Sundays in the Park features range of musical styles
Creemore Village Green has announced the line-up for its Sundays in the Park concert series, which kicks off on July 7.
Like last year, the idea was to have a different genre of music on the Village Green stage each week for a free show preceded by activities in the park each Sunday morning.
Lucca Mae, July 7
The concert series begins with rhythm and blues singer-songwriter Lucca Mae and continues each Sunday.
Mae began her musical journey as a teen busker on the streets of her hometown in London, England before relocating to Australia, where she toured the streets and cities busking and playing barefoot festivals for three years.
Her music is predominantly soul driven but lashes of gypsy-jazz and blues come into play in much of her work. Mae has been working with award-winning Canadian producer Adam Fair on her latest releases including My Type, which has the nostalgic warmth of early 60s doo- wop. She breathes new life into the genre with her outstanding vocal performance, recorded in one take, live off the floor on a beautifully restored vintage suitcase rhodes piano. Mae has a refined and charismatic stage presence thanks to her role as lead singer in 10-piece band The Motet Collective and endless shows as a solo artist.
Tamar Ilana & Vantanas, July 14
Flamenco dancer and multi-lingual vocalist Tamar Ilana with her band Vantanas will perform on July 14.
Founded in 2011, Ventanas interweaves flamenco, Sephardic and Balkan music and dance, and their own original compositions. They have released three albums (2013, 2015, 2019) and have toured extensively throughout North America, including a sold-out show at the Skirball Centre in Los Angeles in 2019. They have been nominated for four Canadian Folk Music Awards, including Best Traditional Singer and Best Ensemble. The six-piece Toronto-based world music ensemble is fronted by the powerhouse vocalist and dancer Tamar Ilana, and features the city’s finest world musicians. They perform in over 20 languages such as Ladino, Spanish, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Hebrew, French, Romani and Arabic, drawing inspiration from today’s worldwide themes of migration and the questioning of one’s identity.
Tamar’s childhood was spent gathering songs from small villages on the edge of the Mediterranean and dancing flamenco, and Ventanas’ band members are from across the globe. Together, and in true Canadian fashion, they intertwine their musical cultures to create an all-encompassing world of their own in which they lead audiences down the less travelled paths of the Mediterranean, mixing in contemporary interpretations of ancient ballads, original compositions and new choreographies, inviting audiences of all backgrounds into their lives and music.
Sherri Jackson Band, July 21
Sherri Jackson’s sound comes from an old soul, rich in vibrato, emotion and power. A tapestry weaving together folk, blues, jazz, rock and country that has been compared to Linda Ronstadt, Stevie Nicks, Chrissie Hynde and Melissa Etheridge.
Her vocals are deeply resonating, striking a chord within you that only music can touch. She makes the song her own by blending her unique vocal range with a powerful belt that hits you from out of nowhere, making her performances soul-stirring and infectious. Combined with solid rhythm guitar skills, she is equally captivating on stage alone or with fellow musicians.
Baytowne Big Band, July 28
During its 2024 Simcoe Summer Concert Tour Baytowne Big Band is doing five shows, featuring the music of Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald, Chuck Mangione, Paul Simon, Stevie Wonder, Frank Sinatra, Paul Desmond, Burt Bacharach, Duke Ellington and even Sting!
“We are so looking forward to seeing and performing for all you. We’ve programmed two full action packed sets with some of the most beautiful music ever heard,” the band posted on Facebook.
The band is also performing at Music, Market and Park It in Stayner on June 27.
The Relative Minors, August 4
The Relative Minors is an indie rock band for kids. The project was the first-born child of Matt and Kiersten Robertshaw, a couple of fun-loving musicians and educators. Kiersten is a classically trained pianist and elementary music teacher. Matt played the drums in various ska, indie and folk-rock bands for many years before pursuing a career in academia. Matt and Kiersten began writing creative and catchy children’s songs in 2011 for their niece and went on to stage numerous performances at libraries, schools, summer camps, birthday parties, music festivals and other community events in their hometown of Cambridge and the surrounding area.
In its current format, The Relative Minors is a five-piece, electric guitar- and piano-driven rock n’ roll band which performs energetic and witty songs for kids of all ages.
Drawing inspiration from everything from The Beatles and Electric Light Orchestra to The Muppets and The Wiggles, TheRelative Minors offer a fresh take on the children’s music genre by combining the rock band format with catchy and clever lyrics, sophisticated instrumentation and an enduring respect for their audience. The Relative Minors believe in the power of play and imagination, and they hope to inspire a generation of young people to keep learning, keep playing and keep those toes tapping.
Mudmen, August 11
Making an encore performance at this year’s Village Green concert series, Mudmen are a blast of Celtic energy whose members are known to be characters both on and off the stage. First discovered as The Campbell Brothers, bagpipe-playing brothers Robby and Sandy Campbell, signed a record deal with EMI Records changing their name to Mudmen in the late 90s. They have performed at festivals, theatres, events and clubs in eight different countries with over 3000 shows to date and 11 studio albums.
Described as Canada’s Celtic Rock Warriors, Mudmen have toured Canada 40 times – with the likes of Johnny Reid, opened for ZZ Top and The Guess Who, and shared the bill at various events with many of Canada’s top performers. They have played for Queen Elizabeth at a Canada Day celebration on Parliament Hill and have been featured on The Black Donnelly’s, WWE Wrestling, Hockey Night in Canada, Don Cherry’s Rock’ em Sock’ em hockey videos, The Mackenzie Brothers’ Two-Four Anniversary Special among other television shows. They had six music videos on Much Music and MTV, and reached the top 20 countdown on 102.1 The Edge radio.
Moonriivr, August 8
In the spring of 2020, early days of the pandemic, Gavin Gardiner – best known as the front person for Juno- nominated indie-folk mainstays The Wooden Sky, and as a producer and engineer at All Day Coconut studios for artists such as Fiver, Jason Collette, Leanne Betasamosake Simpson – visited his friend “Champagne” James Robertson at the Robertson family farm in Dunedin. After years touring as lead guitar with acts like Lindi Ortega and Dwayne Gretzky, Robertson was similarly adrift during those strange early pandemic days. The two had been circling around each other in the Toronto music scene when the chance to collaborate landed in front of them. Armed with a vintage Tascam 388 tape recorder, mellotron, and a nylon string guitar, the two got stuck in and quickly realized they had stumbled onto something special.
After this initial round of writing and recording sessions at the farm, the two decamped back to Toronto where they roped in first-call bassist Ben Whitely (The Weather Station, Basia Bulat, Julia Jacklin) and percussionist extraordinaire Lyle Molzan (Kathleen Edwards, Corb Lund), and continued tweaking and refining their sound during weekly sessions at All Day Coconut. The two added a new layer of depth to the proceedings, with Whitely’s tasteful, earthy bass playing providing a warm anchor to the music, and Molzan largely eschewing a standard drum-kit in favour of triangles, congas, and other sundry percussive items.
Jesse Corrigan and The Neustadt Sound, August 25
Jesse Corrigan and The Neustadt Sound will close out the series.
Corrigan is a folk musician and singer- songwriter living in Grey County. With a passion for music from a young age, Jesse began playing the guitar at the age of 10 when he asked his mom to teach him a few chords on the nylon string guitar she had lying around. One A chord, D chord and E chord later he knew Amazing Grace and there was no turning back. He has always been drawn to the narrative style of folk music and incorporates this into his own songwriting, often adding a touch of humour and lyrical wit. Throughout his career, Corrigan has played at various venues and festivals across Canada and has had the opportunity to share the stage with some of Canada’s finest musicians.
All performances start at 1 p.m. on the Village Green stage and are preceded by fitness programming in the park each Sunday at 10 a.m. The activities include yoga and pilates with The Sanctuary, Tai Chi with CTCA, Plus Stretching with Nielsen Fitness, and meditation with Purple Tent Wellness.
To coincide with the children’s performers on August 4 there will be a special family yoga session with The Sanctuary at 10 a.m. and Imaginarium will be facilitating arts and crafts, and facepainting from 11 a.m.
All activities are free.
