Winter's Coming and So Many Concerts!

Hi everyone,

We are well into our fall season which I told you in the last newsletter is my favourite season. We have had a prolonged glorious fall this year but we woke up to nine inches of wet snow that came down on Saturday, October 22nd in the early morning hours. It was a big shock to see the white stuff because we have been so spoiled. Luckily the snow only lasted for two days and now all the roads are dry again. But I hear that freezing rain and flurries are in the forecast for this week so I think winter will be here to stay soon.

There are many concerts in November and December and many are member concerts so I will start with those first. These will all be summarized on the Member News Page so please look there for the details. First, Kaylene is playing violin on the evening of November 5th with the A

mbrose Arts Orchestra at St. Stephens' Anglican Church. Next Edel will be playing flute at the Polaris Centre in Airdrie on Nov 7th with her Westwinds Concert Band. Then Edel will be singing 2 days later on Nov 9th with the Irish Cultural Society Choir in the ProArts noon series at the Cathedral Church of the Redeemer. And Kaylene will be again be playing violin with her piano music partner, Alan, at the November Contemporary Showcase Festival at the Living Spirit United Church. The festival is free for the public to attend. Yes, both our president, Edel and vice-president, Kaylene are busy by performing twice in November. If you are able, please support your fellow members at their performances if you can. I plan to go to at least one of the concerts that Edel and Kaylene will be performing at. And as for me, I along with four other members of this group(so far at the time of the writing of this article) will be performing at a Christmas fundraiser event for the nonprofit group - the Seniors Outdoor Club of Calgary (SOCC). The venue is the beautiful Southern Alberta Pioneer Lodge located in Stanley Park and it will take place on the evening of Wednesday, Dec 7th! I became a board member this past Tuesday at the AGM and am wearing many hats as I am on the outreach committee for new member recruitment and am also on the social committee for this fundraising event. I know that it will be taxing on me as I have a lot on my plate already. However, I was compelled to help out as the situation with SOCC is very dire. If we are not successful with both this fundraiser and attracting new members, this wonderful club will fold in the spring of next year! I am so grateful to the ALMSG members that have indicated that they are willing to join me in performing for the SOCC to help save this club! I really hope that we can sell enough tickets by November 15th so we know this event is a go! As a music student and a person who is retired and now living on a fixed income, I will be promoting mainly those music events that are I think are of great value - free or low cost. There are a number of additional ProArts concerts in November and December which I will list on the Events page -these are all completely free. And there is also a JazzYYC conference called Tune in Tune Up 2022 Nov 11-13 which highlights gender inequality in Jazz. All lectures are free with an option to donate if you want. If you are interested in having a career in jazz music and you are female, there are a lot of interesting lectures on gender inequality. But for general interest, there is a masterclass on improvisation for classical or non-jazz musicians that would be of interest to this group. This lecture will be presented by my CASSA Jazz Piano clinician - Lorna Machlachlan who I can attest is a great teacher . Another two that I found to be of general interest are the masterclasses "Indie Musician's Toolkit" by vocalist and songwriter Melody Diachun and "Developing Your Voice in Music" by saxophonist Allison Au. Running concurrently with this conference is the JazzYYC Canadian Festival (Nov 10-13) There are number of acts for which tickets are $50 or more which I can not afford to attend but some of them are double bill so you actually get two concerts for the price of one so it is reasonable if you think about it that way. If you are a JazzYYC member (which I am), you get $5 off admission for concerts which also really helps. The musicians to look out for and which I have heard in past concerts is Edmonton trombonist Audrey Ochoa (regular admission is $25) and the extraordinary saxophonist,composer and bandleader Chelsea McBride in a double bill concert with Mallory Chipman (general admission $35). I have never heard Ms Chipman in concert but to hear Chelsea McBride alone is worth the price of admission. I had the priviledge of hearing Chelsea McBride's Socialist Night School, a 19 piece big band, back in 2018 when she was only 20. To hear her compositions and see her extraordinary bandleading skills in action was a surreal experience. That year, Chelsea McBride and the Socialist Night School toured 11 cities across Canada. She is only 24 years old now and is a rising jazz musician who breaks boundaries on many fronts. Have great fun practicing and listening to music, attending concerts and just enjoying life for the rest of 2022! There is so much to be thankful for! See you in 2023! Musically striving with you always, Sandra