It’s still too early to say whether the Jasper Folk Music Festival hit its attendance targets or not, but based on the turnout and feedback from musicians, it was a rocking success.
“I think the event went very smoothly,” said Matt Cushing, music coordinator for the festival.
“Every single one of the artists was just blown away at the professionalism and the way it was run,” he said, praising the organizing committee and the volunteers who helped make the festival happen.
He said it’s too early to know how many tickets were sold, but said he thought the event was “well attended.”
Under sunny skies and with temperatures in the mid 20s, the festival kicked off Friday evening with a solo act by local favourite Gui Benoit, from the Mighty Water, the winner of the festival’s Battle Royale in June.
Following his act, Dirty Grace and Red Haven took over the stage and at times combined their bands into one large ensemble. The result was two hours of playful music ranging from Dirty Grace’s contagious melodies to Red Haven’s gypsy jazz inspired indie pop songs.
Not to be outdone, Jasperite Sam Heine kept the party alive with his band Sam Spades. The rockabilly trio pulled people out of the chairs to the front of the stage, quickly turning the grass into an ad hoc dance floor.
To close out the evening, Tequila Mockingbird Orchestra wowed the audience with a whole slew of new songs from their forth album LOVE, giving the crowd an eclectic blend of electric guitar, piano, accordion, fiddle and standup bass.
On Saturday, the festival continued to buzz with 11 hour-long sets, including performances by fan favourites The Wardens, Alberta’s Joal Kamps, the always well-dressed Pick Brothers and, of course, headliner Harry Manx.
Despite playing through a downpour, fans stuck around to watch Manx shred the 20-stringed Mohan Veena. After finishing his set, fans coaxed one more song out of him, as he finished the night off with a cover of Bruce Springsteen’s “I’m On Fire.”
“I personally met the man and we hung out quite a bit over the two days and he’s just a wonderful player and an even greater person,” Cushing said of Manx.
The biggest surprise of the day and perhaps of the entire festival was Toronto’s Birds of Bellwoods, which played on both Saturday and Sunday, despite being scheduled to play only one set.
The band’s youthful energy was palpable, even from across the field at the beer tent. It didn’t hurt that they were clearly enamoured by Jasper’s beauty, taking time to reflect on the festival’s picturesque setting.
“I loved everyone, but the standout was definitely Birds of Bellwoods,” said Cushing. “The way they fell in love with our community was fun to see.”
On Sunday the show went on, celebrating Jasper’s local talent with performances by Kiki the Eco Elf, Aboriginal drumming with Warrior Women and a Francophone performance by Marie and the Stone Mountaineers. There was even a surprise performance by Houle’s Gold, led by Terence Houle and Spencer Dunn, who also emceed the event.
Perhaps the best indicator of the festival’s overall success, however, was the beer tent, which appeared to be doing brisk business throughout the weekend—especially while the rain poured down on Saturday night.
“I believe the beer tent was a huge success,” said Cushing.“The Brew Pub put out some great product and we sold it at a very reasonable price.”
As for whether the event will be back again next year?
You betcha!
Paul Clarke
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