC Orchestra Week would not be possible.
Prairie invasion at NAC: $2.8-million festival to present 80 events this spring, from Buffy Sainte-Marie to Royal Winnipeg Ballet
Steven Mazey, Ottawa Citizen
Photo: Mike Carroccetto, The Ottawa Citizen
Singers Buffy Sainte-Marie and Suzie Vinnick, violinist Erika Raum, productions from Saskatoon’s Persephone Theatre and Winnipeg’s Contemporary Dancers and art shows presented by the Winnipeg Art Gallery and the Saskatchewan Craft Council will be among more than 80 events the National Arts Centre will present as part of the Prairie Scene Festival April 26 to May 8.
Created to celebrate performing and visual artists as well as writers, filmmakers and chefs from Manitoba and Saskatchewan, the festival will be presented in more than 30 venues across the Ottawa area. In Regina Thursday, NAC officials announced part of the lineup and said more performances will be announced in February.
The festival has a budget of $2.8 million, with 60 per cent of that coming from private fundraising, donors and ticket sales and the rest coming from the Manitoba and Saskatchewan governments and the federal government.
Full story on the Ottawa Citizen website: Prairie invasion at NAC
Blaine knows how to play SuperEx crowd: Lots of classic-rock cover songs mixed in with his own fine material
Lynn Saxberg, The Ottawa Citizen
Pembroke native Jason Blaine returned to home turf on Friday to deliver a concert at SuperEx that included songs by John Mellencamp, Tom Petty, Trooper, Eric Clapton and Bryan Adams.
No, it wasn’t karaoke night on the outdoor stage. Blaine is one of Canada’s fastest-rising country singer-songwriters, and has three albums’ worth of his own material.
So why all the classic-rock cover tunes?
Perhaps he was trying to stretch an hour-long show into a 90-minute one without having to play a bunch of slow songs. If so, the technique worked. The familiar tunes kept the small but lively crowd of young country fans engaged, even during Blaine’s solo acoustic turn at the mike.
Full review: Blaine knows how to play SuperEx crowd
White Cloud weaves Mongolian folk with American rock
David Bohatyretz, The Epoch Times
Photo: Pam McLennan of the Epoch Times
As dusk settled on Saturday August 14, Namgar thrilled the crowd at the Ottawa Folk Festival with its amplified versions of traditional folk songs.
Namgar (“white cloud” in Tibetan) was founded in Buryatia, a republic of Russia, by Namgar Lkhasaranova, from whom the band takes its name.
Possibly among the most obscure bands to appear in festival history, Namgar was well-received in the capital city, as it was nights previous in Vancouver, where it sold the last of its CDs. For this reviewer this came as a blow, which was softened greatly however when Bulat Gafarov, the violinist, gave me his own disk, which features an intriguing blend of hand percussion, strings, and vocals.
Read the full review @ The Epoch Times online: White Cloud weaves Mongolian folk with American rock
Bluesfest set to bring out some heavy sounds
TIM WIECLAWSKI | METRO OTTAWA
When the members of The Reverb Syndicate first got together, it was just to enjoy playing a different brand of surf music.
“We thought maybe a handful of people might get it,” said Jeff Welch, of The Reverb Syndicate.
Turns out, the Ottawa-based quartet has managed to attract many fans. In their brief career, they’ve been able to play concerts in Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto, New York City and as far away as London, England.
On July 17, they’ll be making their second appearance at Bluefest after getting “nothing but love” when they played there in 2007, said Welch.
Read the full article @ Metro Ottawa online: Bluesfest set to bring out some heavy sounds
Music in the city
TIM WIECLAWSKI, METRO OTTAWA
Summer in Ottawa is festival season, which brings no shortage of outdoor concerts for every taste.
The big one, as always, is Ottawa Bluesfest, which attracts hundreds of thousands of people to LeBreton Flats Park in early July.
Jazzfest starts June 24 and ends July 4. Most of the big concerts take place in Confederation Park, but shows also take place in the National Arts Centre. The Jazzfest concerts Canada Day will be part of dozens of shows available for revellers on the nation’s birthday.
Full article on Metro Ottawa website: Music in the city
