Folk-music aficionados in Williams Lake will soon be able to enjoy a series of six live house concerts with high-calibre Canadian and international performers.
In conjunction with Home Routes, Steve Harkies and Emily Sonntag of Juniper Trails Bed and Breakfast are turning their parlour into an intimate mini concert hall.
They have committed to hosting six concerts a year, with three in the fall and three in the spring.
"I first heard of them last winter," Steve says. "I thought not only was it a great way to help support professional musicians, but from a marketing perspective it was a fantastic opportunity to expand our local marketing initiatives, community involvement, supporting the arts, great social awareness ...
"We're very excited about it. We're hoping they will turn into a series of fun and entertaining evenings with fantastic music, food and friends."
They will be playing host to inspiring and interesting professional travelling musicians, feeding them, and putting them up for the night.
Juniper Trails is part of the “Blue Moon” circuit.
Starting in Vancouver and ending in Prince George, musicians play a total of 12 house concerts in 14 days.
The first concert takes place Wednesday, Oct. 3.
Performers, Larry Hanks and Deborah Robbins (www.larryhanks.com), are set to entertain an intimate group of 20 to 30 guests, with doors opening at 7 p.m.
Tickets for the performances are $20 with the entire proceeds going to the musicians.
A great selection of homemade desserts and refreshments will also be offered.
For more information and to reserve your seats, contact Steve and Emily at 250-398-8296 or e-mail them at info@junipertrails.ca
The series continues Thursday, Nov. 1 with My Sweet Patootie (www.mysweetpatootie.com); Friday, Nov. 30 with Carrie Elkin, (www.carrieelkin.com); Saturday, Feb. 16, 2013 with Kim Dunn (www.kimdunn.ca); Sunday, March 17, 2013, with Jess Reimer (www.jessreimer.com); Tuesday, April 16, 2013 with Silk Road (www.silkroadmusic.ca).
Home Routes is the brainchild of Mitch Podolak, one of Canada’s biggest promoters of folk music. He was a founder of the Winnipeg and Vancouver folk music festivals.
When Podolak’s son and his former band, Scruj MacDukh, came back exhausted and penniless from a grueling North American tour in 2003, Podolak wondered if there was a better way for folk artists to earn a living.
Podolak had first heard about a house-concert circuit in California 30 years ago and the idea stayed with him. It seemed like a win-win situation. Audiences get an evening of high-calibre music, and artists are spared the major expenses of touring, thus putting more money in their pockets.
The house concerts also provide intimate settings giving 20 to 30 audience members a performance in an intimate setting that can't be matched in larger venues.
And there is plenty of time to meet and talk with the musicians before and after the show.
Today, there are Home Routes venues from Ontario to the Yukon, with over a dozen different touring circuits for musicians to pick from, according to their schedules and needs. The program has featured 12 Juno winners, with many well-known Canadian and International performers.
For more information and to reserve your seats for the concerts Steve and Emily at 250-398-8296 or e-mail them at info@junipertrails.ca
For more information on Home Routes, visit www.homeroutes.ca.