The person employed in this position will assist the administration duties of the Administration office and Production office, and report to the Administrator and Production Manager.

Successful candidates will possess strong organizational, communication and

interpersonal skills, with good attention to detail. Experience in handling and tracking cash, the ability to work well under pressure would be considered to be an asset. Experience with MS Office (Word, Excel) and database maintenance would be considered an asset. Self motivation and demonstrable responsibility would be considered advantageous in applications.

This is a 12 week position beginning May 30, 2012, full time at $15.00 per hour. Some flexibility in hours will be required, and some evening and weekend availability may be required.

Availability on June 1st and the Festival Weekend (Aug 9th-12th) are mandatory and time off in lieu will be provided for any overtime.

Funding requirements mean that only full-time students between the ages of 15 and 30 (inclusive) who are returning to full-time school next year can be considered. Preference will be given to applicants with volunteer experience with our organization or related job experience. Granting requirements also limit applications to Canadian Citizens and/or Permanent Residents.

Forward applications by 2:00 p.m. May 11, 2012, to:

Shauna Stewart admin2@efmf.ab.ca

Administrative Assistant- Edmonton Folk Music Festival

P.O. Box 4130, Edmonton, AB T6E 4T2

phone (780) 429-1899

fax (780) 424-1132

Interviews will be within 3 days of closing for vetted applicants.

For information on other volunteer crews go to our Get Involved: Volunteer page

with Special Guests Over the Rhine

Winspear Presents June 10, 2012 – 8:00 pm

Living Legends of Gospel Music bring their uplifting harmonies to the Winspear Stage

Welcome back The Blind Boys of Alabama! Touring in support of their new album, Take The High Road, a night of gospel, R&B, jazz and even country will mesmerize audiences with their rich harmonies and sweet soul. Brian Hiatt of Rolling Stone writes, “The fusion of the Blind Boys’ Deep South gospel with New Orleans funk, R&B and jazz creates a superweapon of roots-music uplift… will raise goose bumps even on the tatted-up arms of resolutely futurist hipsters.”

Special guests Over the Rhine will be opening for The Blind Boys of Alabama featuring songs from their twenty year career. Husband and wife team, Lintford Detweiler and Karin Bergquist, present an acoustic evening backed by piano and guitar.

Tickets for this concert are available Thursday, April 19 at 10:00 am, and range from $36 – $44 plus applicable service charges. Additional information is available from the Winspear Centre Box Office at (780) 428-1414, toll free 1-800-563-5081 or online at WinspearCentre.com.

Also coming to the Winspear:

May 7th – John Prine: an intimate evening with one of America’s finest songwriters

Check out the WinspearCentre.com for details.

More Recently Announced 2012 EFMF Artists

David Wax Museum- Recently anointed as Boston’s Americana Artist of the Year (2010 Boston Music Awards), the David Wax Museum has been called “pure, irresistible joy” (Bob Boilen, NPR) and hailed by TIME.com for its “virtuosic musical skill and virtuous harmonies.” It is no surprise that its acclaimed performance at the 2010 Newport Folk Festival was hailed as one of highlights of the entire weekend by NPR. The Museum fuses traditional Mexican folk with American roots and indie rock to create an utterly unique Mexo-Americana aesthetic. Combining Latin rhythms, call-and-response hollering, and donkey jawbone rattling, they have electrified audiences across the country and are “kicking up a cloud of excitement with their high-energy border-crossing sensibility” (The New Yorker).

James Vincent McMorrow- His debut record, Early in the Morning, was released in Ireland to widespread critical acclaim in February 2010. “Sounds both fresh and as if they’ve been in your head forever…McMorrow’s debut deserves its success.” – Q Magazine. A stunning collection of songs recorded over 5 months in an isolated house by the sea, the album is a completely self recorded and played affair, filled with beguiling and vivid stories, fables that move from a whisper in your ear to a mountainous crescendo in the space of a song, all the while retaining the environment and sentiment in which they were formed.

We’ll hear some of the best songs from that 2 hour performance, including acoustic blues from Kat Danser; quirky observations from John Rutherford; laid back blues from Bill Bourne…

Saturday 5-6pm across Alberta on CBC Radio1, or listen online from anywhere 5-6pm MTN at www.cbc.ca/calgary or www.cbc.ca/edmonton.

Increase in numbers = adjustments

In 2011, due in part to our technical difficulties with phone sales, there were more people on site than in previous years, thus in 2012 we will revert back to our previous capacity of 11,000 weekend passes. There will be 1000 fewer weekend passes for sale this year.

We think there will be disappointment on June 2^nd , as demand for tickets will likely outstrip supply. We will strive to distribute tickets as fairly and efficiently as possible. Ticket purchase limits have been dropped from 10 per order to 6 in person and 4 on line.

The other area of audience growth is in the number of seniors attending. There has been a 600% growth in these numbers over the past 10 years. With the baby boomer wave just hitting our shores, our policy of free admission for seniors is no longer sustainable. There is still free admission for seniors for the 2012 festival but starting in 2013, the festival will charge half price for weekend passes for seniors. Revenue from seniors weekend passes will go directly into our Endowment Fund.

Other changes

On a 1-year trial basis, Saturday and Sunday tickets will be “all day” tickets, allowing purchasers to enjoy the sessions.

The festival will no longer be selling tickets by phone through our own box office. Phone sales will now be handled only by Ticketmaster. The festival box office will still handle in-person and online sales.

Keep an eye on our website for exact details for June 1^st sales.

This is also a housekeeping year with special attention being paid to June 1^st, along with morning lotteries and gate entry procedures in August with a goal of shortening wait times and increasing patron comfort.

As always, the biggest news will be the lineup and I am 6-8 artists away from being fully booked. Our reputation, along with a very strong artistic budget, guarantees an exceptional lineup of folk talent from around the world, as you will see when we announce the lineup on Wednesday, May 30^th.

Terry Wickham [ Producer ]

More 2012 Artists Announced…

The Barr Brothers…”progressive folk-blues quartet dazzles warmly with eccentric instruments, unique musicianship and a magician’s flair;  a quartet that adventures in a soulful, sometimes whimsical sort of Americana and the deepest of blues powers.” (Globe and Mail, March 2012) Check out their recent appearance on Letterman.

Steve Forbert

Singer-songwriter Steve Forbert had his first major hit in 1979 when he was only 25 years old, shortly after moving to New York City from his hometown of Meridian, Miss where he had been working as a truck driver. Thirty-plus years later, he’s still writing acclaimed songs and has released 14 studio albums, including a Grammy-nominated tribute to another Mississippi legend, Jimmie Rodgers.

Martin Simpson – There is no doubt that after 35 years as a professional musician Martin is, right now, better than ever. Widely acknowledged as one of the finest acoustic and slide guitar players in the world, his interpretations of traditional songs are masterpieces of storytelling.

Others already announced…

Dougie McLean,  Arrested Development, Martyn Joseph, Dry Bones, Geoff Berner, David Bromberg, Andrea House, Wool on Wolves, Rory Block, Oscar Lopez.

Employment Opportunities at the Edmonton Folk Music Festival

Love the festival? Get involved! Check out the following links for several summer positions here at the festival.

Box Office

Production Assistant

Check out our upcoming concerts listing for exciting events around Edmonton! Including the Winspear Presents Series, folk clubs and soft seaters and other shows around the city.

Love the festival? Get involved! Check out the following links for several full time summer positions here at the festival.

Box Office

Production Assistant This position is now closed (as of April 3, 2012)

Related show

• Artist: Winter Roots and Blues Round Up
• Date: Thursday, February 23rd 2012 - Sunday, February 26th 2012
• City: Winter Roots and Blues Round Up in Edmonton
• Venue: Around Town
• Country: CA
• Add to Google Calendar | Download iCal

John Prine: an intimate evening with one of America’s finest songwriters

For immediate release

Edmonton (February 9, 2012) – American legend John Prine returns to Edmonton for a special performance on the Winspear stage playing hits from his storied forty-year career.

This concert marks Prine’s third appearance in Edmonton in the last four years. This time he returns promoting his new release The Singing Mailman Delivers, a two-disc archival set featuring his earliest studio and live recordings dating back to 1970, one year before his debut album.

Prine’s roots began on the stage playing nights in Chicago bars, while delivering mail by day. After catching the eye of Kris Kristofferson he was offered a recording contract and his music career took off. His impeccable songwriting has earned him praise from such icons as Bob Dylan, Roger Waters and Johnny Cash.

His respected musicianship and songwriting ability translates to his live performances. Prine’s concerts are akin to seeing a great storyteller, he mesmerizes with his humble poetry, describing everyday life in ways that few can.

With 22 albums to his name Prine has received many accolades including two Grammys and the distinction of being one of the few songwriters honoured by the Library of Congress and the U.S. Poet Laureate.

Tickets for this intimate evening are available Friday, February 10, 2012 at 10:00 am and range from $51.50 – $61.50 plus applicable service charges. Additional information is available from the Winspear Centre Box Office at (780) 428-1414, toll free 1-800-563-5081 or online at WinspearCentre.com.

And don’t forget – also coming up at the Winspear:

2011-12 Winspear Presents

Hear dynamic artists from around the world in the incredible acoustics of the Winspear Centre!

Monday, April 9, 2012, 8:00 pm
Soweto Gospel Choir
Winspear Presents 2011-12
The acclaimed Soweto Gospel Choir returns to the Winspear Centre with a dazzling and energetic performance!

Thursday, April 19, 2012, 8:00 pm
Joel Plaskett Emergency with Special Guest Frank Turner
Winspear Presents 2011-12
The Scrappy Happiness Tour

Friday, April 20, 2012, 8:00 pm
Pavlo
Winspear Presents 2011-12
Pavlo brings his Mediterranean sound to the Winspear Centre for an exciting and inspiring evening of world music.
For more information and to buy tickets visit:  The Winspear Presents

Sunday February 19th – The Haven Social Club
Fundraising Event

The Haven has been not-for-profit venue hosting wonderful talent from Edmonton and across the country for almost three years and has established a name for itself as one of the best small venues to play in Canada.  We are having our Winter fundraiser and could use all the support of those who can make it to this event.  It falls on February 19th, the Sunday of the Family Day long weekend and there are two parts to the fundraiser.  First, in the afternoon, there will be a silent auction with musical performances by Joe Nolan, James Murdoch, Ariane Mahrÿke Lemire, and Jay Gilday as they share the stage, playing in-the-round.  This will be followed by a short break for final bids on the silent auction after which F&M will take the stage.   Doors are at 1:00pm, show starts at 2:00pm, and this event is free.

Later that day, the second half of our Winter Fundraiser is a booty-shaker featuring Juno-nominee Souljah Fyah, Boogie Patrol, The Canyon Rose Outfit, Scantily Clad & the Well Dressed Men, and Dead Cat Bounce.  This show is a celebration of dance and is a $10 minimum donation.

We will have the auction items on the website one week prior to the fundraiser so feel to check them out at www.thehavensocialclub.com.  Please share this information with anyone who cherishes the arts in our community.    This challenging year has left us in a position where we need to bring together those who are passionate about The Haven, understand what it means to this industry, and keep us in a position to be a place where musicians can be assured that music is first and foremost in our focus.

Stay Tuned for more festival announcements coming soon….

“Celebration of the Life of Colin Lay”

Tuesday January 31, 2:00 pm
Westlawn Funeral Home
10132 163 St NW, Edmonton, AB T5P 4X3
(780) 489-1602
http://www.westlawnmemorial.com
(an obituary for Colin will be posted at this website shortly)

2012 Message from the Producer
Festival bookings are coming along nicely, as you can see below. I was very pleased with the improvements to our festival in 2011, such as high def screens and the elimination of Stage 4, leading to a huge reduction in the amount of sound bleed between Stages 3-5.

Our staff and board are working through policies and procedures relating to June 1 ticket sales, ticket pricing and fine-tuning all our systems. Due to the problems with out phone system on June 1 last year we oversold by an average of 900 tickets per day, we will be decreasing attendance in 2012.

The other large part of the growth of numbers on site, is in the number of seniors attending. Over the past 10 years this number has grown by 400-500% and this is obviously not sustainable if the festival is to continue to thrive and remain comfortable for all. We have a working idea as to how to address this. There will be no change in our policy of free admission for seniors in 2012, but look for changes in this policy at the 2013 festival.

I am honoured to continue to work for our festival and I think the best is yet to come.
Terry Wickham [ Producer ]

Artists that are confirmed for the 2012 Edmonton Folk Music Festival include:

Dougie McLean is one of Scotland’s most successful, respected and popular musicians. From his home base in Scotland, MacLean tours the world with his unique blend of lyrical, ‘roots based’ songwriting and instrumental composition.

Arrested Development – Two-time Grammy award winning hip-hop group, true trailblazers in hip-hop. Since 1991 they’ve championed fresh sounds, spreading unique hip-hop around the world, including a successful stop at the 2009 Edmonton Folk Music Festival.

Martyn Joseph – A festival favourite with shades of Springsteen, Bruce Cockburn and Dave Matthews, he stands in his own right, built on a reputation for giving what thousands have described as the best live music experience of their lives.

Dry Bones – Leonard Podolak, Nathan Rogers and J.D. Edwards, all Winnipeg artists, and each a success in their own ensemble or career, have united to perform as DRy Bones. “One moment Dry Bones sounds like a traditional jug band and then shifts and becomes the arousing herald of today’s acoustic rock and roll.”

Geoff Berner – An evening spent with Geoff Berner’s music is, in the words of the good Dr. Hunter S. Thompson, “a wild combination of menace, madness, and genius… fragmented coherence that wreaks havoc on the mind of any listener.” – Vue Weekly, Edmonton

David Bromberg – Contstantly bending musical genres, he’s played with everyone, he’s toured everywhere, he can lead a raucous big band or hold an audience silent with a solo acoustic blues.

Andrea House – A singer with a penchant for melody whose writing floats beautifully between the hits of Patsy Cline and Billie Holiday, Willie Nelson and Irving Berlin, Allison Krauss and Norah Jones. Whether the influence is obvious or ambiguous, the focus is clear: this is a impassioned voice reminiscent of the great singers of the 1940’s and 1950’s telling stories of depth and meaning.

Wool on Wolves is a band; pure and simple. They’re musicians who hold a genuine belief that music has the ability to move beyond speakers and headphones to truly encapsulate the human experience. Each member of the group is a multi-instrumentalist, well-educated in classic and modern musical aesthetics and with tastes as diverse as their University degrees, the band aims to write and perform material that is fresh yet familiar at the same time.

Rory Block -  Heralded as “a living landmark” (Berkeley Express), “a national treasure” (Guitar Extra), and “one of the greatest living acoustic blues artists” (Blues Revue), Rory Block has committed her life and her career to preserving the Delta blues tradition and bringing it to life for 21st century audiences around the world. “Some of the most singular and affecting Country Blues anyone, man or woman, black or white, old or young, has cut in recent years.” Rolling Stone

Oscar Lopez - Never afraid to venture into different genres, Lopez easily incorporates jazz, blues, and even pop sensibilities into his music. But one thing remains constant: letting the passion and fire within his soul loose through his fingertips and onto the guitar strings. His deep commitment to his art has earned Lopez two Juno awards, critics praise, and thousands of devoted fans who have filled theaters across the continent to experience his amazing performances first hand.

…plus 50 more to be announced.

2012 Festival General Information

The 2012 Edmonton Folk Music Festival will take place on August 9 – 12.
Tickets will go on sale June 1st.

Stay tuned for further info and changes for the 2012 festival.

Craft and Concession vendor applications for 2012 will be available on the website as of January 12th. Deadlines for application are: Concessions – March 23rd; Crafts – April 12th (NOON).

Coming Events around Edmonton:

The Winspear Presents:

April 9th, 2012

The acclaimed Soweto Gospel Choir returns to the Winspear Centre with a dazzling and energetic performance!  “..songs calculated to go straight to the heart, sung with that joyous sense of celebration and exuberance that only black South African choirs seem capable of achieving.” West Australian, Perth

April 19th, 2012

Joel Plaskett Emergency – The Scrappy Happiness Tour.
It should come as no surprise that the multi-talented and always unpredictable Joel Plaskett is taking a unique approach to the launch of his next record.  Starting on January 10th, Plaskett and his band, The Emergency, will record and digitally release a song a week for 10 weeks. Plaskett is shaking up the standard process of recording and releasing, harkening back to the ’50′s and ’60′s when songs went from the studio to radio to the public very quickly. A physical version of the full record, Scrappy Happiness will be released to retail on March 27th and will be followed by a tour – this tour arrives in Edmonton on April 19th, with a show at the Winspear Centre.

April 20th, 2012

Pavlo brings his Mediterranean sound to the Winspear Centre for an exciting and inspiring evening of world music.

For tickets and info for the Winspear Presents shows follow the link: http://www.winspearcentre.com/winspear-presents-series/2011-12-winspear-presents/