Young musicians will take the stage later this month at two area music festivals.
The Twin Rivers Music Festival (TRMF) runs March 18 to 27 in Dalmeny; and the Sask Valley Music Festival (SVMF) is scheduled for March 23-29 in Rosthern.
“We’re really happy to have live performances once again at our festival,” said TRMF President Doreen Benson. “After a two-year unplanned break, we’re ready and anxious to get things rolling.”
Benson said festival organizers were blind sided by the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020.
“We had to cancel it very quickly in 2020, and in 2021, we didn’t plan for a full festival, although we did have an online showcase through our facebook page,” she said. “This year, we’ve had to pare down the program a bit, so it will be smaller, but overall everyone is very excited about getting back to normal.”
In past years the TRMF was held in the Dalmeny Bible Church and the Dalmeny Community Church. This year, the Bible Church is not in the mix.
The Community Church is still the location for the piano entries, but the spoken word and vocals competitions will be held at the Dalmeny Seniors Heritage Centre.
“In many ways the Heritage Centre works better for the spoken word and vocals,” said Benson. “It’s a smaller venue, and more intimate. In a big church, it’s harder for the voices to carry because we don’t use any microphones.”
Benson said the festival had to cut out its instrumental and band categories, which reduced the number of entrants by quite a bit. At the time of registration earlier this winter, several public health restrictions were still in place, including proof of vaccination. And while that is no longer a rule, the registration process wrapped up while it was still in effect.
“The applications closed at the end of January,” said Benson.
The TRMF program begins Friday, March 18 and wraps up Sunday, March 27 with an awards concert at 3 pm at the Dalmeny Community Church.
Benson said the public is encouraged to attend the events. There is no entrance fee but donations are accepted. Full program information is available on the TRMF website.
The SVMF is also returning to live performances after a two-year hiatus.
“We’re very happy to get back to having a live festival again,” said SVMF President Linda Swab.
“Last year we were online with a virtual festival, and it worked fairly well. But there’s a big difference between a virtual performance and a live performance.”
Swab said last year students submitted videos of their performance, which were submitted to adjudicators and subsequently judged. The videos were posted online on a private youtube channel for viewing for a few weeks. An online awards concert combined the winning videos.
Swab said the festival’s numbers are down this year, largely becasuse of the lack of instrumental entries.
The SVMF kicks off with piano performances on March 23 and 24 at the Rosthern Mennonite Church; and voice, choral and speech arts take place March 28 and 29, also at Rosthern Mennonite Church.
A program of Musical Theatre competition is slated for Monday evening, March 28 at the Station Arts Centre. A final awards concert is also planned for Friday, April 1.
Swab said holding the musical theatre performances at the Station Arts Centre provides students with an opportunity to perform on a professional stage.
“It’s a beautiful facility, so it’s nice to be able to offer students a chance to show off their talent in a setting like that,” she said.
The events, including the awards evening, is open to the public.
The SVMF kicks off with piano March 23 and 24 at the Rosthern Mennonite Church, and voice, choral and speech arts takes place March 28 and 29, also at Rosthern Mennonite Church.
A program of Musical Theatre competition takes place Monday evening, March 28 at the Station Arts Centre. A final awards concert is also planned. Additional information is available on the SVMF website.