Kenosee Lake Kitchen Party's August Concert Series is a chance for residents of this part of the province to discover the area's rich musical heritage and also rediscover the joy of gathering together, according to camp director, Michele Amy.
Amy says she isn't surprised the KLKP has reached its ninth year. "I knew right from the get-go what I was trying to create," she says. "I'm not surprised at all. When people are exposed to this music, there is something in it that people respond to almost immediately. We've just forgotten it with all the distractions and the busy-ness of modern life."
"In our kitchens with our friends, being real with food and beverages and just coming together. That's what's important and we hope that when people from the community come to a kitchen party, they take that away."
Although the popular KLKP Concert Series draws audiences from Saskatchewan, Manitoba and beyond, with some audience members even planning their vacation time around it, Amy says that is not KLKP's primary mandate. "Our primary motivation is to attract our local communities, from this whole southeast corner."
"We're really making a serious attempt to rebuild the traditional music culture in southeastern Saskatchewan. For that, we need three things: players, an audience and a culture that values live music."
"When the area was settled, people carried what was really important," says Amy. "They brought their fiddles, which were small and portable, although we had people portaging pianos into Saskatchewan. The Scottish and Irish immigrants introduced the fiddle and combined with the music of First Nations and Metis peoples, the blending of the immigrant and the Aboriginal gave us a truly original Canadian music, which is not heard anywhere else."
Amy says that visiting artists are drawn to the sense of community and artistic freedom at KLKP.
"To a man, the musicians say it's the best two weeks of their whole year. Making music is often working in isolation. People don't see what goes into making music-practicing your tail off, and all kinds of personal risk. They're putting their ego and soul out there to risk rejection every day."
"Coming to KLKP is like going to the well, they say. They get love and acceptance and collegiality. These musicians don't often play with people of the same calibre. At the same time, they are giving back, which feels good," Amy says.
"The calibre of the people coming to the camp is extreme," says Amy. "They are not only great musicians, they are also wonderful human beings. These people are at the top of the traditional music circuit in Canada, yet they are really interested and involved in what we are doing. They are successful musicians, but they were beginning musicians once. What strikes everybody is how generous they are."
Two of this year's visiting instructors are Tim Chaisson of Prince Edward Island and Mairi Rankin (of Rankin Family fame) from Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. "Tim Chaisson is a very big deal," says Amy. "And Mairi Rankin is coming off a tour in Europe the day before she comes to camp."
"Modern culture has separated us from our music makers," says Amy. "We often think of music as something we download or seeing someone on a huge stage. At camp and at our concerts, people have a chance to see that musicians are people just like us, except they're putting their souls out there for everybody to hear."
Concerts run Monday to Friday when camp is in session. Amy says the first three nights (Monday through Wednesday) are instructor concerts, which often lead to successful collaborations outside of camp.
"All of these concerts are combinations of people who have never played [together] before," she says. 'Last year, the band East Pointers was formed as a direct result of one of these concerts and now, they're on an Australian tour. We've also had artists record together after they've performed together for us."
Thursday night concerts are "like an organized open mike," says Amy. "The people who come to our camp are musicians in their own right."
On Friday, the final night of each week's camp performances, there is a camp showcase.
Amy says that a night at a KLKP concert will resonate for almost anyone, but it will be especially meaningful for people in this part of the world.
"In Aboriginal culture, the idea of the kitchen is the fire, a party, dances, drums and people coming together. At old schoolhouse dances, the fiddler showed up. The idea of the kitchen party and gathering together resonates across all cultures."
"People dance and sing and play and that's what makes a community," Amy says. "It's in our roots, all people like a party."
The Kenosee Lake Kitchen Party Concert Series runs from August 11-15 and August 18-22. KLKP is located at the Kenosee Lake Boys and Girls Camp In Moose Mountain Provincial Park. For more information, check out www.kenoseekitchenparty.ca or contact Michele Amy at [email protected] or (306)-577-3447.
