New Artists Added to the Vancouver Folk Music Festival Lineup

06/15/2005 08:42AM

Vancouver (British Columbia), Canada - Genre-defying artists Feist, Sarah Harmer, Buck 65, and Kris Demeanor will be among the musicians, singers and songwriters from around the world and across the street who gather at Jericho Beach Park July 15 - 17, 2005 for Vancouver's 28th annual celebration of traditional and contemporary folk and roots music. Hip-hop receives its due from Daara J, with griot roots in Senegal, Xavier Rudd brings his solar-powered soul music and Tons of Fun University (TOFU) will once again bring static to the masses.

The roots of the world's folk traditions will be well represented by the Festival's 'godfather' Utah Phillips, Sidi Goma bringing an African Sufi tradition of drum and dance that emerges 800 years later in India, Aditya Verma's sarode music drawing on centuries of improvisation and Dona Rosa delivering the deep blues of fado, the way it's sung in the streets.

The return of that one-woman festival Ruthie Foster and other favorites like David Francey, Geoff Berner, Le Vent du Nord and Oliver Schroer will be complemented by exciting Festival first-timers such as the Jaipur Kawa Brass Band with their Roma-from-Rajasthan style horns, drums and dance, The Grande Mothers, featuring original members of The Mothers of Invention, and The Dhol Foundation, whose raving Brit-bhangra is certain to shake up the beach.

The full lineup can now be seen online at http://www.thefestival.bc.ca.

The Vancouver Folk Music Festival has established itself as a major event on the world folk and roots music circuit. This summer celebration challenges audiences to expand their understanding and appreciation of what 'folk' can mean in a global context, brings attention to exciting young artists who are pushing the boundaries, honors the elders of the tradition, and creates new forums for experimentation, improvisation and education.

The Vancouver Folk Music Festival features more than 70 hours of non-stop music on eight outdoor stages -- three evenings of mainstage concerts and two full days of performances and workshops throughout the park.

Other Festival attractions include a Food Area with vendors serving up foods from around the world, an Artists' Marketplace featuring the unique works of local artisans and craftspeople, and a Little Folks area with special entertainment for the youngsters.

All of this takes place in one of the most spectacular outdoor settings imaginable, Jericho Beach Park, amidst groves of pine and cedar trees and against a backdrop of the beautiful coast mountains rising above a modern city skyline.

Special programming features and events during the Festival Week bring the Festival and its guest artists out into the community. The Collaboratory brings artists together from different traditions for several days prior to the Festival Weekend to enable them to spark one another's creativity and imagine the unimaginable. Lively Up Yourself, a series of workshops at The Roundhouse Community Centre gives young local aspiring musicians an opportunity to learn from the best.

The appearance of many Festival guest artists at other venues around town in the days before and after the Festival Weekend create a unique city-wide folk and roots celebration.

Early Bird Weekend Tickets are $100 from April 1 to June 18 and are available through the Festival office at 604.602.9798 or 800.883.3655 and online at http://www.thefestival.bc.ca.

[Photo: Jaipur Kaiwa Brass Band, courtesy of Vancouver Folk Festival].

World Music Central
http://www.worldmusiccentral.org/article.php/20050607191207752