One of Edmonton’s newest festivals is moving to McCauley this summer. The C’mon Festival will take place July 17, 18, and 19 at Studio 96, the former St. Stephen’s Church. The theme this year is “Music Spoken Here,” and the three different programs of the festival will focus on connections between poetry/spoken word and music.

Edmonton’s recent Poet Laureate Mary Pinkoski is writing a brand new poem for the opening night of the festival. This year’s guest artists are singer/songwriter Andrea House and guitarist Chris Smith. They will collaborate with the resident musicians of the festival, the C’mon Ensemble: Virginie Gagne-violin, Janice Quinn-double bass, Erin Fung-clarinet, Matthew Howatt-bassoon, Brian Sand-trumpet, Kathryn Macintosh-trombone, and Timothy Borton-percussion.

The concerts will include music from the Renaissance and Baroque eras right up to the twenty-first century, with an emphasis on fun, quirky and unusual. In addition to classical repertoire, it is becoming a tradition of the festival to present music from other genres especially arranged for the C’mon Ensemble. Not to give too much away, “Let it Go” will likely make an appearance!

The C’mon Festival made its debut as an Edmonton Fringe BYOV on Alberta Ave in 2013. An audience highlight of that first year was the surprise appearance of Elvis, playing the bassoon! It was started by trombonist Kathryn Macintosh with a few of her friends and colleagues from the Edmonton Symphony. The philosophy behind the festival is to showcase classical music with its hair down. With an emphasis on a casual atmosphere and a wide variety of music performed on a more intimate scale than a symphony orchestra, the festival aims to welcome people that might dismiss classical music as “too highbrow.”

The musicians are really looking forward to playing at Studio 96, with its unique ambience and splendid acoustics. The shows on Friday July 17 and Saturday July 18 are at 8 p.m. and tickets are $15. Advance tickets will be available at Tix on the Square. The final show is on Sunday July 19 at 3 p.m. As a special thank-you to the community of McCauley for hosting the C’mon Festival, admission is free, with donations gratefully accepted.

For more information: www.cmonfestival.ca

Kathryn is the Artistic Director of the C’mon Festival.