2023 music festival could be cancelled without more volunteer help, organizers say
Organizers of the Moose Jaw Music Festival managed to pull off this year’s event with eight volunteers but don’t think they can do the same in 2023 without more community support.
This year’s festival took place from April 2 to 7 at Zion United Church and welcomed back audiences for WKH ¿UVW WLPH LQ WZR \HDUV :KLOH VROR SHUIRUPDQFHV ZHUH live, all performances for piano, strings and band were pre-recorded and submitted for adjudication.
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“Our committee is completely tapped out!” Marcie Carswell, festival president, said on Facebook. Carswell encouraged parents and music teachers to consider how important the festival is to them, their children and their students, and to think about how they can pitch in to support the event.
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“Unfortunately, we’ve said for years that this is not sustainable. Our group gets smaller and smaller. :H KDYH D FRPmittee of eight SHRSOH ,W WDNHV ZHOO RYHU man hours just to organize the fesWLYDO :LWK VRPH of our members moving on after this festival, it leaves us wondering if we can put on a festival in 2023 of any kind.”
Moose Jaw has historically been a large festival that usually runs all piano, band and voice and musical theatre during one week with choral usually being a week or two prior that, Carswell said. Therefore, the festival needs that many volunteers to ensure those activities can happen.
Carswell encouraged residents interested in volunteering to contact the music festival by Facebook messenger or by email at moosejawmusicfestival@hotmail.com. Meanwhile, she thanked all volunteers, festival sponsors, patrons, scholarship donors and audience members who came to support the youths.
“Getting up on a stage and being vulnerable is a dif¿FXOW XQGHUWDNLQJ EXW LW VXUH JLYHV NLGV D OHJ XS LQ WKHLU future,” she added. “Thank you!”
Music festival winners
The following youths will represent Moose Jaw at SURYLQFLDO DQG &DQDGD :HVW FRPSHWLWLRQV LQ WKH FRPLQJ PRQWKV 3URYLQFLDOV RFFXU LQ 6DVNDWRRQ WKLV \HDU IURP -XQH WR DQG &DQDGD :HVW RFFXUV -XO\ WR
Provincial reps in musical theatre: Arielle MacKLQQRQ $EE\ 'XHFN $O\VVD +HWKHULQJWRQ $EEH\ 0D\ (PPD &KHUQH\ $QQ 0DULH 5RXDXOW &KHGLG (OOD :LOVRQ Grace King, Drew Amell, Jaymeson Bateman, Elizabeth
Deans and Esmeralda Breker.
Provincial reps in vocal: Arielle MacKinnon, Alicia Zarubin, Emma Cherney, Kolby Adams, Ann-Marie Rouault-Chedid, Jaymeson Bateman, Drew Amell, Natalie :DUUHQ (OL]DEHWK 'HDQV
5HSUHVHQWLQJ 0RRVH -DZ DW &DQDGD :HVW (OL]DEHWK Deans (vocal and musical theatre) Abbey May (vocal and musical theatre) Abby Dueck (musical theatre).
To qualify for these competitions, students had to SURYLGH D SDUWLFXODU UHSHUWRLUH DQG UHFHLYH D PDUN RI and then a recommendation from the adjudicator Casey Peden.
Scholarship winners
The following music students won scholarships: $JFRQ %XVLQHVV DQG 7D[ /WG 6FKRODUVKLS Recipient: Elizabeth Deans
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(WKHO +DOO 0HPRULDO 6FKRODUVKLS Recipient: Abby Dueck
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*UD\VRQ &RPSDQ\ 6FKRODUVKLS Recipient: Kolby Adams
0DXGH 0DJXLUH 0HPRULDO 6FKRODUVKLS Recipient: Rachel Bourgeois
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3HQQ\ %UDWWHQ 0HPRULDO 6FKRODUVKLS Recipient: Abbey May
*ROGHQ :HVW 5DGLR 6FKRODUVKLS Recipient: Ann-Marie Rouault-Chedid .HOO\ &KXUNR 0HPRULDO 6FKRODUVKLS Recipient: Emma Cherney