Songs from N.S.
Laura Smith and Kim Dunn in concert Friday night
Award winning singersongwriters, Laura Smith and Kim Dunn of Nova Scotia will perform together at Harmony House Theatre this Friday at 8 p.m.
Singer-songwriters, Laura Smith and Kim Dunn of Nova Scotia will perform together at Harmony House Theatre on Friday, June 1. at 8 p.m.
With four, full-length recordings, Smith has lived and worked in Nova Scotia since 1984. She has embarked on several tours across Canada over the years and performed in Europe, the UK and the United States.
Her 1989 debut self-titled album was recorded after her demo was chosen from those submitted to the Variety Recordings competition at CBC in 1988. It opened the doors for her into the world of concertizing.
After being selected for a Canada Council maintenance grant to continue composing in 1990, she began work on her second album, “B’tween The Earth and My Soul.” It was released in 1995 and garnered two East Coast Music Awards for Album of the Year and Female Artist of the Year. She was also nominated for a Juno Award.
In 1997, Smith’s third album, “It’s A Personal Thing,” received seven nominations for East Coast Music Awards.
A series of debilitating injuries curtailed her ability to compose, perform or record until she was able to release her first recording in 16 years, “Everything Is Moving,” on Canada’s premier folk music label, Borealis Records. She co-produced this record with Paul Mills at his studio, The Millstream. She was delighted to include Kim Dunn’s song, “Inspiration” from his album of the same name. Smith’s song, “My Bonny,” an adaptation of the traditional “My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean,” as recorded on The Chieftain’s album “Fire in the Kitchen,” was named Song of the Decade in 2010 by the internet site, LiveIreland and the Chicago Irish-American News. Multi-award-winning musician, Dunn has been working on a successful music career for 30 years now, with a four-year reprieve studying jazz at St. Francis Xavier University. In addition to producing, musical directing and arranging credits, he has worked with the who’s who of East Coast artists including, Rita MacNeil, Bruce Guthro, Jimmy Rankin, Heather Rankin, Matt Anderson, Meaghan Smith, Dave Gunning, George Canyon, and many others.
Kim is a 2016 Music Nova Scotia Award winner and in 2003 was the recipient of the first ever Musician Special Achievement East Coast Music Award, based on a selective process on the part of the industry. After playing on countless CDs of other artists, Dunn decided to bring his own special brand of songwriting and singing to the foreground in 2010 with the release of his first solo recording project, “Take This Hammer,” and again in the spring of 2016 with his followup album, “Inspiration.”
“Inspiration,” as with its predecessor, offers listeners a collection of well crafted, heartfelt songs anchored by a soulful tenor delivery and incomparable musicianship. Tickets for the show are $25 plus HST and can be purchased through the Harmony House Theatre website or by calling Ticketpro at 1-888-311-9090.