Cris Derksen Trio. Image provided by Ottawa CHAMBERFEST.
#ChamberFringe promotes performances that reach new audiences for Classical music.
Ottawa’s CHAMBERFEST has begun and as part of the #ChamberFringe programming Chamberfest is bringing Cree / Mennonite cellist Cris Derksen to the stage. The mandate of the The Ottawa Chamber Music Society (OCMS) is to “make classical music accessible to everyone.” Acts like the Cris Derksen Trio fit the bill perfectly with Cris “weaving her classical training together with electronics and her Aboriginal ancestry” and then combining the performance with “master hoop dancer Nimkii Osawamick and percussionist Jesse Baird.” (read more…)
Cris is also known for her collaborative work with other Indigenous artists like Buffy Sainte-Marie, Leanne Betasamosake Simpson, Tanya Tagaq and A Tribe Called Red. I have seen Cris perform on numerous occasions, most recently with Cree / Dene / Irish performer Iskwé. As a cellist, Cris’ compositions add rich depth and resonance to the music of all of the artists she works with. With the addition of Indigenous hoop dancer Nimkii Osawamick Tuesday’s performance promises to be a special night for CHAMBERFEST.
“Electrified and covered in flecks of gold, you exit gasping for air.”– Weird Canada
IMPORTANT NOTE: The ticket price for this show is $30 for a single ticket. For those under 35, there are $16 #TheBuzz tickets available, and a pass for any 3 days of Chamberfest starts at $59.
Ottawa Jazz Festival opens this weekend with The Jerry Cans.
The Ottawa Jazz Festival kicked off last night in Confederation Park and continues through until Sunday, July 2. Tonight the evening starts off with The Jerry Cans, a band from Iqaluit, Nunavut.
WHEN: Friday, June 23 at 7:30 pm WHERE: Confederation Park, Ottawa
Credit Tanya Tagaq for helping to bring Inuit throat singing into the mainstream, paving the way for bands like Iqaluit’s Jerry Cans to get noticed beyond their remote Northern community. The band—Andrew Morrison, Nancy Mike, Gina Burgess, Brendan Doherty and Steve Rigby—represents the kind of musical cross-pollination that occurs around the world. In addition to using tradition Inuit materials, the Jerry Cans pull from country music, folk and reggae to create a highly distinctive sound. With songs that are primarily written in Inuktitut, the band sings about Northern pride, challenging the perceptions about life there and carrying a powerful political message. The quintet’s debut album, Nunavuttitut, was released in 2012. Two other recordings followed in 2014 and 2016, and the band has toured extensively across Canada and as far afield as Australia. (read more…)
Leanne Betasamosake Simpson will perform songs from her new album “f(l)ight: Songs & Stories for a Radical Indigenous Present.”
Tomorrow evening CIRCLE (Centre for Indigenous Research, Culture, Language and Education at Carleton University) will be hosting Leanne as part of their series of events bringing Indigenous culture provocateurs to the Carleton campus. f(l)ight: Songs & Stories for a Radical IndigenousPresent is Leanne’s newest album.
MORE ABOUT f(l)ight:
“f(l)ight is a new album of story-songs from acclaimed Michi Saagiig Nishnaabeg artist Leanne Betasamosake Simpson. Effortlessly interweaving Simpson’s complex poetics and multi-layered stories of the land, spirit, and body with lush acoustic and electronic arrangements, f(l)ight claims a unique space in contemporary Indigenous music and performance.
The album is a haunting, powerful hybrid of words, songs, and perspectives. From the gentle invocation of other forms of life offered in songs like “Road Salt” and “The Oldest Tree in the World”, to the dissonant sonics of “Caribou Ghosts and Untold Stories” and the pulsing, hypnotic rhythms of “Under Your Always Light”, Simpson’s words reverberate within and between the sounds that surround them.” Read more…
WHEN: Thursday, November 24 @ 7 – 8:30 pm WHERE: Azrieli Theatre Rm 302, Azrieli Building, Carleton University, 1125 Colonel By Dr., Ottawa (Paid Parking at Library Parking Lot)
This weekend the city of Ottawa hosts two talented women. Filmmaker Alethea Arnaquq-Baril will be screening her doc “TUNNIIT: Retracing the Lines of Inuit Tattoos” at Carleton University, a CIRCLE(Centre for Indigenous Research, Culture, Language & Education) event.
WHEN: Friday, October 7 @ 6-8:30 pm WHERE: St. Patrick’s Building (Behind the Residence Commons) Rm 100 at Carleton University, 1125 Colonel By Drive, Ottawa, ON K1S 5B6, Paid Parking Lot P6
*FREE ADMISSION**
On Saturday night singer / songwriter Iskwéwill be performing at the Mercury Lounge along with cellist Cris Derksen.
WHEN: Saturday, October 8 Doors Open @ 8pm Show starts @ 9pm WHERE: Mercury Lounge
$12 Advance Tickets. More at the Door.
We can feel the seasons changing! We welcome the spring and the Omushkegowuk Walkers from Attawapiskat First Nation to Parliament Hill today. If you missed being part of the welcoming party you can support them by attending the Potluck Farewell Feast at St. Andrew Presbyterian Church (across from the Supreme Court) at 5 pm on Wednesday evening. If you can provide food for this event please visit the Reclaiming our steps, past, present and future – Ottawa Facebook Event Page for contact details.
Soup Ottawa is a recurring micro-grant participatory dinner event. For a $10 entrance fee you get soup and a vote for the pitch that moves your the most! Everyone’s $10 goes into the pot for the lucky winner to put towards their initiative. This time round the presenters are: Indigenous Walking Tours, Youth Can Slam, BeadWorks, Death Cafe, TACTICS Theatre Co-op and Beyond Dawn.
THURSDAY: YAO
This Thursday and every Thursday the National Gallery of Canada is FREE after 5 pm and so is the Museum of Civilization just over the bridge in Gatineau. Nice way to get out of the cold and get inspired!
“A multitalented artist, poet, passionate advocate for the quest for knowledge through literature and music, YAO is comparable to a modern-day troubadour.
Although his music is characterized by a sweet mix of Slam poetry, Jazz and Blues, his eclectic approach and escapades in various musical genre gives it a rich, unique and very pleasant sound.” Read more…
FRIDAY: THE JERRY CANS + SAALI
Friday is The Jerry Cans & Saali at Zaphod Beeblebrox, 27 York Street.
“The Jerry Cans will take you on a stroll through Iqaluit, Nunavut with their unique mix of Inuktitut country swing, throat singing, reggae, and blues, sharing a glimpse of life in Nunavut while challenging misrepresentation of the great white north. Nunavuttitut! Nunavut Style!”
“The Winter Village Storytelling Festival & Meshkwadoon is a celebration of the First Peoples’ winter culture through artistic and oral traditions of the First Nations, Inuit and Métis People…Alongside these wonderful presentations will be some of Ottawa’s finest vendors showcasing both Aboriginal and non- aboriginal arts and crafts.”Read more…
Part of Sunday’s lineup is a performance by madeskimo.
Saturday, March 1st, 10am – 5pm & Sunday, March 2nd, 11am – 5pm
Individual Day Pass $5
Family Day Pass $12
Individual Weekend Pass $8
Family Weekend Pass $20
Children under 3 Free
Hailing from Winnipeg, isKwé has a magical voice and after finding her via Lisa Charleyboy’s Urban Native Girl blog, MIXED BAG MAG is happy to know that she is now releasing her full album.
Tomorrow at The Garrison in Toronto Lisa, in association with her newest venture Urban Native Magazine, will be hosting a local CD launch party. Lucky us!
The Garrison
1197 Dundas St West
October 2
Doors Open 8 pm
$10 Tickets in Advance
“Traditional Chef, Johl Ringuette, and the staff of RingFire Productions have been providing delectable Aboriginal cuisine to the Toronto Native community and allies for several years. Raised in Northern Ontario, his knowledge of native food was provided by his father (a hunter), and inspired by the culinary wisdom of his mother. Yearning for the indigenous foods from his childhood such as wild game, freshwater fish, berries, and maple syrup, he set out to provide Aboriginal catering to the urban community. With almost thirty years experience in the foods industry, Chef Ringuette has been serving Traditional Anishnawbe foods since 2005.”
FYI – Win tickets through Urban Native Magazine.
CONTEST RULES –
tweet: “Hey @UrbanNativeMag I wanna see @iskwe at The Garrison” by 1 PM, Wednesday, October 2nd or email Lisa at urbannativemag.com to win.
“The Beat of the Globe pulses in the heart of Toronto as the 3rd Annual Small World in the Square takes over Yonge-Dundas Square on Saturday September 28th from 1 pm on. This free, family-friendly event will showcase internationally renowned musicians who will get the crowd jumping to genres including Balkan, Calypso, Afro-Colombian jazz, Funk, Mexican rock and more. Between main stage performances, the InterAction Stage features hands-on workshops where participants can have unique one-on-one experiences with the artists. The centre piece of the 12th Annual Small World Music Festival, this cross-cultural community celebration will be a day to remember!”
SATURDAY
Remember it’s FREE!!!
SUNDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
SUNDAY
You can also find out more about Small World Music on their website as well as follow along on Facebook and twitter @SmallWorldNotes.
CONGRATS TO THE MANIFESTO TEAM ON ANOTHER YEAR OF AMAZING PROGRAMMING & IGNITING THE COMMUNITY!
This festival continues to show how when enough people connect on a vision something wonderful and fresh can occur. The weather today? Not so good but Manifsto is offering plenty of food for thought and inspiring creativity inside and away from the rain with their symposiums & talks.
NOON TODAY – SO MUCH THINGS TO SAY: Evolution Summit. An inspiring array of panel discussions, keynote speakers and mentor classes. More info…
3 PM TODAY – THE FLOOR AWARDS. Manifesto celebrates the best urban dance artists, educators, youth and community catalysts at our 3rd Annual Floor Awards. First created through community dance consultation, this awards provides a platform to honour the depth of creation and innovation happening in urban dance arts in Toronto. More info…
4 PM TODAY – HEARTIST. A pre-show panel discussion and audience talk back about the growth of mentor-mentee collaborations in Canada, how they work, and add value to the health of the Canadian arts sector. More info…
6PM TODAY – SACRED SEVEN ART SHOW – This year for the 7th Annual Manifesto Art Show we will explore the notions of connectedness and evolution as we present thought-provoking works from local artists as well as game-changers from across the globe.
“Everything in our world is sacred and interconnected – and we’re in the midst of an epochal shift to recognizing that truth in every realm of human endeavor.” – Stephen Dinan
Ska – Jamaica’s new freedom soundtrack having recently gained independence from the United Kingdom.
“It is the year 1963. The heat of the island is soaring through the rooftops and rising from the dancing bodies at the Sounds Systems street party in Kingston, Jamaica. The new sound and love of music in this island, resides in the heart and soul of ‘ska.’ A unique musical blend of rhythmic African music and New Orleans jazz, this sweet, new and popular sound pumps through the speakers and resonates through the island becoming Jamaica’s new freedom soundtrack having recently gained independence from the United Kingdom after 300 years. This is it; a new sound, a new musical revolution, a new meaning, a new life, a new creation of history influencing the island and the world forever.”(cited from Gimme One Riddim website)
Gimme One Riddim is the newest work by Toronto talent Jasmyn Fyffe. Jasmyn, along with Natasha Powell, co-produced and choreographed this play
The Ska beat and style aesthetic went on to inspire mashup culture in places like Coventry, England with the 2 Tone genre – a criss-crossing of Ska, Rocksteady, Punk, New Wave and Reggae whose vibrations crossed an ocean to inspire more fusing in places like Southern California with bands like Fishbone and No Doubt. For many people I know the 2nd and 3rd wave of Ska was the soundtrack of their youth!
And what a great soundtrack it was! Thanks Jamaica! One love!
Cris Derksen Trio. Image provided by Ottawa CHAMBERFEST.
The Jerry Cans (
