2010 Performer Roster
The Vancouver Island MusicFest 2010 is complete and filled with magical musical discoveries for all festival goers! Find our more about the amazing performers gracing our stages this summer..
Roberta Flack
Internationally hailed as one of the greatest songstresses of our time, and just announced to perform at VIMF 2010, Grammy Award winning Roberta Flack remains unparalleled in her ability to tell a story through her music. Her songs bring insight into our lives, loves, culture and politics, while effortlessly traversing a broad musical landscape from pop to soul to folk to jazz.
Little Feat
Little Feat is one of the last great examples of what used to be the norm in American music, a fusion of a broad span of styles and genres into something utterly distinctive. Feat took California rock, funk, folk, jazz, country, rockabilly, and New Orleans swamp boogie and more, stirred it into a rich gumbo, and has been leading people in joyful dance ever since.
Nanci Griffith
Whether performing her own poetically evocative material or the compositions of her peers, Nanci possesses a powerful gift for inhabiting the song she sings. A self-styled “folkabilly” singer, Nanci has always embraced different musical genres to pay her respects, but never straying too far from her roots.
Joan Osborne
In a career that spans over fifteen years, Joan has proven to be an artistically restless yet consistently enthralling performer. She has sold over seven million albums and garnered six Grammy nominations and nn 2002, she cemented her reputation as a top tier soul singer with an incredible turn in….
Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks
Beginning as a drummer in the seminal 60’s San Francisco rock band The Charlatans, and continuing with the unique and legendary Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks, Dan Hicks is widely acknowledged as one of the central defining figures in American roots music.
The Holmes Brothers
The spine-tingling harmonies, boundless energy and telepathic musicianship of The Holmes Brothers (bassist/vocalist Sherman Holmes, guitarist/pianist/ vocalist Wendell Holmes, drummer/vocalist Popsy Dixon) mix Saturday night’s roadhouse rock with the gospel fervor and harmonies of Sunday’s church service…
David Lindley
Multi-instrumentalist David Lindley performs music that redefines the word “eclectic.” Lindley, well known for his many years as the featured accompanist with Jackson Browne, and leader of his own band El Rayo-X, has long championed the concept of world music.
Adrian Belew Power Trio
Adrian Belew is simply one of the most innovative electric guitarists of all time. His guitar sound is actually his own, instantly recognizable as only he can play it. He is one of the true creators of the palette of electric guitar sounds that define and continue to inspire two generations of guitar players.
The Unthanks
Forging links between folk worlds old, new and other, The Unthanks have blown a bracing north-easterly gale through traditional English song, casting it in an endlessly inventive and playful new mould. This is music as tough as it is gentle, as ancient as it is modern, and as coldly desolate as it is achingly intimate.
The Abramson Singers
When singer-songwriter-guitarist Leah Abramson got tendonitis in her wrist, she didn’t despair. Unable to write songs on guitar, Leah borrowed an 8-track and started recording a capella vocal pieces under the name “The Abramson Singers.” Now healed and playing her guitar again, Leah formed a band under the same moniker, playing her indie-folk-noir with some of Vancouver’s brightest young musicians…
Don Amero Trio
Growing up in the North End of Winnipeg, acoustic musician Don Amero has definitely faced his share of adversity. With poverty, gangs, drugs and violence as daily reminders of the harshness of the world, Don’s life was nevertheless tempered by love, support and the knowledge that a Greater Power was intimately involved in his life.
Annie Lou
When Yukon songwriters Kim Barlow and Anne Louise Genest discovered a shared joy in the string band sounds and story songs of Southern old time music, they joined their considerable musical forces (Barlow on clawhammer banjo/vocals and Genest on guitar/vocals) to form Annie Lou.
Bananafish Dance Orchestra
Bananafish Dance Orchestra is an 8-piece powerhouse groove sensation, with a 3-piece horn section, a 4-piece rhythm section, and a vocalist up front. This group will never stop you from dancing, especially since they have been rumoured to play sets up to 4 hours non-stop!
Baskery
Baskery is Greta, Stella and Sunniva Bondesson, three Swedish sisters who have been sharing stages for over ten years. They describe their music as “high voltage” and use expressions like “killbilly”, “banjo punk” and “mud-country” rather than traditional ones, since they’re certainly not bound to any genre.
The Beez
The Beez have furnished their house with musical bric-a-brac from around the world – a potpourri of moving, silly, deep and sometimes meaningless pop and rock songs. These songs are, however, anything but common or garden variety. The four tonal interior decorators from the Beez rearrange and craft a song until a certain stylistically unmistakable Beez Feng Shui emerges.
Bryan Bowers
For nearly three decades, Bryan Bowers has been to the autoharp what Earl Scruggs is to the five-string banjo. He presents instrumental virtuosity combined with warmth, eloquence, expression and professionalism.
Breabach
Breabach are one of the most inventive and diverse bands to have emerged from the Scottish folk scene in recent years. From their foot-stomping reels to their heartwarming delivery of songs, there can be no doubt why Breabach has become a household name for many on the folk and roots music scene.
Calypso Rose
The legendary heart and soul of the Caribbean Having shared her enormous talent with audiences all over the world, Calypso Rose is the premier ambassador of Caribbean music. Rose began her illustrious career at the age of 15 in the village of Bethel on the beautiful Caribbean island of Tobago. As a woman in a [...]
Christ The King Church Choir (Uganda)
Christ the King Church Choir of Kampala, Uganda, will celebrate its 80th anniversary in August 2010. When home in Uganda, they sing during Sunday Mass as well as for weddings and baptisms, Thanksgiving and Requiem masses, Ecumenical Services and state functions. This colourful group is very popular and includes songs and dances from their native Uganda in their performances.
Richard Caissie
Comox Valley resident, Richard Caissie was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and is one of nine siblings in an Acadian French family. Music was an integral part of many family celebrations over the years and at the age of 16 Richard picked up his first guitar. He began playing acoustic music, building a repertoire from [...]
Dala
Amanda Walther and Sheila Carabine of Dala have come a long way in a short time. The two best friends, who met in their high school music class and wrote their first song together in 2002, have since performed at Toronto’s legendary Massey Hall a total of six times. Darlings of the Canadian music scene, Dala are returning to MusicFest for their second time.
Debris Blanc
So, what do you do when one of the best drummers on the planet calls you up and says “Hey, I’ve got some friends coming up to Courtenay on the same weekend as MusicFest to hang out… is there anywhere we could play just for fun?” You say Yes!
Carlos Del Junco Band
Carlos Del Junco is certainly not your straight ahead blues harmonica player. Carlos’ influences are far and wide and can quickly stray from a straight ahead blues groove into more adventurous roots related territory which may include, jazzy, Latin, New Orleans second line grooves, or ska.
Matt Epp
Matt Epp is a troubadour in the purest sense. He lives on the road and crafts his songs from his experiences, from Mexico to Newfoundland and everywhere in between. Emerging from the rich music community of Winnipeg, MB, Matt Epp is known for his diverse personal and musical connections including
David Essig and Rick Scott
When two of Canada’s most prolific songwriters/producers come together in voice and song, magic can happen. Especially when the music comes straight from the heart. And Essig and Scott, together or aprat, are always ‘heart’ performers first, although both are also deeply talented musicians.
Faranuka
The meaning of the word Faranuka in the Shona language of Zimbabwe is to “be happy”. The students are extremely honoured to be playing at their hometown Festival, sharing their love of music, and marimba with all.
Roy Forbes
Born in Dawson Creek, B.C. and nicknamed Bim as a child, Roy Forbes has been a strong Canadian musical presence since the early 70s as a performer, songwriter, recording artist, record producer, and broadcaster. One of Canada’s national treasures, this singer/songwriter/guitarist, is blessed with a unique voice, part Hank, part Billie Holiday, part Robert Plant [...]
Fribo
Fribo is a unique collaboration between three musicians from Norway, Scotland and England, who are rapidly gaining recognition and acclaim for blending their own musical styles together with sensitivity and an exuberant feel for contemporary sounds and rhythms. After first playing around an old Edinburgh kitchen table in 2003, Anne Sofie Linge Valdal, Sarah-Jane Summers [...]
Amos Garrett
Let’s get this straight right off: They don’t make musicians like Amos Garrett any more. He may not be in the public eye like, say, Stevie Wonder or Bonnie Raitt or Maria Muldaur (and he’s recorded with all of ‘em, and close to 200 more).
The Gertrudes
“The Gertrudes sound like an ol’ time saloon party in deep space… experimental noise beds with down home folk passengers, frolicking through original material, played by a veritable orchestra of instruments. Nerdgrass? maybe…
Dave Harris
Dave Harris is a versatile musician and singer songwriter who is probably best known for his one-man band act. For over thirty years Dave has been a fixture on the streets of Victoria, playing and singing his wide-ranging repertoire of country and blues. Dave plays guitars, harmonicas, violin, mandolin, fotdella (foot operated pedal bass), suitcase bass drum and various percussion, horns, whistles and bells.
H’Sao
H’Sao is a six-member family musical group from Chad whose music combines the rhythms of traditional Chadian Music with western styles like jazz, gospel and R&B. Many of their songs are sung a cappella. The group relocated to Montreal in 2002, and have performed worldwide, including in the United States, South Africa, Europe, Australia and [...]
Mae Moore
Mapping the human heart has long been Mae Moore’s calling, and her many fans on both sides of the border prove she’s always been good at it. She got her start in the smoky folk clubs and coffeehouses of southern Ontario, later moving on to the thriving club scene of Vancouver, B.C.
Nathan
The prairies may be flat, but the lives on the prairies are full of hidden caves, impossibly high mountains and murky oceans. The Winnipeg songwriters Keri Latimer and Shelley Marshall who front the band Nathan try to write from the beautifully eccentric lives of the people surrounding them, and whom they imagine themselves among. These people span centuries….
Pacific Curls
Pacific Curls unprecedented combination of Fiddle, Ukulele, Maori traditional instruments, Cajons, Guitar, Stomp Peddles, Percussion and Vocals with lyrics in Maori, Rotuman and English unfolds a new direction for fusion World music.
Peatbog Faeries
Based on the Isle of Skye, the Peatbog Faeries have been described as the future of celtic dance music’. They incorporate many influences which take them from traditional jigs and reels through jazz, hip hop, reggae and more. This is high octane Celtic dance music so be prepared to dance!
Paul Pigat aka Cousin Harley
An extremely versatile artist, with projects ranging from delta blues to classical music, he heads four diverse Vancouver bands and is in high demand as a sideman, having recorded and toured with the likes of Neko Case, Ndidi Onkuwulu, Jim Byrnes, Michael Kaeshammer, and Carolyn Mark, and has shared the stage with Taj Mahal, the Blind Boys of Alabama, Big Sandy and His Flyrite Boys, Aaron Neville and more.
Po’ Girl
“With enough sultry ambiance to be at home in either cocktail lounge or New Orleans street corner, Po’ Girl features a simple, polished production of wistful, plaintively slurred vocals over a sparse yet warm jazz-folk accompaniment of guitar, stand-up bass, harmonica, banjo and clarinet…”- Rolling Stone
Gary Preston & Anita Bonkowski
The highly-charged musical chemistry of harmonica whiz, keyboardist and vocalist Gary, combined with talented bassist/drummer/composer/arranger Anita, is a force to be reckoned with. Their music is undeniably blues-based, yet shifts effortlessly between classic and original blues to jazzy blues, seasoned with a touch of Latin spice.
Sue Pyper
Sue Pyper is an award winning Canadian singer/songwriter originally from London, UK. An engaging performer, Sue has been known to bring audiences from tears to laughter through her evocative songs, hilarious musical comedy or delightfully entertaining commentary.
Lester Quitzau Trio
One of the best things to happen to Canadian music in the past ten years has been the combination of circumstances that led to Lester Quitzau’s finding a Gulf Island sanctuary to engage and sustain his soul- a home and place of grounding that has empowered him to offer the world one of the most unique and highly charged musical statements of recent years.
The Rakish Angles
The Rakish Angles compose, arrange, and perform energetic and mesmerizing gypsy, jazz, and newgrass music. Based on the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia, they bring a contemporary approach to traditional stringband music. They weave an intricate tapestry of world folk styles, characterized by tasteful improvisation…
The Red Clay Ramblers
Now in their 38th year, the Tony Award-winning Red Clay Ramblers are a North Carolina string band whose repertoire reflects their roots in old-time mountain music, as well as bluegrass, country, rock, New Orleans jazz, gospel, and the American musical.
Nathan Rogers
Some say he was born into it, some that he was born with it, while others claim he has earned it. With one foot planted firmly in folk music’s traditional roots and the other reaching into its dynamic future, Nathan Rogers isn’t entirely sure what ‘it’ is; singer, songwriter, guitarist, throat-chanter, percussionist, revivalist, or innovator. [...]
Tanya Tagaq
‘Indescribable’ is not an appropriate word to begin an artist’s bio, nor is it suitable as a description of a musician. The problem is this: when Tanya Tagaqs’ music fills your ears, she is genuinely one of those rare artists whose sounds and styles are truly groundbreaking. ‘Inuit throat singer’ is one part of her sonic quotient. So are descriptions like ‘orchestral’ ‘hip-hop-infused’ and ‘primal’…
Talisker
Based out of Smithers/Telkwa in north central BC, the Talisker Family Dance Band was originally a performance Celtic band playing the usual array of Irish fiddle tunes, Scottish battle songs and any other Celtic tune that caught their fancy.
The Tannahill Weavers
The Tannahill Weavers are one of Scotland’s premier traditional bands. Their diverse repertoire spans the centuries with fire-driven instrumentals, topical songs, and original ballads and lullabies.
Tony Trischka
Tony Trischka is perhaps the most influential banjo player in the roots music world. For more than 35 years, his stylings have inspired a whole generation of bluegrass and acoustic musicians. He is not only considered among the very best pickers, he is also one of the instrument’s top teachers…
Twisted String
The Twisted String is a unique teaching and performance concept developed by fiddler/composer Oliver Schroer. It is called The Twisted String because it is string music and it is slightly twisted. There is also the sense of twisting a bunch of threads together to make a stronger chord.
Tim Williams and the Electro-Fires
Imagine, if you can, a front porch where Robert Johnson, Hank Williams, Hula Hattie, Flaco Jimenez and Bob Marley meet often and discover just how much they have in common. Tim’s music would fit right in.
Jamyang Yeshi
Jamyang Yeshi was born a nomad in Tibet, and escaped across the Himalayas in 1998, settling in Dharamsala, India,where he was part of the popular Aku Pema Performing Arts group. In 2004, Jamyang released a CD with the singer, Yangchen, “Call from A Far Land,” and they also performed in Moscow at a Tibetan Buddhist cultural festival that year.
Jesse Zubot
Jesse Zubot, of Britannia Beach, B.C., is a founding member of the acoustic-roots ensemble ‘Zubot & Dawson’. Zubot was also a member of the Great Uncles of the Revolution which included well-known Toronto bassist Andrew Downing and trumpeter Kevin Turcotte. Both of these recording acts are Juno Award winners.
