(The following article originally appeared in The Huntsville Forester on June 24, 2009.)
Some familiar names are returning to Huntsville this summer, showcasing talent that, for the most part, has been recognized at a national and international level.
The Huntsville Festival of the Arts (HFA) is a week away from its first concert of the 2009 summer season and another year of record-breaking performances is anticipated.
Festival favourite Jim Cuddy and his band of exceptional musicians will be closing out the festival on Aug. 25 and 26. Prior to those dates, theatre-goers will be tempted with
returning artists John McDermott (Aug. 8), Hawksley Workman (Aug. 12) and the Downchild Blues Band (July 15).
On Saturday, July 11, Maestro Kerry Stratton, a participant in all of the 16 previous festivals, will lead his 43-piece orchestra in paying tribute to classical music used as part of film scores for a wide variety of movies. Featured in this program will be a second half comprised solely of Beethoven’s Emperor piano concerto, performed by celebrated pianist Zora Mihailovich.
The HFA is a year-round celebration of the performing arts with an emphasis on the summer months of July and August. From its early beginnings, the festival has grown and diversified to present artistic offerings in the fields of jazz, pop, choral, Celtic, country, orchestral and classical
music, as well as theatre, written word, poetry and the visual arts.
This year will see a continuation of this successful schedule, with the presentation of the internationally recognized husband and wife team of fiddle and stepdance masters Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy (July 22), pop diva Serena Ryder (July 9), the 35-piece Metropolitan Silver Band (July 8), world-class classical favourites the Alcan
String Quartet (Aug. 13), Japanese drum masters Nagata Shachu (Aug. 7), world guitarist Johannes Linstead (July 4), and much more.
For country fans in the area, one of new country’s hottest artists, Doc Walker, will perform on July 16. The comedic duo of Bowser and Blue return on July 10, bringing with them their hilarious insights on the people and events around them.
In addition to original artists, there also will be concerts paying tribute to the music of legends such as Patsy Cline (July 25) and Andrea Bocelli and Michael Buble (July 18). Seasonal resident Pamela Hoiles, a respected soprano in her own right, will present a concert titled Festival Friends on July 17, showcasing her own vocal talents alongside the virtuoso violin skills of Arkady Yanivker, who will perform in recital and with his string quartet.
Dala (Aug. 6) has performed in Huntsville, opening for Jim Cuddy and Stuart MacLean, and now presents a headline show. The Dylan Tree, lauded for their performance in February 2009, returns by popular demand on Aug. 14. For the young at heart, local artists Karl Mohr, Eric Reid and Ruth Cassie present an evening of pop/folk and techno rock on Aug. 21.
In 2007, the HFA expanded and created the Huntsville Jazz Festival, running from July 30 to Aug. 1. This festival within a festival features vibraphone master Peter Appleyard and the big band sounds of the Toronto All-Star Big Band (Aug. 1). Also performing will be crooner Michael Danso, supported by a rhythm section led by acclaimed drummer Archie Alleyne (July 31). Added to the jazz festival this year is a day-long outdoor festival to be held Saturday, Aug. 1, in Huntsville’s downtown River Mill Park.
Interspersed among the numerous main-stage evenings, primarily presented in Huntsville’s 400-seat Algonquin Theatre, are numerous fringe performances, many presented for free, at various locales throughout the community. Among these events are the festival’s popular Music at Noon series, Arts Splash, Arts Walk and the Writers’ Café.
For information or to purchase tickets, contact the Algonquin Theatre box office on
Main Street 789-4975, e-mail info@huntsvillefestival.on.ca, or go to www.huntsville festival.on.ca.
More festival stories and photos can be found at www.trumpeterhfa.blogspot.
com.
