Folk Music Canada has announced a new collaborative project with the English Folk and Dance Song Society which will bring together Canadian singer-songwriter-guitarist extraordinaire Cara Luft and UK folk songstress-fiddler Bella Hardy for a week of residency and live performance.
Crossing Borders: An International Songwriter Exchange is part of an ongoing effort to shine the spotlight on the Canadian folk scene, foster new artistic collaborations and build opportunities for artists to tour internationally.
Both artists have also been in the spotlight here in the UK with their recent album releases, both of which featured as Folk Radio UK’s Album’s of the Month (read our review of Cara’s Darlingford here & Bella’s Battleplan here).
The pair will participate in a songwriting retreat beginning September 23rd, then tour to Calgary, Edmonton, Lloydminster and Saskatoon, with the experience culminating in a showcase performance at BreakOut West in Calgary on Saturday October 5th.
Crossing Borders is one of several new initiatives for Canada’s national folk music organization, which was founded in 2001. “We are incredibly excited to launch this new program and foster ongoing opportunities for international collaboration that will benefit the Canadian folk scene in a myriad of ways,” says Tamara Kater, Executive Director of Folk Music Canada. “We hope it will grow to benefit many more artists in future years and are delighted to kick it off with such outstanding performers.”
For Neil Pearson, Artist Development and Programming Manager of the English Folk and Dance Song Society, this project will cement an ongoing history of collaboration with our nation: “We’re honoured and privileged to be forging this creative exchange with Canadian performers and to be building further cross-border opportunities for folk musicians.”
Bella Hardy – Three Pieces Of My Heart
http://youtu.be/IBh0nOsW-k4
Cara Luft – Charged
Public performance itinerary
Thu SEPT 26 – The Blue Chair, Edmonton AB
Fri SEPT 27 – Village Guitar & Amp Co., Saskatoon SK
Sat SEPT 28 – The Root, Lloydminster AB
Tue OCT 1 – The Ironwood, Calgary AB
BreakOut West performance details
Sat October 5 – The Ironwood, Calgary AB
7pm Crossing Borders: Bella and Cara showcase their collaboration to industry showcase
8pm Cara Luft showcases her recent album, Darlingford as part of the BreakOut West festival
– See more at: http://folkmusiccanada.ca/#sthash.BGI2qifb.dpuf
http://caraluft.com/
http://www.bellahardy.com/