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Tag: Michelle Demers Shaevitz

Connect with music

Connect with music

The Oot n’ Oots band helps launch Mission Folk Music Festival. (photo from Mission Folk Music Festival)

Family band the Oot n’ Oots helps kick off the Mission Folk Music Festival on July 21, as part of the main-stage lineup that opens the weekend of concerts and workshops. Several other Jewish community members are also participating over the weekend, including Boris Sichon, Jesse Waldman and Abigail Lapell, who helps close out the annual event on the evening of July 23.

The theme of this year’s festival builds on last year’s, said artistic director Michelle Demers Shaevitz, also a member of the Jewish community.

“In 2022,” she said, “I programmed a festival that reflected the experience of homecoming, the coming back together of our community, our festival family. This year, I’m digging into the process and ideas of connection and reconnection, as we move through our experiences beyond that initial homecoming and return to the festival. For me, the idea of reconnection speaks to getting to know who we are as a community post-pandemic and how we have changed/emerged as a result of our experiences.

“I was drawn to our 2023 artists through the ways they express their connection to their homelands, their languages, their heritage and cultures, and musical traditions,” she continued. “It’s how Okan celebrates their roots to their homeland of Cuba and her languages and stories, while Terra Spencer sings of the Maritime landscapes and communities around her.

“It could be reconnecting to language, as Cedric Watson and Jourdan Thibidoux explore their roots in the Creole community based in Louisiana alongside Wesli, who sings in his Haitian Creole of home and in French from his newly adopted community in Quebec.

“It’s the ways that Leonard Sumner and Twin Flames sing their connections to their heritage or how Alysha Brilla presents her identity in her songs.”

And, she said, it’s how the Jewish musicians weave their Jewishness into their stories and songs.

screenshot - Boris Sichon on TikTok, playing an instrument he made himself
Boris Sichon on TikTok, playing an instrument he made himself. (screenshot)

Sichon, a classically trained percussionist, plays more than 400 different instruments from around the world, many of which would send most of us to the internet to find out what they are, such as mayuri, zurna and agogo bells. He can also make music from wrenches, plastic containers, kitchen bowls and even rocks – basically, anything. His TikTok videos are quite entertaining and mind-broadening. It’s easy to see why he is in demand for school and other educational workshops. He told the Independent he is currently “in the process of preparing a new program with an accent on voice and wind instruments.”

“I love to perform for kids,” he said. “It gives them an opportunity to travel around the world with exotic musical instruments.”

In performances, Sichon sings songs about “love, friendship and freedom [in] Ukrainian, Gypsy, Russian and Yiddish.” He also plays klezmer, and has taken part in the International Klezmer Festival in Jerusalem for many years. He has played at and collaborated with the Mission folk fest many times and, at this year’s festival, he takes part in a Sunday afternoon session, called Global Routes, with Dongyang Gozupa and Robin Layne & the Rhythm Makers.

photo - Jesse Waldman
Jesse Waldman (photo from Mission Folk Music Festival)

Earlier that Sunday afternoon, Waldman takes to the stage as well. A blues and folk artist, the Independent spoke with him ahead of his participation in the 2019 festival (jewishindependent.ca/blues-klezmer-at-mission). A couple of years ago, he shared more about himself and the importance of family in a piece for the JI about being inspired by his great-grandmother, Adele Waldman, to reimagine the Yiddish song “Papirosen” (jewishindependent.ca/a-great-grandmothers-song).

Making her debut at the Mission Folk Music Festival is Lapell, with a shared session on Saturday (with Alysha Brilla) and on Sunday (with Terra Spencer), as well as being part of the festival closing concert. She said “there’s so much great music on the lineup – personally, I’m especially excited for the workshop stages, to have a chance to collaborate with and get inspired by artists from across Canada and beyond.”

Based in Toronto, Lapell’s latest album, Stolen Time, which came out last year, earned her a 2023 Canadian Folk Music Award for English songwriter of the year. She was similarly recognized in 2020 for her album Getaway and she received a CFMA for contemporary album of the year in 2017 for Hide Nor Hair.

“I’m always trying to challenge myself as a writer and collaborator,” she said. “I’ve had the chance to work with so many great players and personnel on these albums and I think it’s really helped me grow from one project to the next.”

Lapell has always sung.

“Singing and writing songs is very intuitive to me and definitely a big source of comfort and community,” she said. “Ultimately, I think it’s such a primal thing, singing and sharing music – for me, it’s a way of connecting with myself, with nature and with the world at large.”

photo - Abigail Lapell
Abigail Lapell (photo by Jen Squires)

Her Jewishness finds its way into her work subtly.

“I find my writing is infused with a lot of biblical and natural imagery,” she said. “I’m very drawn to stylized, sometimes repetitive language, whether prayerful or playful or both. I was raised in a religious Jewish family, and I think there’s a reverent spirit to my music – and sometimes a touch of gentle dissonance or wry humour – that reflects some of the Hebrew and Yiddish traditions I grew up with.”

For the Oot n’ Oots – 16-year-old Ruthie Cipes (voice, ukulele) with her dad Ezra (voice, guitar, keys) and uncles Ari (voice, guitar, keys), Gabe (voice, bass) and Matthew (voice, drums) – Judaism and Jewish community are important parts of their lives, but don’t necessarily influence their music.

“We’re grateful for the wisdom of our ancestors and the culture bestowed since Abraham,” wrote Ezra and Ari in an email interview with the Independent. “It’s a great gift that makes our lives rich and meaningful. We’re members of the Okanagan Jewish Community and supporters of Chabad Okanagan.”

The family lives in Kelowna.

“Our parents moved us from Westchester County in New York to Kelowna, B.C., in 1987,” said the brothers. “They wanted to get off the money-go-round and be farmers living in connection with the earth. They ended up founding Summerhill Estate Winery.”

The Oot n’ Oots was formed in 2007, when Ruthie was born, “but it really got going in 2015 once Ruth joined the band. We released our first album in 2016, although it was mostly recorded back in 2007. Then we made two more albums after our elder brother Matthew joined the band on drums.”

The group is currently recording their fourth album. Their third album, Ponderosa Bunchgrass and the Golden Rule, was nominated for a 2023 CFMA for children’s album of the year and it also garnered a 2022 Juno Award nomination – they were named Children’s Artist of the Year at the 2022 Western Canadian Music Awards.

“We write songs to make each other laugh and to inspire each other. That’s what we’ve always done and it’s what we continue to do,” said the brothers. “It’s a practice that’s ongoing. We want it to continue to be meaningful as we all grow.”

While the awards may refer to children’s music, the Oot n’ Oots describe their music as “all generations together music.”

“That’s the sweet spot for us – when it’s toddlers, teenagers, parents and grandparents all on the dancefloor together,” said Ezra and Ari. “We have a couple of other musical projects that we do, but the Oot n’ Oots is our focus because it seems to provide the most tangible value, and it feels really good to bring that energy of joy to the world.”

In addition to the festival opener, the Oot n’ Oots play a few sessions with other musicians over the weekend, which takes place at Fraser River Heritage Park. The festival includes food and artisan market vendors, as well as a licensed bistro, and attendees can choose to camp in the park for an additional fee. For the full lineup and tickets, visit missionfolkmusicfestival.ca.

Format ImagePosted on July 7, 2023July 6, 2023Author Cynthia RamsayCategories MusicTags Abigail Lapell, Boris Sichon, Jesse Waldman, Michelle Demers Shaevitz, Mission Folk Music Festival, Oot n’ Oots
Folk festival returns to park

Folk festival returns to park

Michelle Demers Shaevitz, artistic director of Mission Folk Music Festival, which runs July 22-24. (photo from Mission Folk Music Festival)

“Mission Folk Music Festival is a wonderful combination of the familiar and the magical,” artistic director Michelle Demers Shaevitz told the Jewish Independent of how the festival has thrived for 35 years. “We’ve had the great privilege of presenting interesting and engaging music and art in a stunning setting. Imagine this creativity set among the trees, overlooking the river. We are very lucky.”

The annual festival takes place in Fraser River Heritage Park in Mission. This year, it runs over the weekend of July 22-24.

Demers Shaevitz’s history with the Mission Folk Music Festival goes back to 1991, the year she graduated from high school.

“I started by handing out volunteer tags, graduated to driving performers, moved into performer services and, from there on, to assisting our founder, Francis Xavier, with general management. When he departed in 2016, the board asked me to step into this role as the festival’s second artistic director. Adjacent to all of this, I spent 10 years working in student affairs for Simon Fraser University and the University of the Fraser Valley, as well as moving to Seattle, getting married, and having a kid.”

She credits the festival for that move and her marriage. People come to Mission from Seattle every year to volunteer and Demers Shaevitz said she has made many friends as a result.

“I was headed down there to stay with some of them and see a festival band, the Duhks, from Winnipeg,” she said. “These friends own a wine shop, West Seattle Cellars, and the night after the show, I met my future husband in the Riesling section. I’m so lucky for this festival for giving me the life I have.”

And part of that life is the Jewish community into which she married. She described herself as blessed to have it. “From the start of our relationship, Ben and I decided to incorporate Jewish traditions and holidays into our relationship,” she said. “We’re involved in the JCC here and our son attended Jewish day school for preschool and pre-K. We are members of Kol HaNeshamah in West Seattle and our son has just started Hebrew classes. I am grateful for the acceptance I’ve found in the community, as well as their amazing willingness to share knowledge, traditions and culture with me.”

In addition to the Mission Folk Music Festival, Demers Shaevitz works with Festival du Bois in Maillardville, an historic francophone neighbourhood in Coquitlam, and the Subdued Stringband Jamboree in Bellingham, Wash. She has also volunteered and served as a board member with Northwest Folklife in Seattle.

“I am lucky to have a supportive partner and a good internet connection,” she said of working remotely, notably on the folk festival. “The pandemic really demonstrated the capacity to produce and manage an event from outside of Mission. I’m generally up to Mission two to three times a month, which increases as we get closer to the festival.”

The organizing process for the music festival – which involves more than 300 volunteers – revolves around storytelling.

“If I can focus on the artistic side, I start with a story or an idea that I would like to explore,” she explained. “This year, I am digging into the idea of homecoming. I focus on artists who tell a great story through their music. Artists who are grounded in a culture and/or tradition. Artists who represent a diverse window through which to experience the world around us. It’s important to me that we highlight and celebrate diverse voices and communities. I take this responsibility very seriously.”

Another responsibility she and the festival as a whole take seriously is reconciliation – the event takes place in a park where a residential school once stood.

“We have planned our festival to respectfully acknowledge the footprint of the original site,” said Demers Shaevitz. “We are deepening relationships with the local Sto:lo community as we remain committed to the principles of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. We continue to work towards a deeper understanding of what role we can play in the healing of this space.

“We recognize the privilege we have in presenting music and dance on these grounds and will continue to work with affected communities to prioritize their experiences,” she added.

“It’s a thrill for us to return in person to Fraser River Heritage Park for our 35th anniversary festival,” said Demers Shaevitz in the press release. “I’m excited to welcome folks back to the park to share some amazing global music with them. This year’s lineup offers festival-goers everything from singer-songwriter folk to Celtic, blues, bluegrass and soul to the uniquely amazing nu-folk of Estonia’s Puuluup, the electrifying sound of Chile’s Golosa La Orquesta and, for our Saturday night main stage final act, the dynamic Québécois zydeco of Le Winston Band…. From the heart of B.C.’s Rockies, Shred Kelly will help kick off the festival Friday night, and a true Canadian treasure, William Prince, will close the show on Sunday. And in between – there’s an incredible range of tunes to enjoy.”

Leading the festival through the worst of COVID had its challenges, but also its silver linings.

“I am so grateful to have been able to work with a talented bunch of dedicated folks to produce our two online festivals,” said Demers Shaevitz. “The highlight of this for me was all the ways in which people demonstrated their willingness to support us in any way that they could. The resilience of the artists, the community to continue was so heartening. It truly fed my heart and soul. I think that I’ve continued to draw upon that resilience to get through this return to music, this return to ‘live.’”

In addition to the concerts, the three-day live event includes music workshops, Wee Folks programming “so kids and their families can enjoy listening to the music while they play,” food and artisan markets and a licensed bistro on site. For evening, day or weekend passes, including an option to camp at the site, visit missionfolkmusicfestival.ca.

Format ImagePosted on July 8, 2022July 7, 2022Author Cynthia RamsayCategories MusicTags Fraser River Heritage Park, Michelle Demers Shaevitz, Mission Folk Music Festival
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