Just in time for Christmas

Forty teams participated in the Renegade Bass Classic XX held this year in Morrisburg. Although Renegade Bass tournaments have experienced some amazing tournaments here in Morrisburg in the past, the participants this year generally said […]

They come from a variety of backgrounds; some are just starting out, others have more professional  experience. Some are primarily singers, others primarily mu-sicians. They are composers and song writers in a number of genres ranging from folk, rock and bluegrass to Celtic. 

They all have one thing in common, however.

These artists, who will be performing at the Morrisburg Meeting Centre as part of the St. Lawrence Acoustic Stage concert  series, each possess exceptional and striking talent.

On Saturday, March 24, at 7 p.m., the St. Lawrence Stage is presenting a showcase concert. 

Among the artists will be Sandra Whitworth an accomplished and gifted musician. She will be backed up by Marc Muir and Noureddine Ismag. Whitworth has helped bring some great talent to the Meeting Centre. Now, performing  songs from her new CD, Water on the Moon, she will step into the spotlight.

Joining her in the line up will be Brockville based artist Brandon Roderick. His group, Simply Skyline, has been building a reputation for stunning vocals and striking lyrics. 

Japhy Sullivan is only 15 years old, but he is already generating a lot of attention. Awarded one of the coveted youth mentor showcase spots at the 2011 Ontario Council of Folk Festivals, Sullivan brings his incredible talent on the fiddle to the St. Lawrence concert. 

“Everything about fiddle music appeals to me,” Sullivan, who comes from a very musical family, said. “My tastes are definitely eclectic. I love traditional, bluegrass, classical, Irish. I compose, and I am also a singer.”

He performs on a French fiddle dating to the 1750s,  currently on loan from the Shubert family. “It has a beautiful, rich sound,” the artist said. “ With it I find musical inspiration in many, many things. Music is my future.” 

Andrew Aguiar, an Ottawa based musician who has just released a new EP, Ghosts, is a powerful vocalist and performer. 

“I chose music for my life,” Aguiar explained. “Creativity, inspiration, has always come to me in flashes. Much of my music is relationship based, reflecting perhaps a little more on the darker side. I try to make my song-writing simple, built around a central idea that I develop through the song.” 

Although he withdrew for a short time from performance, Aguiar said “I now feel fully reconnected with the joy, the sheer fun of performing. I would say that my voice is sort of multi-dimensional, soft and deep at times, sometimes more aggressive and raspy. Something inside tells me how my voice should approach the music. I’ve learned to go with that inner voice.”

Andrea Simms-Karp is a veteran performer, winner of the Beth Ferguson Songwriting award at the 2004 Ottawa Folk Festival, and featured on Vinyl Cafe in 2009.

“I think I would describe my music as a mixture of folk and pop,” she laughed. “But since I play the banjo, some non-traditional bluegrass comes in too. I like to combine my musical interests to create something new when I write and perform.”

She enjoys the opportunity to connect with people in her performances. “I want to offer an audience something new each time they hear me. Life events, travel, people, they are all sources of music to me. Inspiration is an always changing thing, but music is the one constant in my life. There is nothing better in life than to perform, to do what I love.”

Bruce (Liam) Ciccarelli, a Cornwall based artist, is returning to the St. Lawrence Stage. A regular and popular performer in the region, Ciccarelli will be bringing songs from his new CD, Beyond the Illusion, to the concert.

“Music chose me,” he laughed. “Once I had the musical bug, I knew I wasn’t going to walk away.”

A performer for two decades now, Ciccarelli released four earlier CDs with the band Rapunzel’s Power, but now performs solo. He has his own home studio.

“The acoustic guitar is the predominant instrument to me, just the purity of your voice and the guitar on the stage,” he explained. “Everything else you do around a piece is spice, flavouring to the song. Song writing really is an elusive art. I write about the human condition, spiritually connecting or discovering yourself. My songs aren’t preachy, but I think we each are the creators of our lives, not the victims. I love the energy you get from an audience, the joy of feed back when you perform. I look forward to the Stage.”

To add to the audience’s pleasure, a number of area visual artists including Mi-Sun Hunter, Bradley Pennell and Marc Carriere will be staging exhibits outside the concert hall.

Tickets for the Intimate Acoustics Concert March 24 are $10. They can be purchased at the Basket Case, Strung Out Guitars or by contacting www.st-lawrencestage.com.

[…]

At the March 20th South Dundas council meeting, economic development officer Nicole Sullivan recommended “that council retain the services of McSweeney & Associates to complete an update to the 2005 South Dundas Strategic Economic Development Plan for a cost of $10,000.”

As reported earlier this year, Sullivan, with permission from council, submitted a completed application to the Eastern Ontario Development Program (EODP) for funding to complete the project to update the 2005 economic plan.

“As part of that application,” she said, “we were required to have two quotes with it.”

“Quotes were obtained from Dillon Consulting and McSweeney & Associates whose services were retained to complete the South Dundas Community Strategic Plan and the SD&G Strategic Economic Development Action Plan respectively.”

Project objectives include:

• “Provide a realistic and strategic approach to economic development for the next five years;

• Align local economic development efforts with those of the community and region, identifying complementary and mutually supportive activities; and,

• Encourage advancement and accountability in local economic development.”

Sullivan’s recommendation for McSweeney & Associates was based on a group decision following a review and discussion period. The group included mayor Steven Byvelds, chief administrative officer Stephen  McDonald, chair of the economic development advisory committee Mark Prost, and Sullivan herself.

Following Sullivan’s recommendation and council’s approval, mayor Steven Byvelds said, “McSweeney & Associates can certainly bring us some useful information.”

“Funding was allocated under the 2012 capital budget,” reported Sullivan, “if our application to the EODP is successful that will offset our costs.”

[…]