2018 Delegate Guide

Celtic Colours International Festival

PRESENTERS & MEDIA PROGRAM

Jennifer Currie(902) 577-1616jennifer_currie@cbu.ca

WelcomeDuane Nardocchio(902) 577-2547info@cbmic.ca

Janet Confiant(902) 565-4209celticcolours.presenters@gmail.com

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HOSTED EVENTSSUNDAY, OCTOBER 7TH

Meet & Greet / 10:00 am

The Silver Dart Lodge, Baddeck An informal Meet & Greet in lounge of the Silver Dart Hotel. A chance to get acquainted over coffee and a light breakfast.

MONDAY, OCTOBER 8TH

Showcase & Brunch / 11:00 am sharpThe Great Hall of Clans (same venue as the Festival Club) Gaelic College, St. Anne’sA “by invitation only” brunch buffet followed by a special showcase of Cape Breton talent.

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 9TH

Delegate / Artist Mixer / 11:00 am

MacAulay Conference Centre, Inverary Inn, BaddeckAn opportunity for delegates to network with each other, meet Cape Breton artists, and enjoy a relaxing lunch.

Your Festival Pass does not give you admission to shows but will give you “no charge / no lineup” access to the Festival Club. We will be providing you with tickets to the shows you’ve requested. If your show plans change or if there is an artist you need to see in a specific venue, please let us know as early as possible and we will do our best to accommodate you.

Back Stage Access at Concert VenuesSorry, but we need to reserve the back stage areas at shows for the musicians, technicians, and necessary staff only. Should you encounter difficulty contacting an artist, please don’t hesitate to let us know and we will assist you.

FESTIVAL CLUBIn addition to giving you free access to Festival Club, your pass also allows you backstage access at the Club until 3 AM where you are welcome to network with artists.

FESTIVAL PASS ‘GOLDEN RULES’

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Dave Bagdade is the host and producer of the Kitchen Party Ceilidh, a weekly Celtic-music radio program airing on WICR 88.7 FM in Indianapolis. He is also an award-winning mandolin player and songwriter and a five-time gold medalist at the Midwest Fleadh Cheoil, and he has competed at the Fleadh Cheoil na hÃireann in Ireland. In addition to performing regularly as a solo artist and with The Cousin Brothers and the New Trad Ramblers, Dave is also the co-founder of the Scotty Grant Irish Music Club and a teacher for the Irish Arts Academy of Indianapolis as well as a contributor to Indy Irish Fest.

Eddie Barcan from Splendid Events specialises in Event Management, Production, Programming and Consultancy. Eddie is also agent for Kate Rusby (Canada 2019) and Old Man Luedecke (Europe 2019). Programming clients include Glastonbury, Underneath the Stars, HebCelt, Folk by the Oak, Greenbelt, London Roots and Dranouter. Eddie formerly managed and programmed 23 consecutive sold-out Cambridge Folk Festivals.

Roger Bouwens graduated as a socio-cultural worker in the late 70s.  In 1983 he was appointed as the first Directing Manager of the Cultural Centre Leopoldsburg (Belgium) and remained there until 2014.  The CC Leopoldsburg became a fierce defender of world music in the broader sense.  In 1995 Roger founded Toernee Mondial, a network of Flemish Cultural venues and stages.  Their main goal is to build concert tours in the field of Folk and World music and have toured many Canadian bands including Coig, Jenn Grant, Le Vent du Nord, De Temps Antan, Leahy, Gordie McKeeman and his rythm boys and Irish Mythen.  Roger is retired but remains chairman of Toernee Mondial and spends his time building concert tours.

DAVE BAGDADEKitchen Party Ceilidh

EDDIE BARCANSplendid Events

ROGER BOUWENSToernee Mondial

Michele Amy is a traditional Métis  fiddler who  lives in the tiny village of Forget, Sk. (pop 52), which boasts three performance venues,  and a community of  like-minded musicians and people who love music. 

Through the non-profit organization Kitchen Party Music Inc. Michele promotes our thriving heritage of fiddle music through the execution, coordination and promotion of performances, workshops, concert series, festivals and one of Canada’s flagship music camps: The Kenosee Lake Kitchen Party.   

Playing host to 40 of Canada’s top acoustic musicians each year, the KLKP attracts hundreds of students, and  thousands in audiences over a 10 day concert series each year in the beautiful Moose Mountain Provincial Park.

In addition, Michele performs school shows, dance workshops, local dances, and teaches  privately, in workshop settings, and as a sessional instructor for the Frontier School Division fiddle program in Northern Manitoba.

MICHELE AMYKitchen Party Music Inc.Kenosee Lake Kitchen Party

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A former MuchMusic host (Mike & Mike’s Excellent X-Canada Advenures, MuchEast, Going Coastal) Mike is now the talent booker of the Carleton Music Bar & Grill in Halifax. Since opening its doors in May of 2008, the club has won Music Nova Scotia Awards for Venue of the Year in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015 and 2016 and also won the East Coast Music Award for Venue of the Year in 2012, 2013 and 2015. Mike has also won Music Nova Scotia’s Promoter of the Year award for 2013 and 2014. Over the years, The Carleton has presented over 2000 shows featuring local, regional, national and international artists and won Best Small Venue at the Canada Live Music Awards in Toronto during Canada Music Week in 2017.

In 2010, he started the Halifax Urban Folk Festival with eight nights of shows at The Carleton over the last week in August through the Labour Day weekend. In the following five years the festival has grown to encompass several other venues in downtown Halifax and provides the Halifax Regional Municipality with a unique cultural experience that aims to grow into a real economic force for the city during a traditionally slow time for the hospitality and entertainment industries. The 2017 HUFF is slated for August 27th through September 3rd.Mike was honoured in 2013 at the 25th anniversary East Coast Music Awards in Halifax with a special Industry Builder Award and was awarded the second annual Scene Builder Award from the Halifax Pop Explosion the same year.

MIKE CAMPBELLThe Carlton

Jim Byrne hails from Belfast, and is an innovative and thoughtful guitar player. For many years he was an integral part of the thriving Belfast session scene, and he also toured professionally as the singer and guitar player with the Belfast based band, Craobh Rua, one of the most in-demand Irish groups in folk circles in Europe and America.

Now living in Donegal in Ireland, Jim, together with his wife, Fiona Heywood, are responsible for the day to day running of The Living Tradition magazine – Jim as Production Manager and Fiona as editor.

The A4, 68-page, glossy magazine, printed 5 times a year, has promoted traditional folk music for over 20 years now, and is widely read amongst trad and folk enthusiasts the world over.

JIM BYRNELiving Tradition

Sarah is the founder and Artistic Director of the Bear Creek Folk Festival in Muskoseepi Park in the heart of Grande Prairie. In its inaugural year, 2016, it featured over 30 provincial, national, and international touring artists in a wide range of genres, including country, Celtic, blues, gospel, Americana, bluegrass, world music, contemporary and traditional folk, rock, and many things in between. Nightly mainstage performances included concerts by numerous great headliners, including case/lang/veirs, Corb Lund, Bahamas, Bruce Cockburn, Ashley MacIsaac, Ruthie Foster, and many more.

With 3 years completed organizers are looking forward to building on those successes in the years to come.

Joe is an arts administration leader with more than 20 years of non-profit and arts presenting experience. Joe currently serves on the City of Lebanon’s Arts and Culture Task Force. He is a 2018 graduate of Vital Communities’ Leadership Upper Valley program and an active board member (and past president) of the Arts Presenters of Northern New England (APNNE) consortium. He is also a member of the New England Presenters (NEP) consortium. Joe recently completed a two-year fellowship program created by the Association of Performing Arts Professionals (APAP) and the Arts Leadership Program at the University of Southern California.  Joe is also a founding member and past chair of the New Hampshire/Vermont Upper Valley Arts Alliance. He holds a BA in Communications/Public Relations from Seton Hall University in South Orange, New Jersey.  A long-time resident of Windsor, Vermont, he recently crossed the Connecticut River via covered bridge and relocated to Plainfield, New Hampshire, with his wife and two teenage sons.

SARAH CARDBear Creek Folk Festival

JOE CLIFFORDLebanon Opera House

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Craig is director of TwentyTwo Promotions - a Glasgow based booking agency, representing artists throughout the world. HIs roster includes leading names from the Scottish scene, including Blazin’ Fiddles and RURA appearing at Celtic Colours 2018, Talisk and Ímar who both appeared in 2017, Siobhan Miller and Jenna Reid. He also represents Vishtèn, from PEI, and Finland’s Frigg in the UK and parts of Europe.

Craig is also Assistant Director of the Orkney Folk Festival - one of Scotland’s longer established folk festivals, with its 37th annual outing in 2019 - and sits on the boards of both Showcase Scotland at Celtic Connections (Glasgow) and Showcase Scotland Expo.

CRAIG CORSETwentyTwo Promotions

In 1999 Janet took on the role of Finance Officer for the 2000 East Coast Music Awards and has been working in various capacities in the music industry ever since.  She was the Finance Chair for ECMA 2010, Volunteer Coordinator for ECMA 2016, served on the board of the Cape Breton Music Industry Cooperative, and has been co-coordinating the Presenters and Media Program for the last nine years.  In her spare time she is the Business Manager for a local construction company.

JANET CONFIANTCape Breton Music Industry Cooperative

Jennifer obtained her undergraduate degree at Mount Saint Vincent University and her MA in Communication (Media & Culture) at Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh, Scotland.

In addition to currently teaching full-time in the BHTM program, Jennifer is actively involved in the local cultural/music industry with the Cape Breton Music Industry Co-operative and Celtic Colours International Festival. Jennifer has been involved with numerous conferences and production events as the owner/operator of Hannah Banana Event Management.

Several years ago Old South First Congregational Church in Farmington, Maine became a partner venue with New England Celtic Arts. What started as a love of Celtic music led Debbie to her current role where she heads a team of volunteers dedicated to bringing tradional music to New England.

JENNIFER CURRIECape Breton Music Industry Cooperative

DEBBIE DAVIS-ROBINSONOld South Church

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Michelle has worked with MFMF since 1991 and is currently the festival’s Artistic Managing Director. She also holds programming positions at Northwest Folklife in Seattle and together with her husband and son runs Maple Folk, a music and arts production company.

Celebrating its 30th year, every July the Mission  Folk Music Festival welcomes musicians, dancers and storytellers from across Canada and around the world to the small town of Mission, British Columbia.  Featuring talent from the folk, Celtic, world, blues, aboriginal, Canadiana, French Canadian, bluegrass, and roots music communities as well as storytellers and dancers from around the world, Mission Folk Music is the little festival that shines on the bank of the Fraser River in beautiful Fraser River Heritage Park.

MICHELLE DEMERS SHAEVITZMission Folk Music Festival / Maple Folk

Jennifer DeChant has been the executive director of the Chocolate Church Arts Center in Bath since 2013. The Chocolate Church Arts Center (CCAC) was incorporated in 1977, and has over the ensuing 40 years exercised its dual mission of presenting graphic, visual, and performing arts to midcoast Maine while preserving and protecting its home, the former Congregational Church built in 1847. CCAC is a growing and sustainable organization that builds community by cultivating the arts for everyone in the region from a landmark venue. Under her leadership, the organization is transitioning from a music-only venue to a community arts center intersecting with the midcoast region. Operationally, she has rejuvenated the facility through infrastructure improvements and diversified funding resources, volunteer management and board development.

JENNIFER DECHANTChocolate Church Arts Centre

With over 15 years of experience in the music industry as a musician, audio engineer and artist manager, Darren now serves as Marcato’s fearless Commander-in-Chief. Brian Watson, COO of Harbourside Institute of Technology,says “Darren has the ability to see the big picture while keeping track of the details; he’s a linchpin who can walk into chaos and create order – someone who can invent, connect, create, and make things happen.”

In between the many hours spent facilitating the great work done at Marcato and the local volunteer organizations he is committed to, Darren has still managed to hone some pretty incredible skills as both a gourmet chef and a winemaker.

Fiona Heywood is a traditional style singer born and raised in Ayrshire, in South West Scotland. Now living in Donegal in Ireland, Fiona, together with her husband Jim Byrne, are responsible for the day to day running of The Living Tradition magazine – Fiona as editor and Jim as production manager.

The A4, 68-page, glossy magazine, printed 5 times a year, has promoted traditional folk music for over 20 years now, and is widely read amongst trad and folk enthusiasts the world over.

DARREN GALLOPMarcato Digital Solutions

FIONA HEYWOODLiving Tradition

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Jake Hoffman is a festival producer and program manager for 317 Main Community Music Center. 317 Main is a hub for traditional and modern music education and performance in Southern Maine. Jake produces 317 Main’s largest event, HenryFest, an annual music & dance festival that features International and American roots music performances and educational workshops. Jake also assists in booking 317 Main’s master classes and a seasonal concert series featuring regional and international artists. Additionally, 317 Main is entering a capital campaign to build its own concert space to present monthly performances and educational events for our greater community.

JAKE HOFFMAN317 Main Community Music Centre

Since the early 1990s. Andy has had a varied career in music. He has been a touring bandleader in the field of Celtic music, a choral director, a music and culture scholar, and now a festival organizer. Andy is into his 6th season as Artistic and Executive Director of the Harrison Festival of the Arts, which is heading into its 41st year as one of British Columbia’s longest running roots music festivals. Andy cut his teeth in the folk world as the founder and manager of the Celtic funk band Mad Pudding, who toured festivals and folk clubs in North America and Europe through the 1990s. Since 2000 he has toured with several of the Celtic music scene’s most respected and exciting acoustic musicians, including Pierre Schryer, Nuala Kennedy, and The McDades. Andy obtained a PhD in Ethnomusicology from the University of Toronto in 2013.

ANDY HILLHOUSEHarrison Festival Society

Sue has been the artistic/executive director of Coldsnap Festival since 2011. Prince George Folkfest Society presented four successful summer music festivals between 2003 and 2007, then moved the festival to the winter to provide a unique entertainment experience to music lovers from all over Northern BC. There have been eight winter festivals, including the 17 day, Canada Winter Games - Coldsnap Festival in February 2015.  Sue continues the tradition of showcasing the best of all genres of music from all over Canada and the world at Coldsnap, Northern BC’s premier winter music festival.

Lisardo Lombardio Yenes graduated from the University of Oviedo with a degree in medicine and surgery. He practised as a family doctor for some years.

Since 1985 he is a full member of the organizing as representative of the nation of Asturias for the Interceltic Festival of Lorient. He became the managing director of the Interceltic Festival in 2007. Since 2009 he also sits on the cultural council of Brittany.

The Festival Interceltique de Lorient affects all forms of music from the Celtic countries, millennia songs to folk, rock, jazz, through the symphonic works in an extremely prolific creative environment. The presence of musicians from differenct cultures is a symbol of identity open to the work and in constant motion. A true living showcase, the Festival Interceltique de Lorient is a place that opens to the world, in the expression of the Celtic cosmopolitanism it offers.

SUE JUDGEPrince George Folkfest SocietyColdsnap - The Prince George Winter Music

LISARDO LOMBARDIOFestival Interceltique de Lorient

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New England Celtic Arts, under the direction of Phill McIntyre, has been bringing top international performers in Celtic music -as well as introducing up-and-coming young artists to western Maine for the last 13 years.  McIntyre has been building a client base and partnering with venues over the course of those years resulting in a network of soft-seat venues and house concerts offering countless opportunites for artists.

PHILL MCINTYRENew England Celtic Arts

In 2013 Sandy helped organize the first Acoustic Roots Festival and has been the coordinator of the event since it began. The festival is a three day event and a major fund raiser in support of the operation of Two Rivers Wildlife Park, a year round family recreation site located in eastern Cape Breton. The festival has enjoyed a growth in attendance each year. The event has a variety of music performances that include country, folk, Celtic, blues and bluegrass. Local dance schools also participate in this event. Workshops are also provided during the festival which is held on Labour Day Weekend in September.

Sandy is retired from the Province of Nova Scotia Civil Service and is chair of the board for The Coast CKOA 89.7 FM.

SANDY MACDONALDCape Breton Music Industry Cooperative

Andy is an established leader in the cultural industries sector with a proven record of managing highly complex and multi-levelled dynamic organizations to successful outcomes and acknowledged experience establishing signature events locally, nationally and internationally.

Andy has been the Executive Director of the East Coast Music Associaion (ECMA) based in Halifax, NS since April 2014.

Andy was the Co-Founder and Managing Director of North By Northeast Conferences Inc. (NXNE) in Toronto. For over 18 years he established NXNE brand to be recognized world-wide as Canada’s premier showcase event for the best new music.

He carries the overall responsibility for the ECMA’s national televised music awards show, 4–day music festival and industry conference as well as an international export buyers program. Andy is a strong advocate for the Atlantic region music industry, working closely with the ECMA membership and the four provincial music associations. His main focus is building new strategic partnerships and developing career-enhancing opportunities for ECMA members.

Duane is from Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. He grew up around music and found a love for all things music early on. Duane worked for Lupins Productions as part of the Rita MacNeil touring and production team and at CBC Toronto as a stach tech on the television production of Rita and Friends. On returning to Cape Breton (as most Capers do) Duane continued to work in the music industry doing promotions work, stage and sound contracts, and working with venues and local musicians. Today, Duane continues to write music and perform and is the Operations Manager at Cape Breton Music Industry Cooperative.

ANDY MACLEANEast Coast Music Association

DUANE NARDOCCHIOCape Breton Music Industry Cooperative

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George is a dedicated board member of the Newfoundland and Labrador  Irish Connections.  (NLIC) a non-profit, community organization dedicated to sharing and celebrating  Irish culture and connections – in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, in Ireland and around the world. The mission of Newfoundland and Labrador Irish Connections is to facilitate, develop and promote cultural and historical experiences that recognize, celebrate and preserve the connection among our global Irish community. 

Since 2004, the history and culture of the communities created and linked through immigration has been fostered and celebrated through  conferences, music, dancing and recitations on both sides of the Atlantic during the annual Gatherings.

GEORGE POWERNewfoundland & Labrador Irish Connections

For over 32 years, Tom O’Connell has been involved in numerous capacities with Celtic MKI, the umbrella organizaton of Milwaukee Irish Fest, whose mission is to preserve, promote and celebrate all aspects of Irish, Irish American and Celtic cultures while instilling in current and future generations an appreciation of their unique heritage. Over those three decades, O’Connell has served as music sales coordinator, supervisor of Irish Fest Product Sales, and a member of the Board of Directors. For the past fifteen years he has been a member of the Festival’s Entertainment Committee which identifies and books musical acts for the yearly event. In that capacity, he and his committee mates attend festivals worldwide to learn and share benchmark best practices. Irish Fest has developed a close relationship with Nova Scotia in this century and has promoted showcases of Nova Scotian music and culture three times since 2000 featuring many musical acts first heard at Celtic Colours.

TOM O’CONNELLMilwaukee Irish Fest

Seán Purser is a freelance photographer and journalist based in Glasgow. He worked at BBC Scotland for 18 years producing Radio Scotland’s flagship folk music programme, Traveling Folk with Archie Fisher across 15 of those years, also producing the world music show, Global Gathering and a variety of others. He has produced a number of television programmes for BBC FOUR and BBC Scotland from the Celtic Connections Festival. Having taken up photography on leaving the BBC, he most recently presented an exhibition of photographs, “Heids”, for the 25th Celtic Connections festival in 2018. Seán has visited Celtic Colours twice in the past, including once with Archie Fisher.

The National Council for the Traditional Arts (NCTA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to the presentation and documentation of folk and traditional arts in the United States. Founded in 1933, it is the nation’s oldest producing and presenting organization with such a focus.  Its programs celebrate and honor deeply rooted cultural expressions – music, dance, crafts, rituals and stories passed on through time in families, communities, tribal, ethnic, regional and occupational groups.

Annually, the NCTA provides performance opportunities for 1,100+ traditional artists, and presents public programs that serve an estimated live audience of 720,000 that reach an additional 4.4 million through radio, television and recordings.

SEAN PURSERFreelance Journalist

MADELEINE REMEZNational Council for the Traditional Arts

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Darryl Smith is the Investment Programs and Member Training Manager for Music Nova Scotia; he is also the FACTOR Regional Education Coordinator. Darryl previously at CKDU-FM as both station and music director. He currently teaches in the music business program at NSCC, where he specializes in rights registrations and publishing. Darryl formerly managed several Halifax artists, and was a touring musician for over a decade, with bands based in both Halifax and Toronto. 

DARRYL SMITHMusic Nova Scotia

Donald Shaw is an acclaimed Scottish musician, producer and award-winning composer and a creative director at Celtic Connections. Glasgow’s annual folk, roots and world music festival, Celtic Connections celebrates Celtic music and its connections to cultures across the globe. From 17 January – 3 February 2019 , 2,100 musicians from around the world will descend on Glasgow and bring the city to life for 18 days of concerts, ceilidhs, talks, art exhibitions, workshops, and free events.

DONALD SHAWCeltic ConnectionsSa

The Acadia School of Traditional Music and Arts is a year-round program dedicated to the preservation, appreciation and evolution of traditional music, dance and cultural arts, with a focus on Celtic traditions. Its flagship program, the Acadia Trad Festival, is a one-week program held annually the last week in June in Bar Harbor, Maine (US). The festival brings together some of the worlds greatest Irish, Scottish, Cape Breton, Acadian, Québecois, Old-Time, and Cajun musicians and students for a week of classes, workshops, concerts, community dances and late night music sessions. For more information, visit www.acadiatradschool.com.

Jennifer Torrance took on the role of Executive Director in August, 2017, after serving two years as Director of Marketing. Jennifer’s passion for traditional music, and professional skills as a manager, designer, photographer and videographer align in this role. Jen holds an undergraduate degree in Voice Performance from the University of Michigan and plays a variety of instruments, specializing now in fiddle. She and her family live in Ellsworth, Maine.

Lorie Wardlaw lives in the lovely northern California coastal town of Mendocino, where she and her late husband, Gordon, built a Craftsman-style home. Being able to host House Concerts in the living room was an important requirement of the home’s design. Since its completion, more than 30 musicians (including Jim Malcolm, Frankie Gavin, and Alan Reid) have shared their music in this intimate setting. Also, many musicians performing at larger local venues have stayed in the two guest rooms, including Mary Jane Lamond, Wendy MacIsaac, and Anita MacDonald. Lorie recently retired from being an elementary school teacher and now looks forward to helping more musicians come to the Mendocino coast.

JENNIFER TORRANCEThe Acadia School of Traditional Music and Arts

LORIE WARDLAWMendocino House Concerts

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