Today's letter is "A"

Eps101 “The Letter A” TRT 21:52

0:00 - Sponsor and welcome

1:36 - Associate Director of MusicFest and Instrumental Jazz Chairperson Neil Yorke-Slader:  Stage "A"

8:02 - Warmup / Performance / Clinic

9:40 - Stacey Mortenson-Spokes & Jim Howard: Adjudicators and Artists

15:02 - Choral & Contemporary Music Chairperson John Chalmers:  He goes a cappella about the early days of Concert Choirs

17:56 - Listener Mail

20:14 - Show close

The inaugural (full) episode of our podcast features a marquee of guests that get us started in style.  Associate Director of the Festival and Chairperson of the Instrumental Jazz Division, Neil Yorke-Slader from Nepean, Ontario, describes life on Stage "A" where instrumental jazz lives.  He provides the perspective of participant and festival executive and goes so far as to compare a visit to Stage "A" to attending a hockey game!  You did catch the word "Canada" in our name, right?

Our Warmup / Performance / Clinic segment features participant stories from festivals past.  This week we hear about the brush with greatness that a participant had years ago and the advice that was bestowed upon her.  Spoiler:  She still follows that advice today!

A chat with music teacher Stacey Mortenson-Spokes from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan and Festival Executive Director Jim Howard is a deep dive into the world of Adjudicators and Artists that have taken part in the festival over the years.  Stacey has nothing but admiration for our adjudicators and Jim is still an excited audience member when he describes an on-stage musical battle between two giants of their instruments in 1997!

John Chalmers, the Chairperson of the Choral and Contemporary Division looks back on the introduction of Concert Choirs to the festival and recounts interesting stories of even more interesting venues in which those choirs performed in their early days.

Our Listener Mail segment features festival memories from a rock star and a heartfelt tribute to a lasting impression of the event from a long-standing festival friend.

Links:

Show transcript can be downloaded from:  MF AtoZ 101 "A" As-Produced Script Feb14-2022.pdf

Podcast email address:  podcast@musicfest.ca

Podcast homepage:  https://atozofmusicfestcanada.podbean.com

MusicFest Canada on Twitter and Instagram:  @musicfestcanada

Do you need information about MusicFest Canada or it's regional festivals?  Email us at info@musicfest.ca.

Are you interested in volunteering on the Production Team for the national festival of MusicFest Canada?  Email volunteers@musicfest.ca.

Producers of the A to Z of MusicFest Canada Podcast are Stephen Barden and Kim Vrieling.

Executive Producers are Jim Howard and Neil Yorke-Slader.

Music by Neil Yorke-Slader. Music performed by the Nepean All-City Jazz Band http://www.nacjb.com/.

Sound editing and mixing by Stephen Barden and Mitchell Smith.