Executive Council
Tourism, Culture and Recreation
January 14, 2010
Newfoundland and Labrador Artists
Hit the World Stage at the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic
Winter Games
The Honourable Danny Williams, Premier of Newfoundland
and Labrador, today announced that the Government of
Newfoundland and Labrador is investing more than
$450,000 to take approximately 80 artists to Vancouver
to perform during the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter
Games. The Premier made the announcement in Corner Brook
and was joined by the Honourable Terry French, Minister
of Tourism, Culture and Recreation.
"With just a month to go before Canada hosts the 2010
Olympic and Paralympic Games, we are delighted to
announce our support for so many of the province's most
talented cultural performers as they prepare to take the
world stage in February," said Premier Williams. "With
the incredible wealth of talented artists from
Newfoundland and Labrador, we will be well represented
as we add our own voice to the games. From traditional
folk music to contemporary indie rock and everything in
between, some of Newfoundland and Labrador's best
musicians, dancers, actors, comedians and storytellers
will entertain the world during the biggest show on
earth."
Performers announced today are: Amelia Curran, Artistic
Fraud of Newfoundland, Chris Kirby, Daniel Payne, Fergus
O'Byrne, Great Big Sea, Hey Rosetta!, The Irish
Descendants, Jim Payne, Kelly Russell and Tonya Kearley,
Mary Barry, The Navigators, The Nunatsiavut Drum
Dancers, Ron Hynes, Sherman Downey, Shanneyganock, Shaun
Majumder, Tara Oram, The Once, and Wonderbolt Circus.
Additional information is included in the backgrounder
below.
Newfoundland and Labrador artists will have many
opportunities to be showcased during the games. Artists
who will participate in the Vancouver 2010 Cultural
Olympiad will take the stage in popular venues
throughout Vancouver from January 22 to March 21, 2010.
The Cultural Olympiad is a series of three,
multi-disciplinary festivals that began in 2008.
Performers were chosen by the Vancouver Olympic
Organizing Committee (VANOC), following a call for
proposals, and subsequent visits to the province to
attend cultural events, including the East Coast Music
Awards (ECMAs) held in Corner Brook last February.
Other artists will perform at a variety of venues,
including BC Place, as part of Newfoundland and
Labrador's 30-minute Victory Celebration Showcase
preceding the medal ceremonies on February 26, 2010 –
Newfoundland and Labrador Day at the Olympics; Atlantic
Canada House located on Granville Island, from February
13-28; the Athletes' Village; Aboriginal Pavilion; and
Place de la Francophonie.
Joining Premier Williams and Minister French today were
performers The Once and Sherman Downey.
"We are very excited that so many of our Newfoundland
and Labrador artists will have the opportunity to
showcase their talents on an international stage," said
Minister French. "This is our time to shine, and show
the world why Newfoundland and Labrador is a great place
to live, work, play and do business. Our investment as a
province into the 2010 Winter Games will pay dividends
for our cultural industries with exposure to an
international audience."
In celebrating Newfoundland and Labrador Day at the
Olympics, events have been planned both in Vancouver and
in the province. On February 26, regional community
celebrations in St. John's, Gander, Corner Brook and
Happy Valley-Goose Bay will bring the spirit of the
Olympics to Newfoundlanders and Labradorians. Many local
artists are scheduled to perform, adding the province's
distinctive culture, heritage and traditions to the
festivities.
With today's announcement, the Government of
Newfoundland and Labrador has, to date, committed more
than $2.5 million for activities designed to support
Canadian athletes and showcase Newfoundland and Labrador
on the world stage during the 2010 Olympic Winter Games
– including $1.5 million to sign a Contributing
Province/Territory Program (CPTP) agreement with the
Vancouver Organizing Committee; $500,000 to be part of
the Atlantic Canada House pavilion on Granville Island
in Vancouver; and over $67,000 for regional Torch Relay
activities held in the province in November.
For more information on Newfoundland and Labrador's
involvement in the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic
Winter Games see:
www.gov.nl.ca/2010olympics
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Media contacts:
Elizabeth Matthews
Director of Communications
Office of the Premier
709-729-3960
elizabethmatthews@gov.nl.ca
Heather May
Director of Communications
Department of Tourism, Culture and Recreation
709-729-0928, 697-5061
heathermay@gov.nl.ca
Andrea Nolan
Press Secretary
Office of the Premier
709-729-4304, 727-0991
andreanolan@gov.nl.ca
BACKGROUNDER
Newfoundland and Labrador Artists Performing
During the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter
Games
Amelia Curran (Atlantic Canada House)
Amelia Curran is a talented singer/songwriter from St.
John's who currently resides in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
She has three solo albums under her belt; a band album
with the Senseamelia Project; and has been a guest on
recordings by other Halifax bands such as Heavy Meadows.
As an independent musician who also includes acting and
writing on her resume, Ms. Curran gained national
attention with her 2006 release War Brides. In 2009, she
released Hunter, Hunter which earned her four
nominations at the 2010 ECMAs; Female Solo Recording of
the Year; FACTOR Recording of the Year; and, SOCAN
Songwriter of the Year and Folk Recording of the Year.
Artistic Fraud of Newfoundland (Cultural Olympiad)
Artistic Fraud of Newfoundland was formed in 1995 and
has since emerged as one of Canada's most innovative
theatrical companies. Over the past 12 years, the group
has been developing a system of directing and
performance called kaleidography, which involves an
inventive synchronization of lights and music. Since its
inception, the company has created nine original works
using this process including Fear of Flight; Under
Wraps; Belly Up; The Cheat; and, Emile's Dream.
Chris Kirby (Atlantic Canada House)
Chris Kirby, a 27-year-old from Norris Arm, moved to St.
John's in 2001 where he began playing in several bands
on the local club scene. With the release of Chris Kirby
on Rum & Religion in 2006, Mr. Kirby emerged as a solo
artist and a captivating songwriter and performer. Mr.
Kirby has won a MusicNL award for 2009 Jazz/Blues Artist
of the Year and is nominated for Solo Male Recoding of
the Year, Blues Recording of the Year, R&B/Soul Single
of the Year (Come Clean), and FACTOR Recording of the
Year for the 2010 ECMAs. Heavily influenced by New
Orleans rhythm and blues and Motown soul, but rooted in
the rich Newfoundland and Labrador tradition of
storytelling, his newest release is Vampire Hotel. Mr.
Kirby has earned multiple MusicNL and ECMA nominations
and has also appeared on showcase and songwriters'
circle stages at major national and international
events, where he has performed alongside Ron Hynes,
Maureen Ennis, Steve Marriner, Treasa Levasseur, Kyle
Riabko and Harry Manx.
Daniel Payne (Atlantic Canada House)
Daniel Payne is from the Town of Cow Head on the
Northern Peninsula. For over a decade, he has worked as
a professional musician, performing the traditional
music of Newfoundland and Labrador, as well as
collecting songs and dance tunes from older traditional
players around the province. Starting in his teens with
guitar and voice, Mr. Payne has gone on to become
proficient in a wide variety of instruments, including
fiddle, accordion, mandolin, flute, whistle, and bodhrán.
He has also enjoyed a successful career as an actor in
theatre and film with his most notable role being a
starring performance as Ned Andrews in the television
mini-series Random Passage.
Fergus O'Byrne (Atlantic Canada House)
Fergus O'Byrne, originally from Ireland, became a
familiar voice on radio and television from 1971 to 1983
as a member of the folk group, Ryan's Fancy. He has
since followed a busy solo and freelance career, touring
nationally and internationally with Jim Payne and A
Crowd of Bold Sharemen. He can be heard on recent
recordings of Great Big Sea, and has contributed to
several anthologies of Newfoundland music. In February
2004, as part of Ryan's Fancy, Mr. O'Byrne was awarded
the ECMA Dr. Helen Creighton Lifetime Achievement Award.
This award recognizes an individual or group who has had
a profound and lasting effect on the Atlantic Canadian
music industry. In April 2005, along with Jim Payne, he
was the recipient of the inaugural Arts in Education
Award presented by the Newfoundland and Labrador Arts
Council. He works extensively with young folk music
enthusiasts and is presently Education Chair of the Juno
2010 Host Committee for St. John's.
Great Big Sea (BC Place Headlining Band)
Born and raised in "the far east of the western world",
Great Big Sea is a folk-rock band which has toured
internationally while wearing their home of Newfoundland
and Labrador on their sleeve. The band is best known for
performing energetic rock interpretations of traditional
Newfoundland folk songs, including sea shanties which
draw from the province's 500-year-old Irish, English,
and French heritage, as well as their own original
material. Great Big Sea has been nominated for eight
Juno Awards, including Best Roots & Traditional
Album-Group (for Up, Play, and Turn); Best Video (for
the songs 'Run Runaway' and 'Lukey'); Music DVD of the
Year (for Great Big DVD); and, Group of the Year (1998
and 2005). The band has won an unprecedented 18 ECMAs,
including Album of the Year (1998, 2000, 2003); Group of
the Year (1998, 2000, 2003); Pop Recording of the Year
(1998, 2003); Single of the Year (1998); Video of the
Year (1997, 1999, 2003); and, Entertainer of the Year
(1996-2000, 2003).
Hey Rosetta! (Cultural Olympiad, BC Place, Atlantic
Canada House)
Hey Rosetta is a lyric driven indie rock band from St.
John's. Known for energized live shows, the band has
created a layered sound by incorporating piano, violin
and cello with electric guitars and soaring, guttural
vocals. The band has toured extensively in Canada as
well as in Australia, Europe, the United Kingdom, and
the United States. Hey Rosetta! won three ECMAs in 2009,
as well as the Canadian Music Week Indie Award for Best
Album, the XM Verge Award for Best Album, and was
short-listed for the renowned Polaris Music Prize for
their album Into Your Lungs (and around in your heart
and on through your blood).
Irish Descendants (Cultural Olympiad, BC Place,
Atlantic Canada House)
The Irish Descendants are a folk group from Newfoundland
and Labrador. All the members, born of Irish emigrants,
were workers in the Newfoundland fishing industry before
forming the band in 1990 out of the remnants of two
former Newfoundland bands, The Descendants and Irish
Coffee. The current members are Con O'Brien (lead vocals
and guitar); Duncan Cameron (fiddle, bouzouki, whistle,
bodhrán, and vocals); Robert Kelly (bass and vocals);
and, Graham Wells (accordion, tin whistle, bodhrán and
vocals). Since their formation, The Irish Descendants
have garnered a loyal fan base in Canada and captured
the attention of an ever-growing international audience.
The band's award winning recordings range from lilting
ballads to toe-tapping reels, and their high energy live
performances have made them a popular attraction at home
and abroad.
Jim Payne (Atlantic Canada House)
Jim Payne is from Notre Dame Bay and has been a
professional performing artist and writer for 19 years.
Long known as a leading performer and collector of
Newfoundland and Labrador traditional music, he is also
one of the province's most prolific songwriters, working
in several genres. Mr. Payne has directed, composed and
performed music for some of the most popular theatre
productions of the past two decades, as well as creating
soundtracks for plays, documentaries and videos. He has
performed extensively on radio and television in Canada
and abroad, and has toured throughout Canada, the United
States, Europe, Japan and Australia.
Kelly Russell and Tonya Kearley, Pigeon Inlet (BC
Place)
Born in St. John's, Kelly Russell has been a
professional musician since 1974. An original member of
such landmark Newfoundland groups as Figgy Duff and The
Wonderful Grand Band in the 1970s, and more recently The
Plankerdown Band, he also spent 10 years working closely
with Newfoundland's late, great fiddle masters, Rufus
Guinchard and Emile Benoit. Recognizing a need to
preserve the music of older performers in Newfoundland
and Labrador, Mr. Russell founded Pigeon Inlet
Productions in 1979. The label has since produced over
30 full length recordings on LP, cassette and CD. With
wife and partner Tonya Kearley, Mr. Russell also runs
music and dance events in Trinity such as "Dance Up" and
the popular dinner theatre show A Time in Pigeon Inlet
each summer in Bay Roberts.
Mary Barry (Atlantic Canada House, Place de la
Francophonie)
Newfoundland's "Jazz Chanteuse" Mary Barry is an
award-winning singer, composer, teacher and a graduate
of Vancouver Community College's jazz program. Ms.
Barry's third independent recording entitled Red Eye
Tonight features musical giants Brian Way, Patrick
Boyle, Bill Brennan, Gary Davis, Rick Hollett, Mark
Peddle, and Gary Tilley. The CD was released to rave
reviews and won Barry both Female Artist and Jazz/Blues
Artist of the Year at the 2007 Music NL Awards and a
2009 ECMA nomination for Jazz Recording of the Year.
Barry is well-recognized for her songwriting talent,
having won several songwriting awards and making it into
the semi-finals in the 2006 International Songwriting
Competition - the only Canadian to make it that far in
the jazz category. Ms. Barry's second CD, "These Days",
which won her Music Industry Association of Newfoundland
and Labrador's Female Artist of the Year and an ECMA
nomination for Jazz Recording of the Year in 2005, also
features four award-winning songs. Ms. Barry has just
released her first full length recording in French
entitled Chansons Irises.
Navigators (Atlantic Canada House)
The Navigators have become one of Atlantic Canada's
iconic traditional bands bringing together two of
Newfoundland and Labrador's most powerful baritones,
Fred Jorgensen (whistles, bodhrán, guitar) and Arthur
O'Brien (fiddle, acoustic/electric guitar). The
Navigators' sound draws on Newfoundland's rich
traditional heritage and links to the old world. The
Navigators and their long-awaited sophomore recording
Sea Miner delivers a mix of modern folk and traditional
Irish Newfoundland melodies steeped in local folklore.
Nunatsiavut Drum Dancers (Cultural Olympiad,
Aboriginal Pavilion, BC Place, Atlantic Canada House)
Originating from a school exercise to revive drumming in
northern Labrador, the Nunatsiavut Drum Dancers
(formerly known as the Kilautik Drummers) were formed in
the late 1990s. They are known for their creativity in
developing and performing unique dance styles. The
drummers also perform dances that complement traditional
Inuit songs and stories. With 10 members, the
Nunatsiavut Drum Dancers have performed for local,
national and international audiences, representing the
cultural revitalization of Inuit culture, youth
empowerment, and pride in the new Inuit region of
Nunatsiavut.
Ron Hynes (Cultural Olympiad, BC Place, Atlantic
Canada House)
One of Canada's premier singer-songwriters, Ron Hynes
has created beautifully crafted signature songs for
nearly 35 years. With seven solo albums to his credit,
Ron Hynes is a six-time ECMA winner, a Genie Award
winner, and a past JUNO, Canadian Country Music Award (CCMA)
and Canadian Folk Music Award nominee. Best known for
his folk classic "Sonny's Dream", Ron Hynes is the
recent recipient of the SOCAN National Achievement Award
for songwriting career success and holds an Honorary PhD
from Memorial University for his songwriting and
contribution to the cultural life of Newfoundland and
Labrador.
Sherman Downey (Cultural Olympiad, Atlantic Canada
House)
Sherman Downey was born and raised in a small town on
the west coast of Newfoundland. It was from this
perspective that he began writing music. His songs are
often likened to those of a young Paul Simon, full of
contagious rhythm, but layered with hints of bluegrass.
Mr. Downey received MusicNL's full length recording
grant for 2009 and has recently released his first CD,
Honey for Bees, with a group of musicians called The
Ambiguous Case. Mr. Downey and the band have been
turning heads in the folk industry, sharing the stage
with bands like Elliott Brood, Tom Fun Orchestra and
Kathleen Edwards.
Shanneyganock (Atlantic Canada House)
Fourteen years ago, Mark Hiscock and Chris Andrews were
double booked at a small pub in St. John's. Rather than
cancel one, the owner suggested they play together and
so was born Shanneyganock. Joined by Bob Pike and Ed
Southerby, the group has since charmed many through
their stirring ballads, powerful shanties, and
rib-rattling jigs and reels. Their CDs have been
featured on Warner Record's Atlantic Standard's
compilation and "Ed's Up" on the OLN Network. In 2009
they were named Entertainers of the Year at The MusicNL
and Labrador Gala and also received a 2010 ECMA
nomination.
Shaun Majumder (Cultural Olympiad, BC Place, Atlantic
Canada House)
The Gemini award-winning actor/comedian Shaun Majumder
starred in the Farrelly Brothers' Fox comedy entitled
Unhitched, which debuted in March 2008. His Comedy
Central Presents special debuted on Comedy Central in
April 2008. Mr. Majumder's television career has also
included appearances on Fox's 24, Cedric the Entertainer
Presents, and he has been a cast member of the
critically-acclaimed Canadian series This Hour Has 22
Minutes. He was recently a guest star on Robson Arms on
CTV; the new series Less Than Kind, which will debut
this fall on CHUM network; and, on Da Kink in My Hair on
Global TV. He was also featured in the debut episode of
CBC's Republic of Doyle. His film credits include Harold
and Kumar Go to White Castle, The Ladies Man, Pushing
Tin, Purpose and most recently, Bob Funk alongside
Rachel Leigh Cook and Olympia Dukakis. Mr. Majumder is
also a favorite of Montreal's Just for Laughs Comedy
festival having hosted the TV series for three seasons.
He now resides in Los Angeles.
Tara Oram (Atlantic Canada House, BC Place)
Tara Oram of Hare Bay stepped into the spotlight
when she placed sixth on CTV's Canadian Idol. From
there, she caught the eye of award-winning talent
manager, Ron Kitchener, and signed to Open Road
Recordings. Since releasing her debut, Chasing the Sun,
Ms. Oram has racked up a number of awards, including the
Canadian Country Music Association's 2009 Rising Star
Award, an ECMA for Country Recording of the Year and a
2009 JUNO nomination. With a new album slated for 2010,
Ms. Oram continues to establish herself as one of
country music's brightest young stars.
The Once (Atlantic Canada House)
With "vocal harmonies thick enough to stand on" The Once
has been recorded for CBC's The Vinyl Café, and in
October 2010, they will tour Ireland as well take part
in an Arts and Culture Centre provincial tour. Armed
with bouzouki, banjo, unaccompanied ballads and
shanties, The Once is a trio of Newfoundland folk
musicians, building on the traditions of their
Newfoundland and Labrador home. Winners of four MusicNL
awards in 2009 and nominated for an ECMA award in 2010,
they have quickly earned their place amongst
Newfoundland's finest musical talent. They will also
appear in Memphis in late February as part of The North
American Folk Alliance and at the legendary Stan Rogers
Folk Festival this summer.
Wonderbolt Circus (Cultural Olympiad, BC Place,
Atlantic Canada House)
Wonderbolt Circus presents a cross-cultural circus
combining rich comic tradition with the sophistication
of modern cirque and the dazzling artistry of Native
American song and dance. Wonderbolt Productions has been
providing unique, original theatrical presentations to
audiences in Newfoundland and Labrador and across Canada
for 25 years. Beni Malone, the company's artistic
director, has trained in facilities around the world,
from Ringling Bros Barnum & Bailey's Clown College in
Venice, Florida and L'Ecole Nationale du Cirque in
Paris.
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