Encourage youth with visual art interests to create musical-themed entries for consideration in the annual drawing contest. Any Battlefords area child or youth up to the age of 18 is welcome to enter. The deadline is Feb. 26. A winning entry will be chosen with the winner being recognized. Many of the submissions will be displayed on site at this year’s festival venue, the Dekker Centre. To submit, mail Battleford Central School att: Lindsay Charabin, Box 400, Battleford, S0M 0E0 or Light of Christ School Division Office att: Trina Bahrey 9301- 19th Ave. North Battleford, S9A 3N5.
With the late entry deadline on Feb. 6, Battlefords Kiwanis Musical Festival will soon begin the process of organizing the performance schedule for each musical discipline in the areas of vocals, speech arts, piano, band instruments, and strings.
Keep in mind that volunteers are needed for the festival. Those who would like to add their name to the volunteer list can talk to any committee member or email l.sander@hotmail.com.
Live entries, which include all solos as well as duet/small ensemble performances entered by participants who live in the same household, will be heard at the Dekker Centre. The hope is that those performances will be live streamed for more audience access. Bands and other ensembles that are rehearsing regularly may enter the festival by making a recording in their own venue. Those recordings will be heard by the adjudicator, who will provide a written adjudication as well as a spoken adjudication by Zoom or video. Stay tuned for live audience ticketing details closer to the festival dates of April 19 – 28 as these are unpredictable times.
Battlefords and area businesses are consistently supportive of the festival sponsoring many scholarships and awards. To be eligible for an award or scholarship, a participant must be 19 years of age or younger andhave lived in or studied in the Battlefords and district for a minimum of six months prior to the festival. If a participant is furthering their education elsewhere but still supported by parents living in the Battlefords district, this also meets the criteria of eligibility.
A new opportunity for 2021 are Provincial Excellence classes. These classes are for students in 12 years and under, 14 years and under, and 24 years and under categories. In 2021 there will be first and second place scholarships for all age categories and disciplines. Starting in 2022, the Saskatchewan winners in each group will get to participate in the inaugural Western Canadian Festival. They will join young musicians from British Columbia and Alberta.
Eddy Van Halen died this past year. He wasn’t just a rock star, he was considered a virtuoso in his genre. Born in the Netherlands in 1955, Van Halen came from a musical family receiving training in classical music and theory. His innovative signature two-handed, finger tapping guitar technique derived harmonic ideas from his training on the piano.
“Music kept me off the streets and out of trouble and gave me something that was mine that no one could take away from me.” ‑ Eddie Van Halen (1944–2020)
