Concert Showcases Top Harpist
Get ready Whitehorse for a spectacular concert with visiting Pedal Harpist Meta Epstein, along with Ben Johnson and Barry Kitchen.
Music
Yukon’s music magazine, What’s Up Yukon is always packed with local Yukon musician stories! With live music nearly every night of the week, how could we not? Additionally, What’s Up Yukon hosts the most comprehensive Yukon live music events listings.
The Gift Of Community
The Boys and Girls Club Yukon has announced that they are renewing the Gift of Community program for the eighth year this Holiday Season.
25 Years of Radio Rob
It’s been 25 years since Rob Hopkins, often known as Radio Rob, started up his first radio station, CFET-FM, in his home of Tagish.
Major Funk – New Tunes En Route
On Halloween weekend, the 202 opened its doors once again to Yukoners (in costume). Major Funk took the stage as the cast from Mario Kart.
The Choir Is Back
The Whitehorse Community Choir’s annual Christmas shows are happening Dec. 2-3, and won’t be scaled down due to pandemic restrictions.
Sass Is Coming Back
Sass Jordan, the multi-Platinum-selling, award-winning songstress has been constantly busy since her career began 40 years ago.
Unleashed! Joey O’Neil On Tour
Joey O’Neil is on tour with her dog, Oblio, playing songs from her album Ever Ahead, in dog parks across Canada.
Augusto! Children’s Festival: A Fun-filled Family Weekend
Augusto! Children’s Festival will offer three days of dance, parties, crafts, music and more from August 12–14 in Haines Junction.
From Paris, With Love
After nearly a decade in the Yukon, Paris Pick is moving away to pursue music school and then her career as an music artist.
Dawson’s Fridays Are A Time For Music!
Fridays are live music days in Dawson, this summer, with concerts at Riverside Park Gazebo and at the KIAC (Dënäkär Zho) Ballroom.
Guided to an Imperfect Light
Rick Massie’s songs are often long, complex and multi-stylistic, they usually start with one riff or idea and grow from there.
The Music Festival on the Top of the World
Chickenstock Music Festival will take place in Chicken, Alaska. The bad news—it’s already sold out. The good news—there’s a waiting list.
There’s a new festival in town
A weekend festival in multiple locations. The inaugural Yukon Music Festival, by the YRMTA, runs from April 21 to 23.
Yukon Harpists Society: A New Sound in The Yukon
Yukon Harpists Society (YHS) has raised almost enough money to buy a stand-up concert pedal harp for the Yukon
Whitehorse’s Japanese Taiko Drumming Ensemble
“We were practicing with garbage bins,” said Yoko Oda of Whitehorse’s Japanese Taiko Drumming. “Finally, we got the funding,”
This Spring at the Jenni House
Jenni house welcomed Paris Pick, working on new songs; & Martha Ritchie, printing on repurposed textiles, as resident artists.
Erica Mah is trying something different
Erica Dee Mah’s new album isn’t exactly a new album. “On this project, I feel like I’m leaning into my classical training a bit more,”
Music From the Edges of Canada
A new live-streamed concert series features artists from rural parts of Canada, including Yukon musicians.
Danger Pay: Uncertain times have not stopped Whitehorse’s Speed Control from pushing on, with a new EP due this winter
Speed Control released “Danger Pay,” with an accompanying music video best described as over-the-top. It BLEW UP!
The Fiddler in the North
Simon Crelli is a Yukon musician with quite an impressive resume, and a mentor to many of the territory’s young musicians.
Whitehorse stars Soda Pony are back with a new album and a short film to go with it
Soda Pony’s Senior Year is an album & a movie. Aiden Tentrees and Patrick Hamilton cooked up this visual album in “post-gig glory chats,”
Community Connection: Arts arts arts!
The return to emergency COVID measures took some people by surprise, but it certainly hasn’t got the community down! Performers, artists and presenters alike found safe ways to present a multitude of events at the Yukon Arts Center over the last fews weeks.
Christmas with the Choir: COVID-19 restrictions mean an online (but still joyful!) holiday concert this year
The Whitehorse Community Choir, “Tidings and Tinsel,” for 2021. COVID-19 restrictions mean an online (but still joyful!) holiday concert.
The Wonders of our territory
Though never in the Yukon, a fascination with its aura—the “nature, wilderness and rugged beauty”— led to the name Wonders of the Yukon
Theatre in the Bush 2021
Ramshackle Theatre in the Bush “I’m already out in the yard,” Fidler says. “I’ve got my chainsaw out and I’m clearing the paths.”
Homecoming for Brandon Isaak
“We wanted to do a record and we didn’t have long to do it,” says Isaak. “So we just did it live in a day, basically.”
Mean Old World: Gordie Tentrees album release
Of everything he’s recorded, Tentrees is confident that his upcoming studio effort contains his best work to date.
Hot Eats Cool Beats: new family fun street eats festival
An expansion of the Street Eats Festival this year’s festival offers food trucks, live music, art installations and a historical tasting tour.
Klondike Korner: DCMF 2021 is reborn in a smaller, later version this COVID year
September 10 to 12. DCMF is a bite sized three day event spending days in the Waterfront Park Gazebo and nights in the Palace Grand Theatre.
Paris Pick – A Star is born
Whitehorse musician Paris Pick’s most recent video, the title track from her album I Can’t Help It , is blowing up on YouTube
Drea Naysayer is still rocking
A new incarnation of The Naysayers will be releasing a self-titled album on June 25 via Coax Records
Friday is Concert time at the Gazebo
Most Fridays this summer, whether there is rain or shine, it will be concert time at noon at the Front Street Gazebo, in Dawson City.
Arts in the Park is back on the air
For the second year in a row, Arts in the Park will be presenting an adapted season to fit with pandemic protocols.
Summer Music Camp
This year’s Yukon Summer Music Camp is going ahead, with a new producer and administrative officer at the helm. Yukon Music Camp Society has opened registration for the second year of Yukon Summer Music Camp, pandemic edition.
A new arrival
The August Arrival’s first new music in a decade. “ it’s nice to be putting out something a little more public.”
Music for a cause
Local musicians Keitha Clark and Graeme Poile donated the proceeds from their new EP to Whitehorse’s Community Outreach Van.
Live music returns to Dënäkär Zho
COVID-19 pretty much shut down live music in Dawson in 2020. This year the Klondike Institute of Art and Culture (Dënäkär Zho), in partnership with the Dawson City Music Festival, has been trying hard to bring some of it back over the last few months.
The Masked Singers
It’s been a complicated year for Whitehorse Community Choir. Around a year ago, they went from regularly scheduled full rehearsals to absolutely nothing, and had no idea when or how they’d be able to return.It’s been a complicated year for Whitehorse Community Choir.
The show must go on
The All-City Band’s March concerts take place the evenings of March 30 and 31. They will be presented through the Yukon Arts Centre.
Out of Nowhere
Yukon artist Ambrose has been challenging herself to grow as a singer and songwriter for years, and she’s just released her second full-length album.
Think About The Wild
Rodden has created albums for adults but he says his niche is really children’s music. His recently released Think About the Wild.
Goodbye, Smith House
Music Yukon has been forced to seriously rethink its future and make plans to stay afloat in a changing industry and economy. One of those changes includes moving out of the Smith House, the little blue house in Lepage Park that Music Yukon has called home for nearly a decade.
The N.U.E. kids in town
Northern Underground Expressions (N.U.E.) is a Whitehorse-based independent record label focused on giving a bigger platform to underground hip-hop artists from the Yukon.
Melia Hudgin
The second artist featured in our “Musicians in Isolation Series,” multi-stylist Melia Hudgin is currently working on her debut EP and preparing to move to Toronto in the fall.
From the vaults
After 17 years, late Yukon musician Aylie Sparkes’ album has finally gotten a digital release.
Shining Lights
Shine Your Light is a weekly radio show featuring live music, poetry, comedy and conversation, spearheaded by Matthew “Toots” Toothill.
The new string on Erica Mah’s bow
For Erica Mah, after roughly 10 years of dabbling with a traditional Chinese instrument called the guzheng, she’s now playing it for Whitehorse audiences.
Pulling at your harp strings
the Yukon Harpists Society wants to buy a concert pedal harp that both senior harp students and visiting musicians can use. Something beautiful and lasting can come out of this pandemic.
A storm is brewing
Last time What’s Up Yukon spoke with Whitehorse-based prog metal artist Rick Massie, he had just released his debut solo album, Eclipse. Now, only five months on, Massie is already working on new music.
All in the family
The Jennifer Scott Quintet will bring an electric jazz program to the Yukon this weekend In one sense, Jennifer Scott’s newest CD, due to be released sometime in the next few months, is a fitting tribute to the Vancouver singer/pianist’s own musical upbringing. Titled Music for Bigs & Smalls, the album consists of what Scott calls …
Diyet and the Love Soldiers
This July, Diyet and the Love Soldiers released a video project to accompany their song, “Brave Face.” The track was the third single and opener from the multi-stylistic group’s recent studio album, 2018’s Diyet and the Love Soldiers. The album had already received recent accolades including winning the Canadian Folk Music Award for Indigenous Songwriter …
Whitehorse Community Choir Goes Virtual
In these uncertain and unusual times, the “new normal” doesn’t always look like the old one! The Whitehorse Community Choir has come up with a way to permit members to sing while still respecting their health and safety – a virtual choir. The choir will be holding virtual practices on Zoom starting on Monday, September …
A Look Back at Arts in the Park 2020
I didn’t expect Arts in the Park to happen at all this year. Everything was getting cancelled, from big festivals like Atlin Arts and Music Festival and Dawson City Music Festival, to smaller bar shows with local acts. It just seemed like live music wasn’t going to be something that was happening at all, and …
Stephen Gallant
Stephen Gallant is a classically trained, multi-instrumentalist director and performer who has held the role of Musical Director at Diamond Tooth Gerties in Dawson City, Yukon, for 7 consecutive seasons.
Musicians in Isolation: Fawn Fritzen
Fawn Fritzen had originally planned on releasing her new album, How to Say Sorry and Other Lessons, in the spring and touring in support of it. But like so many other artists, she had her summer derailed by COVID-19 and had to completely reimagine her album release and promotional plan.
Radio Stars!
Yukon Arts In the Park returns for 2020 season and will broadcast live on CJUC 92.5 FM radio station. Check out the line up!
Full eclipse
It just hit me—I need this back.” Rick Massie hadn’t played guitar or any other instrument for around 15 years before he started working on his debut solo album. He claims he never really prioritized music, and though he played in all kinds of bands when he was younger, he drifted further and further away …
Total Eclipse of the Heart
“It just hit me—I need this back.” Rick Massie hadn’t played guitar or any other instrument for around 15 years before he started working on his debut solo album. He claims he never really prioritized music, and though he played in all kinds of bands when he was younger, he drifted further and further away …
Childhood memories for children and parents alike
Over the last four years Claire Ness has been pulling inspiration from her childhood memories and her time as a mother to create her new album, Broccoli Farm. “I am really excited to get this one out there,” said Ness, “It is a collection of original kid’s songs that I have been working on for the …
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It feels like there’s just a hole in my chest
Local Boy the same situation as musicians everywhere; every show he was looking forward to this summer has been cancelled or is likely to be.
Going the Distance
Physical distancing has thrown a wrench in the plans of musicians all over the world—here’s how the Yukon’s own are dealing with these times
Even if you don’t like the tune, fess up and pay the piper
I was only six in 1949 when South Pacific, the musical by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II (with help from Joshua Logan), was the hottest ticket on Broadway.
A lifetime of music
It may be an exaggeration to say that Kermit the Frog saved my life, but only slightly. It was 1971. I was 17. The Beatles sang “The Long and Winding Road” and I was deep in the swamp of solipsistic angst in the way that only teenagers can be. “Last night I was a girl …
Nicole Edwards: Mind over music
Nicole Edwards quietly released Yukon Lullaby for Mental Health. It has just one song, but includes a suite of mindfulness education tools.
Tenor of his times
The Sam Taylor Trio will present an evening of jazz standards at the Yukon Arts Centre on Sunday, Jan. 26, as part of the Jazz on the Wing series. Besides Taylor, personnel will include Aaron Seeber on drums and Neal Miner on upright bass.
The quintessential listening room
What to expect from an upcoming concert at Hamilton & Sons? Well, quite frankly, stories and dynamics and comedy, but all sort of wrapped up in a pretty riveting musical delivery.
The many of voices of “Canadiana”
On the longest night of the year, Yukon’s very own chamber orchestra will take the stage at the Yukon Arts Centre for a musical exploration of the theme “Canadiana.”
Ring in the Holidays with Song
For many, the holiday season would not be complete without their favourite Christmas music. The Whitehorse Community Choir has the perfect solution for those who are loathe to see December pass without beautiful renditions of “Silent Night” or “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen.” The choir’s winter concert, Tis the Season, will be sure to fill …
Swing like a beast
One person’s trash is another’s treasure. When Larry Fuller’s older brother brought home an upright piano a cousin was discarding, the “little kid” from Toledo discovered a passion that would take him to the forefront of North America’s jazz scene. “I just started playing it by ear and then I went on to have lessons and …
Dawson entertains itself at monthly coffee houses
It’s Coffee House/Open Mic time at the KIAC Ballroom once again. This is a monthly event that usually takes place on the first Saturday of every month from September through to May. It is one of those things that the community does for itself, as contrasted with all those special events (partly for visitors) that …
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Lawyered up and ready
Without question, Phil Dwyer was the only first-year law student at the University of New Brunswick in 2014 sporting an Order of Canada pin in his lapel. Odds are strong he was also the only frosh who could claim a 30-year career as one of Canada’s most in-demand jazz musicians. Or that his other option for …
A peek behind the curtain
Jona Barr (left), Patrick Hamilton and Brendan Preston produced the unique Beneath the Broadcast video segment in CBC Yukon’s Basement last winter Last winter, nine bands entered the CBC Yukon basement. There, each completed a one-shot live music video. The clips were compiled into a 45-minute segment and released as Beneath the Broadcast at an April screening in …
Still feeling the love
Paris Pick has been up to a lot this past year. Last November, she was featured in What’s Up Yukon for the local release concert of her debut album, Feeling Love, and its subsequent touring. It’s been nearly a year since then, but the Whitehorse soul and pop singer hasn’t slowed down. In fact, things are getting even …
Break on through
Major Funk and the Employment will bring their funky dance music that Yukoners know to BreakOut West this October With the emergence of streaming services, social media and new technology redefining challenges in the musical industry, how does an emerging musician advance their career past the local scene and into touring stardom? That’s the …
This is Groan Boy
Dawson Bealieu, known by his stage alias Groan Boy, is instantly recognizable in his blue blazer—the same one he’s wearing on the concert flyers plastered all over town. In recent months, he’s had a schedule that would exhaust the most zealous workaholics, but he still managed to bring an awful lot of enthusiasm for an …
Kluane mountain twang
The Kluane Mountain Bluegrass Festival (KMBF) has an unfair advantage. It has never had to work to attract world-class performing acts and is known widely on the festival circuit as “the one to play.” The performers, awestruck by the St. Elias range and the beautiful community of Haines Junction, are grateful for the warm reception …
From Yukon longjohns to Alberta Dungarees
“I had no idea we were opening The Calgary Stampede on the main stage in the Saddledome. That was the game changer for The Dungarees.”—Alex Murdoch The long and colourful history of the Yukon is full of men and women who came from all over the world and found great success up North. The best …
Choirs celebrate Celtic music
Spring is coming and so is the merry month of May, when a choir director’s fancy turns to … tartan? Yes, the Whitehorse Community Choir will be celebrating all things Celtic in its spring concert, Ceud Mìle Fàilte (Gaelic for A Hundred Thousand Welcomes) on May 3 and 4 at the Yukon Arts Centre. There will be a …
New Kate Weekes CD reflects singer-songwriter’s growth as a musician
When Kate Weekes plays in Whitehorse on May 2, the audience will hear something new and maybe surprising, even if they’re already fans. Having lived in the territory from 2003 to 2014, the singer-songwriter still spends several months here each year. Many Yukoners are familiar with her work. However, her new CD, Taken By Surprise, serves …
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Digging into commitment
Jack Garton stood in a cemetery on Galiano Island, talking on his cell phone about his latest record. It seems like a weird place to field media requests, until you consider that Garton’s day job, as cemetery sexton, seems to have influenced the album in a way.“I think a lot about how fragile our lives are …
Ripened with age
The Dark Fruits kind of accidentally ended up with an album. Three years ago, singer Jeff Wolosewich booked time at Jordy Walker’s studio, planning to record a single song. The next thing he knew, he’d laid down bed tracks for more than 20 songs.“The guys (Walker and musicians Micah Smith and Patrick Docherty) just played …
The Aurora Trail offers a second set of house concerts
The second half of the Aurora Trail lineup of the Home Routes program began in February, with three house concerts planned between Feb. 1 and April 14. Home Routes sends performers out to do about a dozen house concerts, six times a year, in 11 different touring zones from the Maritimes to the Yukon. We …
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Music to warm your soul
Donovan (comes to our neck of the) Woods His music soothes the soul like that first warm beverage on a busy morning; his lyrics surround your senses with the sort of calm that’s equivalent to a warm, lingering hug from someone you love. Once described as “Canada’s best kept secret,” Whitehorse will be privileged to …
Spreading the JAM for 20 years
Junction Arts and Music celebrate 20 years, close to 400 events and more than 17,000 attendees.
The Vinyl Cut
Take a listen to Antarticus’ album—you almost won’t believe it was released this year. The prog-rock record is packed with extended solos, synthesizers and sci-fi/fantasy themes. As if that’s not old-school enough, it’s also being released on vinyl. “I think it makes sense for our style and mentality,” said bassist, keyboardist and vocalist Mack Smith. …
Enjoyment is the whole point
Vocalist-bass player Katie Thiroux brings her jazz trio to Whitehorse for a Jazz on the Wing concert
Comin’ on down to The Funk is Tight
Dawsonites had a chance to “Get up with the get down and come on down” at Diamond Tooth Gertie’s Gambling Hall on Feb. 23. Whitehorse band Major Funk and the Employment were in town, bringing with them not only a high-energy funk-style dance party, but an added bonus round of fun. The band took to …
Diving in, doing the work
Fawn Fritzen hasn’t always considered herself a feminist. The Whitehorse jazz singer/songwriter wasn’t using that term in 2013 when her first CD, Bedroom Voice, came out. Or in 2016 when she released her second album, Pairings. She certainly didn’t think of herself that way in 2011. That’s when an invitation from Jazz Yukon gave her fledgling career a …
Croon your way to confidence
If you love to sing, but you’ve never stepped onstage in front of a crowd of people to do it, maybe you’ve just never had the proper motivation. How does $1,500 sound?
Champion fiddler makes his Yukon debut this Rendezvous
Having won over judges at competitions around Canada and the United States with his uniquely Canadian style, Ontario born fiddle player Shane Cook is coming to Whitehorse this Rendezvous for his first gig north of 60.
Using their indoor voices
Yukon Sourdough Rendezvous mainstage is indoors this year. “(Being inside) is definitely a change and I hope that people embrace it,”
Do the sourdough sync
When it comes to the Yukon Sourdough Rendezvous lip sync competition, you might have to bring more of an A-game than you’d have to bring to a contest where you actually sing.
Gluing it together
Lonnie Powell’s passion for percussion dates back to a childhood night in B.C.’s Kootenay region, when he attended a wedding reception with his mother and watched a “really animated” drummer strut his stuff.
Music is a birthright
By her own admission, Jodi Proznick, an award-winning bassist and member of Triology, has enjoyed an “incredible performing career, and had opportunities really beyond anything I could have imagined for myself at the beginning of this journey.”
Inspiring on stage
On January 15, Tentrees was joined on the small Hamilton and Son stage for his 90-minute performance by Amelia Rose Slobogean (fiddle) and Graeme Peters (guitar). The trio explored some of their new works and shared their crafting experiences and inspirations of the pieces, displaying a rare chance to see the creative process through someone else’s eyes.
Swinging Hard
After more than two decades as a jazz guitarist, Sheryl Bailey still invokes the name of a player who first inspired her love of the genre, but who died when she was just two years old. “I got into jazz when I was about 15. I heard Wes Montgomery on the radio. I just fell …
Bah! Humbug!
Christmas—’tis the season to be jolly, for many; but for others, not so much (think “Grinch”!). Perhaps … just maybe … a little balance to the celebrating is in order? This year on Friday, November 30, and Saturday, December 1, the Whitehorse Community Choir will take the stage, at the Yukon Arts Centre, to present …
[email protected]
The MacBride Museum of Yukon History has been hosting [email protected], a series of evening shows by local musicians, for 12 years, and will continue this winter in the newly renovated MacBride Museum Aurora Hall. “I started [email protected] about 12 years ago because I wanted to share Yukon’s stories through songs and music, with the audience, …
Paris Pick: Are you feeling the love?
There hardly seems to be a local show these days singer, musician, songwriter and enthusiast of all things tack, Paris Pick.
Brandon Isaak: Spiritual Undertones
After two acoustic solo albums, Bluesman’s Plea (2011) & Here on Earth (2014), Brandon Isaak’s Spiritual Undertones marks a departure.
Fiery energy and spirit
Fate has a habit of steering flute and saxophone player Jane Bunnett in unexpected directions. If tendinitis hadn’t forced a break from her intense piano practice regime, for instance, she might not have gone to San Francisco and met Charles Mingus’s pianist, Don Pullen, who would become her mentor, friend and musical collaborator. If she …
Give in to your temptation
Martin’s solo career launched when The Tea Party went on a hiatus in 2005, before getting back together in 2011. The break provided an opportunity for the three bandmates to reset and explore different opportunities after a long stint together. Martin and Burrows had a band when they were 10 years old, and met Chatwood …
Amsterdam to Tucson to Yukon
Cory Weeds credits the influential jazz label, Criss Cross Jazz, for his initial introduction to long-time friend and musical collaborator, David Hazeltine. In the mid-’90s, the Vancouver sax player, impresario and Juno-winning producer had finished his studies at the University of North Texas and returned to his home roots. Before long, he was spearheading a …
The Queer Songbook Orchestra
The Queer Songbook Orchestra is a Toronto-based 12-piece chamber pop ensemble making their Yukon debut on September 30. The group formed in 2014 and has been dedicated to exploring and elevating queer narrative in pop music. “I was at loose ends after several years freelancing in the indie pop music scene in Canada,” said Shaun …
Yukon musician embarks on exploration of space and silence
The time has come to at least take a shot at disregarding the speaker market entirely and focus on headphone-specific technology.
48 hours of music and film
From Friday, August 24 until Sunday, August 26, musicians and filmmakers are invited and encouraged to take part in the creation of a music video that will be completed in only two days.
One night, one stage, one amazing group of people…
As I was growing up in northern Canada, music was as much a staple as frying pan bannock.
They sang then and played to please the hero
A fundraising concert for the Yukon Literacy Coalition, with original songs inspired by Beowulf, will take place on August 13 at 7:30 p.m. at Well Read Books.
Why so serious?
This August, Whitehorse heavy metal music enthusiasts will be treated to a blast from the past, augmented with an infusion of new blood.
Canadian concert series comes to Whitehorse
Aurora, a Canadian company that produces and distributes medical marijuana, is putting on a national series of free concerts to celebrate cannabis culture and the imminent legalization of marijuana through music and arts.
Paradise is ‘plugging in’
The Yukon’s annual electronic Paradise Music Festival is back and is set to take off July 27–29 at Kettley’s Canyon, at Marsh Lake.
BC/DC is back (not on Black, on Jarvis)
It’s a long way to the top if you wanna rock ’n’ roll, but British Columbia’s famed tribute act to legendary rockers AC/DC, aptly named BC/DC, is already there.
Lucie D and the Immortals
There is a new sound in town! On Thursday June 21, Lucie D and the Immortals will debut their new EP, Les Thèmes de la Vie (Themes of Life), from 7 to 9 p.m. at Baked Café.
Tickling the ivories under the midnight sun
Over 10-million people across the globe have been part of an art project that placed 1,890 street pianos at 75 installations in 60 cities. Local musician Grant Simpson saw that there was an opportunity to do a made-in-the-Yukon version.
Play that funky music
Any Yukon music fan should be familiar with Major Funk—the raw live energy and mechanical tightness the band boasts often makes them the talking point of shows and festivals in the territory.
Riverside rave
Beginning on May 31, guest DJs will perform on the Whitehorse Wharf, providing a summer dance floor for Yukon families and dance music fans.
Are you ready for a good time? Love country rock?
Teslin will again be hosting an electrifying country-rock concert called Teslin Rocks Country, featuring a slate of excellent contemporary Canadian country artists. Headlining the show will be two artists from from British Columbia: Aaron Pritchett and The Washboard Union.
Yukon’s summer music festival review
The good, the bad and the absolute crazy : here is an overview of the top summer music festivals in the Yukon.
Bluegrass, ‘newgrass,’ straight-ahead country and more …
This year’s Kluane Mountain Bluegrass Festival, June 8 to 10, in Haines Junction, will feature a lineup of world-class acts.
Raising girls’ voices with rock and roll
Teaching consent with guitars and high fives. In a society where girls are socialized to be quiet and not take up too much space, permission to be loud can be an important tool when it comes to raising a generation of youth who are empowered to speak up for themselves and others. Lana Welchman is excited …
Growing beats in the Yukon
What do you like about beats? I like that our heart is one. Also, they seem to grow well in the Yukon. Daniel Mackenzie started Free the Beat Foundation with a mission to “encourage people to express themselves through the art of rhyming, singing, beatboxing, freestyling, playing musical instruments, producing, recording [and] scoring, on a …
2018 CBC Indigenous Music Awards
On May 18, the Indigenous Music Awards will return to Winnipeg with awards in 19 categories that honour music that has been created by First Nations, Métis and Inuit peoples of Turtle Island.
Play it loud in the car
Manfred Janssen and Jordy Walker recorded the bulk of the album in Walker’s basement studio in Hillcrest, hence the title, Basement Tapes.
25 Years and going S(tr)ong
The Whitehorse Community Choir is preparing for their 25th Anniversary Concert, to be held May 4 and 5 at the Yukon Arts Centre.
Yukon Music – Improvisation is Key
The Vanier Junior Jazz Band won first place in the Under 16 category of BYTE’s Battle of the Bands – again!
A funky little family
Café des Voix at Cafe Balzam at the Takhini Hot Springs on Jan 31. PHOTOS: courtesy of Elaine Schiman Café des Voix is always looking for new talent Yukon accompanist Grant Simpson helped found Café des Voix in 2016 as an extension of Jazz Yukon workshops that had been occurring since 2011 and as “a …
Dear, dear. This show ain’t casual viewin’
54-40 has been described as Canada’s answer to REM, hyper literate, alt-rock, conscious with tight hooks, left coast intel and killer musicianship.
Music and learning
Students from Holy Family Elementary School wrote, performed, and produced their very own CD.
Delhi to Dublin and everything in-between
Delhi 2 Dublin, a multi-talented group from Vancouver that have made a name for themselves on the world music scene are the main act at this year’s St. Patrick’s Day party happening at the Coast High Country Inn Convention Centre.
Taking Cues
When a band calls itself Peripheral Vision, you might be excused for thinking it’s a rock group, or possibly a folk/roots, or even bluegrass ensemble. But you’d be wrong.
No Sour Grapes
Kevin Kane (left) and Bryan Potvin on a break during a Northern Pikes recording session in Calgary earlier this month. Kane & Potvin will perform at the YAC on March 2. PHOTO: Don Schmid If he hadn’t been so exhausted from a 23-hour train ride, Kevin Kane might have joined forces with fellow singer/guitarist Bryan …
Heating up the music scene with Frostbite 2018
The Frostbite Music Festival returns in 2018, on a new date, and has embraced the theme of rising from the ashes.
The Yukon Balladeer
Al Oster plays in Hougens in 1961 – PHOTOS: courtesy of Rolf Hougen This article uses information and content shared by Rolf Hougen from the HougenGroup.com website to commemorate Al Oster.Our Yukon heritage is a mix of different traditions and different eras, including First Nations history, gold rush stories, the construction of the Alaska Highway …
Celebrating First Nations’ achievements and culture
The Skookum Jim Folklore Show has become an annual tradition that celebrates First Nation traditions, community and culture.
The sounds of the next generation
The annual BYTE Battle of the Bands, which will feature up to 10 groups, has been taking place for over a decade and has teamed up for the second year with Yukon Sourdough Rendezvous as an affiliated event at Shipyards Park.
Sweet and singing
No tradition is sweeter than the All-City Band’s annual fundraising Dessert & Dance. Now in its 18th year, the event is held every February on the Saturday before Valentine’s Day to raise money for band trips out of the territory. The All-City Band Society is a not-for-profit organization that offers “big-city” music development opportunities for …
Big, driving quarter notes
Jen Hodge had just spent five hectic days in Asheville, North Carolina, rehearsing every day and performing late into every night as part of the massive celebration of swing music known as Lindy Focus XVI. Despite the grinding schedule, the Vancouver jazz bassist and singer considered the Christmas-week event “a really incredible experience” that allowed her …
Rocking the live music scene
When Barry Bellchambers acquired the Whitehorse Lions Pool in 2004, filled it, and created the Yukon Convention Centre, he had a vision of bringing live music to the Yukon. Classic rock bands like April Wine, Nazareth, Randy Bachman, Steve Earle, and Dr. Hook all performed in Whitehorse as part of Bellchambers’ efforts. That era of flying …
Not your grandma’s chamber music
Musical ear candy – that’s how Daniel Janke describes the Problematic Orchestra. “It’s pretty wacky music,” he said of the 20-person chamber music group he directs. “Some of it is very playful, as the title implies. “It’s not often you get a chance to enjoy such a large ensemble, and one that performs in almost …
A beloved musical tradition
Bob Williams knows the residents and staff at Copper Ridge Place quite well. That’s because the longtime Yukoner, musician and volunteer has been playing music at the continuing care facility since it was built eight years ago.
Vulnerability and shared space
Anyone who has attended a Kim Beggs concert, or listened to one of her CDs, knows that the subject of death often shows up in her lyrics. It certainly did on October 12, during the sixth of 41 stops on her current two-month marathon tour. Earlier that day, the Whitehorse singer-songwriter and her tour partner, …
Tradition and values
The email said Jeremy Pelt was between engagements in Europe and China, with just a “sliver of time” of time for a phone interview from his New York City home. For the first few minutes, the answers were terse, non-committal, perhaps a bit jetlagged. Or maybe he just wasn’t into it. Asked about his earliest …
Past and present fuse on new record
Dakhká Khwáan Dancers new album is called Deconstruct/Reconstruct, and it is a double CD.
Gordie Tentrees previews new album
Making his seventh album was the most fun Gordie Tentrees has had as a musician, but it didn’t start out that way.
Whitehorse All-City Band invited to perform in Toronto
The 20-year-old Whitehorse All-City Band Junior and Senior Wind Ensembles have been honoured to receive their first invitation to compete at MusicFest Canada, a national music competition in Toronto next May.
Good vibes: Blue Feather Music Festival
Blue Feather Music Festival is entering its 17th year and is still holding true to its roots, providing healing, sharing culture and providing positive opportunities for youth to grow.
No earbuds aboard
Have you heard the one about the farmer’s daughter, the music teacher, the composer and the jazz singer? It’s not a joke. They’re all the same person: Karin Plato. Although she has called Vancouver home since 1985, Plato grew up on a grain farm near the tiny (current population: 129) community of Alsask, Saskatchewan. That’s where …
It’s all about the performance
Prep your pipes: Klondike Karaoke is back. And even if you’re not onstage at the finals, you could be cheering from the crowd. For the second time this year, the Yukon Arts Centre (YAC) and the Canadian Filipino Association of Yukon (CFAY) are co-hosting a sing-off that will see one Yukoner crowned karaoke king or …
Nicole Edwards and friends lift up their voices for local charity
This project gives Yukon audiences another opportunity to create a new and beautiful memory of what Edwards can do with music.
Local songwriter releases debut album
Last year Lara Lewis took some time off rocks to focus on rock. Now the Whitehorse-based geologist/songwriter is gearing up to release her first full-length album, Lov Lavatic, on Thursday, Oct. 19 at The Old Fire Hall. “It conflicts with winefest,” Lewis laughs. Her release party takes place on the same night as the Rendezvous …
Tel Aviv to L.A.
Tamir Hendelman’s list of players who have inspired him as a performer and composer includes unsurprising names such Evans, Davis, Corea, Hancock and Peterson. But how many other jazz musicians could also such early influences as a grandmother continuously humming everything from Yiddish songs, to opera, to Frank Sinatra in the apartment below? Or, for …
It’ll be Hip
Special Olympics Yukon will introduce an event of the season and it’s looking hip! Two hours of Tragically Hip by cover band The Hip Show.
In The People’s Voice
Ross River musician Dennis Shorty grew up in a musical family that spoke Kaska and performed at social events. Now he is sharing his love of the language through the musical duo he formed with his wife, Jennifer Froehling, is called Dena Zagi, meaning “people’s voice”. In August, they toured in Germany with their first …
Return to the Yukon
It’s been 30 years, or thereabouts, since I first ran into the iconic Canadian folksinger-songwriter-poet who goes by the simple – but exotic-sounding – name of Ferron. There was no reason she should remember me. I was just a volunteer driver for the Edmonton Folk Festival, shuttling performers to and from the airport. But I …
Setting Forth for New Frontiers
Yukon musician Jona Barr is pumped. He’s going to Germany – and he’s going to be playing his first set outside of Canada. “I’ve traveled to a few upper American states while touring Canada, but this is my first international festival,” says the Old Cabin frontman. “It’s surreal being 30-years-old and never having been somewhere …
Local Artists Team Up for a Night of Live Hip Hop
“You’re Doing Great Work” reads the massive block letters on the front of Splintered Craft’s building on 4th Avenue. Other messages, pictures and tags cover nearly the entire exterior, and all have been made by local youth. The arts studio is a place where the youth of Whitehorse can discover, practice and hone their artistry …
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RCMP Musical Ride returns
“The best place to view the ride is from up high,” says Inge Sumanik. “But, for me, it is standing next to the fence and feeling the ground shake.” “The ride” that she refers to is the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Musical Ride. Since 1876, the RCMP have displayed the riders’ abilities to control the …
Orchestra at the Edges of Canada
“Come as you are, bring a friend or a parent or a daughter or a nephew, and be prepared to be blown away by NYO Canada’s talented and passionate young musicians,” says Blanche Israël, external relations manager at the National Youth Orchestra (NYO) of Canada. The August 10th concert at the Yukon Arts Centre will …
Paradise Electronic Music Festival: Come As You Are
“We want people to come out and express themselves and who they truly are,” says DJKJ. “Creativity is welcomed and everyone is accepted.”
A New Sparrow is Arriving
Starting July 24 and running until August 5, The Keno City Music and Art Workshop will be taking place. One of the featured musicians is Yukoner Kim Beggs. Thirteen years and five solo albums have earned Beggs a solid place among Canadian musicians. This fall, Beggs will be launching her fifth solo album, called Said …
Music gets the campfire cooking
They decided it would be fun to spend the summer playing as many of the Yukon Parks cook shacks as possible. Music in the campground.
Taking the Sound of the Yukon to a National Stage
On July 1, the community choir, along with the Persephone Singers and the Chamber Choir, will take their sound to Ottawa. As part of the annual Unisong Choral Festival, they will sing with and for choir members and audiences from around the country and the globe.
Back in Town
Among Whitehorse’s talented music scene are Madi Dixon and Sarah Ott. Since their early teen years, Dixon and Ott have been staples of the local artistic community, performing as part of grand scale events and intimate gigs alike, and each possessing a multi-stylistic skill set. The duo will be playing selections of indie, folk and …
Tout en musique pour la Fête de la Saint-Jean
La Saint-Jean, qu’est-ce que ? À l’origine, une fête païenne célébrée, le 24 juin, depuis quelques siècles, qui a, par la suite, été christianisée. On y faisait des feux de joie, on chantait et on dansait, le tout pour célébrer l’arrivée de l’été et le jour le plus long de l’année! Depuis une cinquantaine d’années, …
Out of the Shadows
Multifaceted, multicultural and full of ingenuity – the arts and music community of the Yukon is widely appreciated, well-funded and extensively advertised. At least, some parts of it. At the colder, less hospitable edges of the creative community, less radio-friendly fringe groups vie for funding, airplay and stage-time. Among these groups is the raucously passionate …
There is always time for Soda Pony
It is a typical Sunday evening in Whitehorse, and the Whitehorse two-piece alternative rock band Soda Pony is hard at work rehearsing and perfecting material for their upcoming CD release show in June. They have just finished the recording and mixing process of their second full-length album, aptly called Sophomore, and are eager to showcase …
An Evolution of Music and Friendship
McColeman and Desaulniers perform as a duo. Lucie D and the Immortals with Paul Lucas, Lonnie Powell, Paul Bergman and Olivier de Colombel.
A Feast of Jazz
After several vocal jazz workshops “There was no outlet for the singers to practice what they’d learned.” said Simpson. Enter Café des Voix
A Shining Star
Songs are almost like children, having a little life of their own. Thorin Loeks on his second album, Shine Through The Dark.
Changing Direction
John Stetch was already part of the New York City jazz scene when he first played in front of classical pianist and teacher Burton Hatheway in Fairfield, Connecticut back in 1993. Hatheway, who is still teaching at the age of 87, didn’t mince words. “Do you want to be serious?” Stetch recalls the maestro asking. …
Bound for Glory
Guthrie would take melodies that were common – in the folk tradition of learn and do – and put his definitive twist on them.
Setting sail for uncharted waters
“I don’t mind the snow/cause you make me warm/I don’t mind the dark in this romantic cold”– Paris Pick & The Ukes of Hazard
Drop In, Turn On and Jam Out
On some days, the wind blows from the north. A Whitehorse legend that drifts down the road is this: music and art are taught with passion and respected for their true value. Are there really open mic nights happening all over town? Was it true that graffiti doesn’t get covered up after two days? After …
Where Tradition and Youth Converge
The fiddling tradition is alive and well in the Yukon thanks to the Fiddleheads, a group of young fiddlers ranging in age from 7 to 14,
Yukon troubadour blazing the way
The sun is shining, the flag snaps proudly in the south- east wind as the “MV Queen of Prince Rupert” pulls out of Bella Bella this morning. It’s another stunningly beautiful day out on the northwest coast and Inland Passage. We’re about halfway on our ferry ride from Prince Rupert — at the top of …
Got knocked down, got back up, then was blown away
There is a bit of Murphy’s Law happening when it comes to reviewing live acts. Last weekend I was ready to let off some steam, when ole Murphy gave me a sharp poke in the back and declared, “You shall miss two big shows”. All right, it wasn’t that dramatic but I did …
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Finding a New Way Home
From Tomaso Albinoni to Django Reinhardt, by way of Led Zeppelin? It’s all part of guitarist Marc Atkinson’s musical journey. The 48-year-old Atkinson grew up on B.C.’s relatively remote Quadra Island, without YouTube, or even television, but with access to the major music source of the day, vinyl records. “I didn’t know that humble peasants …
Caroline Drury takes that voice in a new direction
Caroline Drury sings “Love Potion #9.” That’s all anyone needs to know before deciding to buy her newest CD, Loving You, Loving Me. “Love Potion #9” was popular two decades before the 24-year-old former Yukoner was born. It is a fun song … but it can be something entirely different once Drury’s crystal, clear voice …
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Getting Down to Motown
A nun, another nun, and a mystery illness all contributed to the development of Lucie Desaulniers as a singer. Growing up in the small Manitoba community of St. Jean Baptiste, not far from the U.S. border, Desaulniers attended a Roman Catholic school attached to a Grey Nuns convent. That’s where she met a “really cool” …
Making her Own Trail
“It’s sort of like a straightforward country approach to old-school, ’30s vocal jazz,” she says. “I would say it’s got folk roots, a bit of blues and bluegrass, but jazz is sort of where I draw inspiration from and is probably the top of my influences.” Producer Bob Hamilton of Old Crow Recording Studio selected …
Nicole Edwards: Genre Bender
Nicole certainly mixes it up with genres including Jazz, Gospel, Rock, Roots, and the Latin sounds in “Lychee Martini” and “Second Thoughts”
Battle of the Bands
This Rendezvous, The Battle of the Bands is going down, bringing together youth bands from across the territory to battle for top dog honors of the Yukon Music scene. BOTB is presented each year by Bringing Youth Toward Equality (BYTE), and this year for the first time, in conjunction with Yukon Sourdough Rendezvous. “They are …
Sweet Swing
The All City Band is comprised of students between the ages of 12 and 17, playing alongside more experienced adult musicians. The group is comprised of sections: the All City Jazz Band, the Junior and Senior Concert Bands and the Grade 8 Band. “The All City Band is a great musical opportunity for students in …
Youthful Exuberance
Memphis, Tennessee has been dubbed both the “Home of the Blues” and the “Birthplace of Rock and Roll”. But it’s no slouch in the jazz department, either. In a four-year span from 1934 to 1938, at least half a dozen future jazz luminaries were born there. That mid-’30s crop included trumpeter Booker Little, as well …
No Orchestra? No Problem
Trying to provide professional-calibre orchestral music in a small northern city can be … well, problematic. Just ask Daniel Janke. “The main problem is we don’t have an orchestra. We live in a community where the demographic doesn’t really provide for all the players we need.” Still, skilled performers continue to move to the Yukon, …
Gimme That Tessitura
Full disclosure: Steve Maddock and I have a few things in common. We’re both PKs (preacher’s kids) who grew up in southern Ontario adding our piping, angelic treble voices to the choirs in our fathers’ churches. Point of departure: I struggled through the guy-hood change of voice as a scholarship student of an Ursuline nun, …
Diving into the Depths of Creativity
“There’s a lot of performing opportunities within the French community, but it’s not necessarily places where artists can try new things and take that risk. Onde de Choc – that’s exactly what it’s for. It’s for artists to not just perform but also create and feel that they have the space to do something completely …
Travelling with Thomas
If you go by way of Laos and the U.S. East Coast, the journey from France to Yukon is anything but a straight line. But a brief reunion of two lifelong friends in Paris two summers ago proves you can get from there to here. “We had a great time together, and I told him …
Keeping the Dream Alive
When Jolie Angelina McNabb was buried 16 years ago, Kwanlin Dün elders gave her the name, Blue Feather Eagle Woman. The Bluefeather Music Festival started in 2010 as a tribute concert to Jolie, who committed suicide. She had a dream, that she wanted to do something for youth, something to give them hope so they …
Banging on the sofa
Willie Jones III isn’t shy about crediting his late father, a renowned pianist from Los Angeles, with sparking his interest in jazz. “Even before I started school, he would take me to rehearsal with him and I would watch while he rehearsed. For some reason, I would always sit next to where the drums were, …
The Life and Times of Teenage Metalheads, WaRRmAuth
WaRRmAuth is one of the most intriguing bands at the forefront of the Whitehorse metal scene revivalt. These teenage stars rock hard.
Little Coyote Returns to the Den
A few years ago, Teagan Johnston sat in her kitchen, her face covered in fake blood. Her husband took the photo in their Toronto apartment for the cover of her second EP, Blood and Bones, released in 2014. When they were barely out of high school, the two moved to the big city from Victoria …
Need Some Good Advice?
Basia Bulat is returning to the Yukon. Bulat is a multi-instrumentalist – she plays guitar, autoharp, banjo, ukulele, charango, hammered dulcimer, saxophone and flute – and has a powerful voice. She comes by her musical interests naturally, having a mother who was a music teacher who taught both piano and guitar. She has said the …
Rising From The Ashes: Heavy Metal Returns to Whitehorse
“I want to hear something different.” These six simple words were an unexpected call to action that local promoter and musician Joel Gilchrist received from Karla Watts, a bartender at the Jarvis Street Saloon. “I want you to put on a metal show,” she told him. “You’ve gotta bring the metal scene back.” Live heavy …
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Remembering Lenny
If you’re doing a stage show about a highly-admired guitarist, being able to render the music is a big help. Fortunately, Whitehorse musician Nicholas Mah has been playing the music of his dramatic subject, the late Lenny Breau, for decades. Mah was 12 when he first encountered Breau at a guitar society meeting in his …
Yukon Music with a Side of Lychee
Add a fruity kick to your fall with a lychee martini! Try the cocktail at the CD release party and concert for Yukon musician Nicole Edwards. On Sept. 23 the songstress releases Genre Bender at the Yukon Arts Centre in Whitehorse. The first single off her new CD is called “Lychee Martini” and was co-written …
13th Century Music
Katelyn Clark and Julie Ryning , as musica fantasia, released their first album. They stopped in The Yukon as part of the album tour.
A Matter of Taste
Musical talent is over-rated, and taste is under-rated. At least, that’s how Canadian-born sax player Grant Stewart sees things. “I know many, many, many players who can play anything they hear, and that’s kind of what you’re told is the ideal to shoot for,” he says. “But if you don’t develop the things that you’re …
My Dad, the Outlaw
Gabriola Islander Bob Bossin brings his one-man musical Davy the Punk to The Old Fire Hall next Thursday, Sept. 22 and to Dawson City the following week. The show is based on Bossin’s 2014 book of the same title. They tell the story of his father’s life in Canada’s gambling underworld of the 1930s. Both …
Four Years on the Road and Still Going Strong
We Found Roads is their latest album – and also the personal story of Cie and Karisa Hoover. They are a two-person indie rock band called You Knew Me When, currently singing, playing and camping their way through Alaska and the Yukon. Their road trip is one of growth for their music, their relationship and …
Do Festival-Goers Dream of Electric Beats?
Over two days, 20 DJs, local dance troupe BoSo and a live painter will perform at the 11th annual Paradise Electronic Music Festival.
A Weekend of Free, Homegrown Music
It may not be on the scale of the Atlin or Dawson music festivals, but the second annual Keno City Music Festival has a cachet all its own. First, it’s casually organized. Second, there’s no charge. “It’s a free festival for the community, by the community,” says Cud Eastbound, one of the organizers. “We’re just …
Cello Lessons in the Communities
“They just don’t stop!” That’s the coordinator of the Yukon Cello Project, Nico Stephenson, describing the energy and enthusiasm his students bring to music class each day. “Whether that’s playing cellos, or playing outside, they just don’t stop.” While it means that some youngsters struggle to sit still, it also means there is a collective …
Chronicling the Peace
From her cabin on her parents’ farm near Fort St. John, B.C., Jody Peck can see the broad, meandering Peace River, not far from where her family first settled in 1924. On a recent Friday afternoon, Peck was about to start assembling the merchandise she and her band, Miss Quincy and the Showdown, hope to …
Underground at the Core
By the time Danny Fernandez was 10, he had visited over two dozen countries during six years spent aboard a floating hospital that provided free surgeries and medical care to some of the world’s poorest people. “I don’t think I realized how cool it was at the time. Looking back, I definitely feel being immersed …
Journeys That Open the Heart
Whitehorse musician and adventurer Thorin Loeks is off on another journey. On June 4th, Loeks started to hitchhike from his home just outside of Whitehorse up to Dawson City where began a cycling trip. His initial plan was to bicycle south to Montana. There, he was going to switch his bike for a paddle, and …
The Return of Bushwhacker: Wiser, Stronger, And Ready to Party
Next week sees the triumphant return of a woefully under-represented genre in the Whitehorse music scene – heavy metal – brought in the form of the progressive metal four-piece Bushwhacker. The group has been hard at work in Vancouver over the past five years; they will be returning to their home turf on July 16th …
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A Music Scene Darling
The music scene in Whitehorse is really something. Full of fresh, creative musical sounds that come straight from the heart and soul of artists who discovered their own voices inside the warmth of their homes in the dead of winter. The diving board for many of these discoveries is Peggy Hanifan and her Wednesday open …
Aroused and Ecstatic
Ping pong might be what prevents Shawn Hall from harpooning Matt Rogers, or keeps Rogers from dismembering his musical partner with an axe. The duo known as The Harpoonist and the Axe Murderer discovered the stress-relieving game in London, England during a recent tour. “We went to a night club and there were 75 ping …
2016 Adӓka Cultural Festival: An Exploration of Old and New
2016 Adӓka Cultural Festival: Kaska drummer Dennis Shorty , Gwich’in fiddler Boyd Benjamin, & Inuit throat-singer Kathleen Merritt
Polaris goes Polar
Music-industry types mingled with arts funders and a few musicians at the Yukon Transportation Museum on June 15 for a different kind of brown-bag lunch event – a team from the Polaris Music Prize was in town to announce its long-list of 40 candidates for this year’s win. The prize aims to recognize “artists who …
Community Theatre at its Finest
Friends of the Palace Grand Theatre presenting A Klondike Cabin Companion, a live radio performance, bring community theatre to Dawson City.
Leaving the Road
When Oliver Jones was a mere 65 years old, he and his wife both felt it was time for him to retire after years of playing piano on concert stages throughout the world. So he did. Briefly. Now, 16 years later, the legendary jazz pianist is about to retire again, insisting his current tour of …
Pritchett Rocks Country
Having a ringside seat at an Aaron Pritchett concert might just get you one of his trademark cowboy hats simply for being there. “When I get excited about having a great show, I tend to throw them out into the crowd to give them a little memento,” the country crooner says. “I’ve been through hundreds …
Summer Fun has Begun
Look around. The birds are singing, canoes and kayaks are back on Subaru roof racks and my neighbour seems to have an urge for gardening at 11:30 p.m. These are signs of summer. It’s a change from spending much of our time inside, sipping hot tea and feeding the woodstove to living the wild and …
Out of the Rec Room
Scott Wilson doesn’t credit either ’50s TV host Arthur Godfrey or campy falsetto Tiny Tim with the current popularity of the humble ukulele. Instead, the Whitehorse musician thinks it likely stems from a few years back, when Hawaiian singer Israel Kamakawiwo’ole’s hauntingly beautiful medley of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” and “What a Wonderful World” became …
Big, Loud and Funky
Major Funk and the Employment is a big band with a big sound. It has some big changes since bassist Etienne Girard put the group together.
O Brother, It’s Bluegrass
The Foggy Hogtown Boys will make their Yukon debut at this year’s Kluane Mountain Bluegrass Festival, June 10-12, 2016
Pickin’ on The Junction
In the pines, in the pines, the Kluane Mountain Bluegrass Music Festival will take place June 10, 11, and 12. It is held annually at the St. Elias Convention Centre and St. Christopher’s Log Church in beautiful Haines Junction, Yukon. The mostly volunteer-run festival is the first of many music festivals held throughout the Yukon …
His Saturn Returned and He’s Heading Out
Saturn is somewhere in its grand orbit when you’re born. When it comes round again, 29.5 years later, astrologers say it can mean big changes in your life. For Whitehorse musician Jona Barr, it was during his own period of Saturn returning that he wrote the songs for the new Old Cabin EP, Saturn Return. …
Rain or Shine, It’s a Good Time
There is a little park in the centre of downtown Whitehorse where magic happens during the summer. Every weekday lunch hour, for 11 glorious weeks, the park fills with kids, office workers, seniors, moms, dads, twenty-somethings – all types of people – who come together to listen to music, check out some art and eat …
Fiddling Through Time
It was a visit to the Yukon Transportation Museum that got Whitehorse fiddler and music teacher Keitha Clark thinking about an ambitious project for the 25 young Whitehorse musicians known collectively as the Fiddleheads. “I thought this would be a funky place to put on a show. It’s an unusual, kind of unconventional space and …
That Gypsy Jazz Swing
Anyone contemplating starting a small musical group to perform on a cruise ship would be well-advised to contact Lache Cercel. The Romanian-born fiddler, who now lives in B.C., teaches a course in how to develop a successful repertoire for just such a venture. “This is something I know myself, because from when I was 18 …
Match Making
When Fawn Fritzen‘s new CD, Pairings, debuts at the Old Fire Hall on Saturday, it won’t be your typical Whitehorse album launch. For one thing, many of those in attendance already have a connection to the project as contributors to Fritzen’s effort to underwrite the album’s cost by using social media to appeal for financial support. …
Out on the Edge
Amongst them, the members of Winter Trio have probably racked up around 120 years of performing. As a distinct musical entity, though, they’re just hitting their stride. The group consists of pianist/composer Daniel Janke, bassist Paul Bergman and drummer Ken Searcy. Searcy moved here about 20 years ago and made his way into the Yukon …
Street Party Sound
If a musical shindig at the Old Fire Hall this Saturday puts you in mind of a New Orleans street party, Ryan McNally won’t be the least bit disappointed. The event is intended to introduce Yukon audiences to the Whitehorse singer-songwriter’s newest CD, Steppin’ Down South. The bulk of the album consists of nine tunes …
Crossing Borders
Alex Goodman doesn’t really cross borders so much as straddle them. Although the Toronto-raised guitarist and composer has made his home in New York City for the past three-and-a-half years, he seems to keep one foot planted in the musical soil of his homeland. “I think of Toronto as a very vibrant music scene. The …
Folk VERCH-uoso
If you’ve got a yen to hear some some good old-fashioned country fiddle playing, you won’t want to miss April Verch. Verch, along with bandmates Cody Walters (banjo and electric bass) and Alex Rubin (guitar and mandolin) will be stomping, singing, fiddling and strumming their way into Whitehorse Friday, March 4th. A self-described “Ottawa-Valley Girl,” …
A Champian for Dinah
“You know how kids like to pretend and tell stories? My story was that I was Dinah Washington.” { legendary jazz singer who died in 1963}
Joyful Performance
Donnell Leahy remembers exactly how he felt when he made his stage debut as a fiddler at the age of four. “Mom and Dad had a band when we were growing up as kids. They played locally at round dances and square dances and weddings and things,” he says. “One night they took me up …
Life of a Musician
Canadian singer-songwriter Louise Burns just completed a month’s residency in Dawson City as the songwriter in residence.
An Evening of Romance
Bring family, friends, or even a date, because the All-City Band Society is hosting the 16th annual Dessert and Dance. The evening will start off with some sensational tunes provided by All-City Jazz Band, with the lights dim and the jazzy sounds of saxophones alongside the trumpets and trombones, controlled by the beat and rhythm …
Frostbite is Back
Yukon’s winter music festival, Frostbite is back for 2016, finally. A small group of volunteers have been working hard to make this happen.
Jarvis Street Saloon hosts a Bowie Party
Everyone from your mom to your niece’s best friend was/is probably a fan of Bowie. When he died a few weeks ago, my Facebook feed was just a stream of David Bowie songs, remembrances and YouTube links from such a varied group of people that it didn’t take long to realize his reach. While Bowie …
Get Ready to Twist and Shout
Haines Junction may never be the same again following the Beatles tribute shows being planned by Junction Arts and Music (JAM). JAM is hosting Britain’s Finest, a Beatles tribute band, for two rousing concerts in Haines Junction on Jan. 22 and 23, at St. Elias Convention Centre. Britain’s Finest is hailed as one of the …
It’s All About the Jazz
Whitehorse jazz singer and songwriter Fawn Fritzen recently returned from Toronto and is ready to get back to business. While in Toronto, Fritzen participated in Coalition Music’s ten-week Artist Entrepreneur program, learning more about business aspects of the musician’s life, as well as finding opportunities to write, perform and record her music. Fritzen found out …
Into the Fire
Steve Maddock owes at least part of his resumé to the bad judgment of another singer. In 1998, the crooner/actor/voice teacher from Burnaby, B.C., got an unexpected call from a cruise ship line, asking him to fill in for its previous male vocalist, who had been fired for having marijuana in his cabin. “I kind …
The Perfect Party Playlist
Whether you’re throwing a small dinner party, holiday event or New Year’s eve rager, your playlist can make or break the event. You’ve spent the time and energy on the perfect decorations, food, and outfit – don’t underestimate your playlist. Music sets the tone for a party, creates an ambiance, and can be the deciding …
A star on stage, with his heart on the ranch
Brett Kissel, rising star in country music, is happy to include the Yukon on his 2015-16 tour. “I wanted to make this a truly Canadian tour”
Back on Bourbon Street
James Danderfer didn’t intend to be a clarinet player. In Grade 6 he selected the drums as his preferred musical vehicle, but the band director overruled him. “He looked at my choice, then he asked to look at my hands, and then he asked to look at my teeth,” the Vancouver musician says. The verdict: …
Warm drinks, cool tunes
During the late 1600s, over 2,000 coffee houses existed in London, England. For a country whose popular culture is associated with tea, it is remarkable to discover that London had such a earnest affair with coffee. Aside from the warm beverage, the coffee houses were places where people of intellect would discuss ideas. If you …
Folks Rocking the Blues with Soul
Whitehorse-resident Selina Heyligers-Hare, or as she’s billed in the upcoming Blue Feather Music Festival, Selina H., is only 18 years old. She just graduated from high school. However, she has 13 years of experience making music and can hold her own on a big stage. When Heyligers-Hare was five years old she started playing the …
Blue Feather Turns 15
Gary Bailie has taken a personal tragedy and turned it into the fuel that powers him to produce the popular Blue Feather Music Festival. Now in its 15th year the annual music event was never meant to be the large-scale music festival it has become. It initially began as a celebration of life for Bailie’s …
Riffs through the Wilderness
Brenda Berezan was an aspiring songwriter when she moved to the Yukon wilderness. Having taken a break from music to run a business and raise her family, she has recently returned to performing and recording. She’s now releasing her second album, called Blue Through the Trees. It’s an indie-folk album that veers away from her …
Duncan Sinclair – Instrument of Change
Your first perception of Duncan Sinclair may be of a reserved, buttoned-down guy – a civil servant, most likely. You wouldn’t be wrong. Sinclair spent decades in the territorial public service, rising through the ranks before retiring in 2002 as top dog of the Yukon Development Corporation. Next time you see him, he has …
YAC’s sound investment
Every seat in the Yukon Arts Centre costs the same. Yet the sound is not the same in each seat. That is why some people choose seats away from the speakers while others have figured out that there is “muddy sound” in the centre of the house. “Right now, there are four spots,” says Al …
Taking His Music Around the World
Homegrown singer-songwriter Gordie Tentrees is releasing his sixth album, Less is More, with a Northern tour this month. Tentrees is playing in Skagway, Dawson City,Keno City, and two shows in Whitehorse. This Northern tour follows his recent tours through British Columbia, the United States and Australia. In the next six months he plans to tour …
Ready to Rock the North
The Midnight Sons Band is fresh off a tour and ready to rock. On Saturday, October 3, the band is presenting – and performing at – Rock the North, which is an all-ages dance at the Yukon Convention Centre featuring the rockabilly/psychobilly band Ryan McNally and his Red Hot Ramblers, and Victoria bluesman Jesse Roper. …
Inside Rhythm
Forget the metronome, and don’t even bother trying to play like someone else, no matter how much you admire them. “When I was young, I figured that out real quick, because it was uncomfortable; it didn’t work,” says legendary drummer Louis Hayes. “You’re influenced by all sorts of things, and you can do certain things …
Homegrown Hip Hop
Jonathan Steel, known by his nom-de-rap MC TurMoiL, has released his first CD, Black and Green. He’s also released a video for the album’s hit track, “Mr. Myagi.” I must approach this review with caution, since despite Steel being a friend of mine, his brand of music isn’t. This is entirely my fault: I suffer …
Wanted down south
Summer may be drawing to a close, but there is still a great music festival that you can catch. Taking place in Victoria, B.C., the Breakout West festival takes place Sept. 17-20. The festival has been going for 13 years strong. It started as the Western Canadian Music Awards. Now the performances have broken away …
Blues under the influence of pneumonia
Blues band Black Iron Blossom came out of nowhere. I hadn’t even heard of them before the normally quiet Sam Gallagher stopped me in Mac’s Fireweed Books, told me he’s in a band and asked me to listen to their CD, called Full Moon Over Whitehorse. What I heard completely floored me. With a raw …
The (Tom)boy is back in town
The term tomboy usually refers to a girl who has “male”interests, and has a preference for “male” clothing. You know, the type of girl who likes to wear sweats, plays soccer with the guys and wants be an auto mechanic. That was then. Now, gender fluidity is becoming more common. Some people don’t even want …
That Guy with the Sax
Howard Chymyshyn (aka Chymy) was born in Medicine Hat, Alberta in 1946 (my mom was born in the very same town 10 years later). His parents were both in the Army, and when Howard was young, the family moved to rural Manitoba. At that time, everyone was afraid of the atom bomb so they kept …
Book of Truths
A few years back, Craig Cardiff noticed he was only going through the motions at his shows. The folk musician from Waterloo, Ontario says he was on autopilot. He thought to himself, ‘This isn’t how it should be going.’ He says no one should be on autopilot, and a musician performing live, especially, should be …
Slynking into Paradise
Evan Chandler spent his first 27 years in Brisbane, Australia, before he started thinking it would be “cool” to see what life is like in another country. But two years ago, when he decided to move to Canada, expanding his musical reach was just one element in the mix. “I chose Vancouver because it’s right …
Harmonica George,Blowin’ strong
After playing harmonica for more than 40 years, Harmonica George McConkey finally feels he is getting to the venerated status “old blues guy”.
Atlin’s Ian Fest
Ian Tyson, iconic minstrel of life in the West/North. 68yr old hearing an 81yr old singer at Atlin Arts and Music Festival felt young again.
Patrick Jacobson releases Patrick Jacobson
A recent arrival in Whitehorse, Patrick Jacobson is already making waves. Having moved from Vancouver just a couple of months ago, Jacobson has released his self-titled debut solo EP of melodic indie guitar rock. Fans of the genre can see him in Whitehorse on July 26 and August 15. You may already be familiar with …
Yukon’s Own Kitten Puppy Delivers the DIY Goods
Type Thing — available on the Bandcamp website — is a full length, home-recorded, independent rock n’ roll record by the artist known as Kitten Puppy, who I believe to be Whitehorse mailman Tom Pritchard. It is the sophomore release for this one-man band and improves upon his first album, Good, You?, with surprising lyrical …
Song Crafting at Historic Fort Selkirk
“It will be a special week in a very special place. Lots of one-on-one time with mentors and lots of cowriting,” says singer-songwriter Kim Beggs. That special place is Fort Selkirk, on the Yukon River, about half way between Whitehorse and Dawson City. Kim Beggs’ first trip to Fort Selkirk was in the summer of …
The Continuation of an Era
We decided to go back to where it all began. The first jam night that Peggy Hanifan ever hosted was at the Kopper King and that is where we found ourselves on none other than a good old “Thirsty Thursday”. Barry “Jack” Jenkins moved from Newfoundland to Whitehorse 16 years ago to live with his …
“When You See Vinyl, You Talk About It”
Playing a show to open for a musician is a first for Whitehorse bornand-raised Patrick Hamilton. Hamilton says, “I’ve been a professional musician since I was 18,” and he means that he’s been very involved in multiple music projects since that time. He’s a member of the band Soda Pony, and he co-owns Hamilton Guitars …
Writing Across the Borders
An ambitious pan-Northern ensemble of seasoned musicians from all three territories will make its debut in Whitehorse next week as one of the performance highlights of the fifth annual Adäka Cultural Festival. The New North Collective will bring together the songwriting and performing talents of four Yukoners, two residents of the Northwest Territories, and a …
Pirate Rock
Paris Seymour, better known by her stage name Paris Vagabond Gypsy, is one of a kind. In the year-and-ahalf since the pirate-costumed, bass-playing, ukulele-strumming, singer-songwriter (and one-time burlesque dancer) arrived in the Yukon, she’s formed the Ukes of Hazard and is releasing her first full-length album, Mine to Creep. Born in Vancouver but raised in …
Japanese Drums Arrive in the Capital
Whitehorse is about to get a dose of Japanese culture from the upcoming Festival of Taiko Drumming. June 11 to 13 will see the Japanese Canadian Association of Yukon host the world-renowned drumming group, Uzume Taiko, for a series of workshops and concerts. Canada’s first professional taiko drumming group, Uzume Taiko has released four CDs, …
More than just music
Meet Jordi Mikeli-Jones — a renaissance woman. She is the owner of the popular Triple J’s Music, Tattoos and Piercing. She is president of Kona’s Coalition, a non-profit organization that works towards improving animal welfare in the Yukon. She was the first female resident DJ in Whitehorse, and she is the founder and promoter of …
Piper at the Gates of Dawn
When “The Pink Floyd” released their 1967 experimental psychedelic classic, Piper At the Gates of Dawn, the term “Swinging London” had just been coined by Time magazine. Art school dropouts and all manner of urban Anglos were exploring music and film and staging mixed-genre “happenings”. At the centre of the aural maelstrom for a brief …
Sometimes doing the Badd thing feels so good
Cover Me Badd VII is back this summer for another evening of rocking good fun in Dawson City. On June 5, from 7 to 11 p.m., Dawson City Music Festival (DCMF) and the Klondike Institute of Art and Culture (KIAC) will co-host this evening of music and entertainment. Emily Farrell, Executive Director of DCMF, emphasizes …
Full Circle
On June 12, the Yukon’s annual bluegrass bash is heading back to Kluane Country, where it all began. After a three-year sojourn in Whitehorse, the Kluane Mountain Bluegrass Festival will celebrate its 12th anniversary next week in what artistic director John Faulkner calls its “ancestral home” of Haines Junction. “It’s feeling good to everybody,” he …
Local Artists To Take Over Trolley
The second annual Whitehorse Nuit Blanche is set to transform the downtown core into an all-night art playground. Inviting the audience to become the artist, this art crawl will bring installations, performances, and other participatory exhibits to life for 12 consecutive hours during the solstice. With eight commissioned artists, a free breakfast, and numerous indie …
Arts In the Park Returns with a New Captain at the Helm
Geneviève Doyon came North in 2010. Her first job in the Yukon was assisting Steve Slade with Arts in the Park. She says it was an amazing way to be introduced to the community. “I didn’t know the community at all when I started because I’d just moved to town — spending that summer with …
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A Quarter Century of Smiles
Fawn Fritzen joined the Big Band in 2008 and took over as its vocalist from Rebekah Bell in 2013, when the latter left the territory. Yet despite seven years in the outfit, Fritzen is keenly aware that she is a newcomer in the grand scheme of things. Indeed, on May 23, the Big Band will …
A Biker at 30
Amelia Merher, also known as the ukulele-slinging songwriter Big Mama Lele, has ambitious plans for her 30th birthday. “I’m putting a new spin on fatbiking,” she says. On May 26, her birthday, Merher kicks off a 16-gig bicycle tour of the Yukon and B.C., including stops in Atlin, Carcross, Haines Junction, and then Vancouver, Surrey, …
A Little Help from Friends
According to Marc Paradis, it’s starting to resemble a mini-music festival. He should know. The Whitehorse drummer has performed at pretty much every major music function since he arrived in the Yukon 35 years ago. “We don’t have an Alsek festival any more, which used to be the highlight of early summer for a lot …
Talking in Tune
One of Canada’s busiest and most versatile violinists will perform in Whitehorse on May 17 as part of his collaboration with local composer Daniel Janke on an upcoming CD of contemporary string music. In a career spanning more than 20 years, Mark Fewer has been — among other things — a chamber musician, a symphony …
Girls Rock Camp
The closest I’ve come to being in a band was brought about through my love of the Spice Girls. When I was eleven, my friends and I entered a big impersonation contest at the mall, practicing our dance moves and lip-syncing for weeks beforehand. As we grew older and our tastes evolved, we began visiting …
Grand Canyon
Whitehorse-based, Swedish-Canadian songwriter Sarah MacDougall has a new album, Grand Canyon, with some dark, intense lyrics, mixed against pop-inspired folk music. It’s not a departure from her previous music, so much as a progression. MacDougall says, “I think the last album [the West Coast Music Award-winning The Greatest Ones Alive] was on its way to …
Open Mic Fright
Two weeks before my open mic appearance, I begin learning my first song on the banjo. Although it’s far from my first choice, I settle on a song that meets my basic skill level: “Old Joe Clark”, one of those traditional folk songs that repeats the same simple melody over and over. The lyrics are …
The Beauty and Tragedy of Elliott Smith
My van died the day that I learned that Elliott Smith had put a knife through his chest. “Maybe it’s time to lighten up,” I mused. Some songwriters of that generation, and those who came slightly before, couldn’t muster the wherewithal to cope with the slings and arrows of life. Is there a genre for …
Puppet Dreams Coming True
Nicole Edwards was raised on the Muppet Show, and she dreamed of duetting with Kermit since she was a kid. As an adult, she decided to make her puppet dreams a reality. She debuted her new video, Lychee Martini, to a packed house at Epic Pizza last month. Diagnosed with scleroderma, an autoimmune disorder that …
Fixing to Play
Campbell Ryga has a thing about saxophones. When he’s not playing them, chances are you’ll find him at a workbench repairing one, or conducting clinics to teach others to do it. “Saxophones and clarinets always kind of interested me. I like to take them apart and I have an aptitude for the repairing of those …
Katie Avery Prepares to Release Solo Album
Katie Avery is a classically trained violinist, but folk and traditional fiddle music is in her blood. She’s just recorded her first solo album, which she describes as being, “inspired by all the beautiful people I have known in my life.” Avery grew up in Guelph, Ontario, surrounded by traditional and folk music. She’s performed …
Getting Real and Local with Christmas
It’s that time of year again. The season that we all go a bit funny in the head and start manifesting an unusual disregard for personal budgets and self-awareness.We have all gone off on a spree at one time or another and convinced ourselves that he or she will love this or that, as seen …
The Midnight Sons Band: Working Hard and Going Far
The Midnight Sons Band is making a mark on the Whitehorse music scene and is now looking to build a national fan base.
Leela Gilday: Heart of the People
Leela Gilday recognizes how First Nations performers can inspire aboriginal youngsters, who seldom see “indigenous heroes”
Classical Challenges
Building an orchestra in a city as small as Whitehorse poses a variety of pesky challenges. How do you fill the bassoonist’s chair, for instance? More dauntingly, can you corral enough qualified — and available — players to form a string section that can hold its own against the more forceful brass and woodwinds? Henry …
Johnny Cash For Cancer
Cancer Fundraiser produced by Brandon Isaak with performers Hank Carr, Ed Isaak & The Midnight Sons Band is a tribute to Johnny Cash.
The Technical Side of Things
Jim Holland knows music like nobody’s business; not only is he a musician, he’s also an accomplished sound technician. Over the next few months Holland will be teaching full day courses from a series called Capturing Sound. Courses will take place at Holland’s studio, Green Needle Records. Sure, we all hear music on the radio and …
The fiddle remembers
Harold Routledge did not remember that he had built this fiddle with his own hands; but the tunes, and the skill to play it, were memories that had not yet been robbed by Alzheimer’s. “There is something about music that it is so deeply ingrained to memories from a long time ago,” says Keitha Clark, …
Honest, Aggressive Rock n’ Roll
The best album I heard last summer, and probably all year, came out of Dawson City. Hope, the debut album by The Naysayers, totally rocks. Led by singer-songwriter Drea Nasager, the band fuels its folk rock songs with a heavy punk edge. Nasager’s lyrics are sung, snarled, and spat; they mix with Jonathan Howe’s lead …