Untitled Document

In July I received a phone call from an artist whose application to this year’s Festival had been turned down. He told me that he wanted to know the reason why his band had not been accepted. He did admit that the tape he'd sent in was not of the best quality, and that perhaps there were other acts that were slicker. "It seems to me that the festival has become very exclusive," he said. He started to reminisce about the early days of the Festival when the program embraced a broad range of artists, from the professional to the amateur, from the polished to the unrehearsed. "The Festival used to welcome all performers, regardless. The whole point was to enjoy yourself and celebrate your culture."

He did have a point, and a good one. When I first played at the Festival in 1982 (the 6th), there was no application process. If people wanted to perform, they mentioned it to the organizers. If they showed up at the Festival with their guitar or fiddle and decided at the last minute that they wanted to get up and play, space was made for them in the schedule.

No contracts or technical riders were sent out to musicians, and participation was strictly on a volunteer basis. The Festival was a free event, and none of the performers were paid. In fact, we were rarely told when we were slotted to play. In order to find out when we were performing, we generally had to go to Bannerman Park and pick up a program! In those early days, the Festival was informal, spontaneous, and a lot of fun.

In 1992 two things happened: A meeting of musicians, music store owners and other music industry people at The Loft on Duckworth St. led to the formation of the Music Industry Association of Newfoundland and Labrador. The same year saw the collapse of the province’s fishery.

During those early days of the moratorium, a lot of money was put into developing industries outside of the fishery. Many people felt that culture and tourism had the potential to create jobs and career opportunities. As the Music Industry Association continued to grow and influence the development of local musicians, performers were beginning to concentrate on getting ahead in "the biz." Government provided funding for the development of press kits, showcases, and out of province touring.

The Folk Festival also went through some major changes in the 90's that reflected the burgeoning professionalism in the local music industry. We began giving our artists an honorarium for their performances. It wasn’t a lot of money, but it was an acknowledgment that we were beginning to regard Folk Festival gigs as more than just a bit of fun.

People sought out ways of making money in the post-moratorium marketplace by creating new events and festivals every year, making the cultural events market more and more competitive. Throughout the 90's, the organizers of the Folk Festival began to think in terms of strengthening its position in the marketplace by creating promotional campaigns through the use of eye-catching posters and radio ads, and by cultivating relationships with corporate media sponsors. The program was peppered with popular bands, many of whom had CDs, and who were touring constantly. Local folk festivals were arguably a factor in the rise of bands such as Great Big Sea, Shanneyganock, and the Masterless Men. Their access to larger audiences at such events no doubt increased their CD sales and their fervent fan base.

While it was encouraging to see greater economic benefits coming from the Newfoundland music scene and its activities, there were still some who felt that the Festival had become a little too commercial, and that we had forgotten about the "folk" in folk music. When the Festival went from building its own stage to renting a large mobile unit in the mid 90's, there was a feeling that the intimacy and fun of those early days had truly disappeared. The vast stage, with its lighting, speaker stacks, and greater height, put distance between the performers and the audience. Most of the Festival artists were professional musicians who received at least some of their yearly income from performing. The music was slick, loud, and calculated to get a crowd going. A far cry from listening to your grandmother sing a 26 verse ballad in her kitchen!
After some soul searching, changes were made in the Festival format. Traditional song, fiddle, and accordion sessions were re-injected into the Main Stage program to reflect the mandate of the St. John’s Folk Arts Council (which is to "promote and preserve the traditional arts of Newfoundland and Labrador both within the province and throughout Canada"). A few years later, Rob Brown started up the instrumental workshop tent, which ran concurrently with the Main Stage. It brought back some of the intimacy of the early festivals, but suffered from sound interference from the Main Stage.

In 2002, two more workshop stages in oral traditions and dance were founded, and the Festival gates were opened in the morning. The three workshop stages run from 10:00am to 1:00pm, and are completely acoustic. At 1:00pm, the Main Stage and Neil Murray Stage fire up their sound systems for the afternoon and evening sessions.

The workshop stages really do recapture the feel of the Festival as it was in the 70's and 80's. The performers chat and laugh while recalling stories about how they learned their tunes. Audience members ask questions, and sing along to songs they know. Sometimes during the early morning sessions, performers forget their lines, perhaps due to lack of sleep or caffeine! They are approachable, they are fallible, and best of all they are accessible to the audience.

In 2002, we also introduced the Regional Focus Program in which traditional artists are brought in from a specific area of the province. Many of the acts selected are not professional, but consist of people who have the traditional arts in their everyday lives.

When I think on those magical early days of the Festival, it does make me sad to think that it will never be like that again. There is no doubt that the Folk Festival is now a music industry event. Nevertheless, the St. John’s Folk Arts Council can continue to find ways to make the traditional arts accessible to people through workshops, thematic programming, and the youth performances that happen on the Neil Murray Stage and Young Folk at the Hall. We also have to consider that a more professional event is not necessarily a bad thing. It attracts tourists, generates revenue within local businesses, and gives artists gigs closer to home.
Special Events are now a big part of the economic landscape in the province, particularly during the summer. The challenge for presenters is to create events that are relevant and respectful, and that promote artistic excellence and a sense of community. The Festival does not belong to the St. John’s Folk Arts Council, but to an interdependent triad consisting of audience member/performer/organizer. Take away one of those entities and the Festival will cease to exist.

I hope the Folk Festival continues to grow and inspire people to play music, tell stories, and learn traditional dances. I was happy to hear that many people, upon learning of the Festival’s upcoming world record attempt at largest accordion ensemble, decided to borrow instruments in order to learn how to play so they could participate in the event. Ancient accordions have been dragged out of closets and out from under beds; dusted, repaired, and put to use. For what purpose?

To have fun.

This is my last president’s message. I will be stepping down as SJFAC chair in the fall, but will stay on as the Festival programming director for 2006. Much thanks to all the volunteers, board members, SJFAC employees, performers, community groups, government organizations, arts groups, media folks, festival sponsors and audience members that I’ve worked with in the last three years.

Jean Hewson has served as SJFAC president for the past three years and is a tireless worker for the traditional arts in the province. She is also a dedicated music teacher and a fine musician. A member of the Mahers Bahers, Jean is one of the few people whose wit can go head-to-head with Frank Maher’s and emerge unscathed. She and Christina Smith have been performing and recording together for twenty years; their newest CD “The August Gale” was released by Borealis in mid July.


	Readings From The Book of Jean: The Final Chapter by Jean Hewson The Broadside Vol 9. No. 2 August 2005

	In July I received a phone call from an artist whose application to this year’s Festival had been turned down. He told me that he wanted to know the reason why his band had not been accepted. He did admit that the tape he'd sent in was not of the best quality, and that perhaps there were other acts that were slicker. "It seems to me that the festival has become very exclusive," he said. He started to reminisce about the early days of the Festival when the program embraced a broad range of artists, from the professional to the amateur, from the polished to the unrehearsed. "The Festival used to welcome all performers, regardless. The whole point was to enjoy yourself and celebrate your culture." He did have a point, and a good one. When I first played at the Festival in 1982 (the 6th), there was no application process. If people wanted to perform, they mentioned it to the organizers. If they showed up at the Festival with their guitar or fiddle and decided at the last minute that they wanted to get up and play, space was made for them in the schedule. No contracts or technical riders were sent out to musicians, and participation was strictly on a volunteer basis. The Festival was a free event, and none of the performers were paid. In fact, we were rarely told when we were slotted to play. In order to find out when we were performing, we generally had to go to Bannerman Park and pick up a program! In those early days, the Festival was informal, spontaneous, and a lot of fun. In 1992 two things happened: A meeting of musicians, music store owners and other music industry people at The Loft on Duckworth St. led to the formation of the Music Industry Association of Newfoundland and Labrador. The same year saw the collapse of the province’s fishery. During those early days of the moratorium, a lot of money was put into developing industries outside of the fishery. Many people felt that culture and tourism had the potential to create jobs and career opportunities. As the Music Industry Association continued to grow and influence the development of local musicians, performers were beginning to concentrate on getting ahead in "the biz." Government provided funding for the development of press kits, showcases, and out of province touring. The Folk Festival also went through some major changes in the 90's that reflected the burgeoning professionalism in the local music industry. We began giving our artists an honorarium for their performances. It wasn’t a lot of money, but it was an acknowledgment that we were beginning to regard Folk Festival gigs as more than just a bit of fun. People sought out ways of making money in the post-moratorium marketplace by creating new events and festivals every year, making the cultural events market more and more competitive. Throughout the 90's, the organizers of the Folk Festival began to think in terms of strengthening its position in the marketplace by creating promotional campaigns through the use of eye-catching posters and radio ads, and by cultivating relationships with corporate media sponsors. The program was peppered with popular bands, many of whom had CDs, and who were touring constantly. Local folk festivals were arguably a factor in the rise of bands such as Great Big Sea, Shanneyganock, and the Masterless Men. Their access to larger audiences at such events no doubt increased their CD sales and their fervent fan base. While it was encouraging to see greater economic benefits coming from the Newfoundland music scene and its activities, there were still some who felt that the Festival had become a little too commercial, and that we had forgotten about the "folk" in folk music. When the Festival went from building its own stage to renting a large mobile unit in the mid 90's, there was a feeling that the intimacy and fun of those early days had truly disappeared. The vast stage, with its lighting, speaker stacks, and greater height, put distance between the performers and the audience. Most of the Festival artists were professional musicians who received at least some of their yearly income from performing. The music was slick, loud, and calculated to get a crowd going. A far cry from listening to your grandmother sing a 26 verse ballad in her kitchen! After some soul searching, changes were made in the Festival format. Traditional song, fiddle, and accordion sessions were re-injected into the Main Stage program to reflect the mandate of the St. John’s Folk Arts Council (which is to "promote and preserve the traditional arts of Newfoundland and Labrador both within the province and throughout Canada"). A few years later, Rob Brown started up the instrumental workshop tent, which ran concurrently with the Main Stage. It brought back some of the intimacy of the early festivals, but suffered from sound interference from the Main Stage. In 2002, two more workshop stages in oral traditions and dance were founded, and the Festival gates were opened in the morning. The three workshop stages run from 10:00am to 1:00pm, and are completely acoustic. At 1:00pm, the Main Stage and Neil Murray Stage fire up their sound systems for the afternoon and evening sessions. The workshop stages really do recapture the feel of the Festival as it was in the 70's and 80's. The performers chat and laugh while recalling stories about how they learned their tunes. Audience members ask questions, and sing along to songs they know. Sometimes during the early morning sessions, performers forget their lines, perhaps due to lack of sleep or caffeine! They are approachable, they are fallible, and best of all they are accessible to the audience. In 2002, we also introduced the Regional Focus Program in which traditional artists are brought in from a specific area of the province. Many of the acts selected are not professional, but consist of people who have the traditional arts in their everyday lives. When I think on those magical early days of the Festival, it does make me sad to think that it will never be like that again. There is no doubt that the Folk Festival is now a music industry event. Nevertheless, the St. John’s Folk Arts Council can continue to find ways to make the traditional arts accessible to people through workshops, thematic programming, and the youth performances that happen on the Neil Murray Stage and Young Folk at the Hall. We also have to consider that a more professional event is not necessarily a bad thing. It attracts tourists, generates revenue within local businesses, and gives artists gigs closer to home. Special Events are now a big part of the economic landscape in the province, particularly during the summer. The challenge for presenters is to create events that are relevant and respectful, and that promote artistic excellence and a sense of community. The Festival does not belong to the St. John’s Folk Arts Council, but to an interdependent triad consisting of audience member/performer/organizer. Take away one of those entities and the Festival will cease to exist. I hope the Folk Festival continues to grow and inspire people to play music, tell stories, and learn traditional dances. I was happy to hear that many people, upon learning of the Festival’s upcoming world record attempt at largest accordion ensemble, decided to borrow instruments in order to learn how to play so they could participate in the event. Ancient accordions have been dragged out of closets and out from under beds; dusted, repaired, and put to use. For what purpose? To have fun. This is my last president’s message. I will be stepping down as SJFAC chair in the fall, but will stay on as the Festival programming director for 2006. Much thanks to all the volunteers, board members, SJFAC employees, performers, community groups, government organizations, arts groups, media folks, festival sponsors and audience members that I’ve worked with in the last three years. Jean Hewson has served as SJFAC president for the past three years and is a tireless worker for the traditional arts in the province. She is also a dedicated music teacher and a fine musician. A member of the Mahers Bahers, Jean is one of the few people whose wit can go head-to-head with Frank Maher’s and emerge unscathed. She and Christina Smith have been performing and recording together for twenty years; their newest CD “The August Gale” was released by Borealis in mid July. (back to table of contents)