This Saturday, Oct. 1, the Sooke Folk Music Society is presenting the first event in this season’s concert series. They will be featuring a “Songwriters Circle” with four talented songwriters: Garnett Betts, Jennifer Louise Taylor, Rebecca Boux and Dave Gallant.
From the earliest planting of a lyrical seed, Jennifer Louise Taylor’s songs have developed into full blown affairs with layers of sound and emotion. Her music is heartfelt and meant to help each of us connect with ourselves.
Jennifer has been surrounded by music from an early age. She was born in Victoria, but raised by folk-dancing parents in Kenya, Iran and Malaysia. Jennifer learned early on that we are all citizens of the world and her musical influences span from Yiddish folk songs, and British folk to good old country music.
Jennifer Louise Taylor presented her debut album, Love Heals in March 2007. With musical support from with (in) Good Company (members of Barley Wik, Dawn Madu, Aimee Gentile, Louise Taylor, Kachina Teixeira, Giselle Ruemke, and Trina Swift), Love Heals is a multi-instrumental musical journey of harmonic joy.
Rebecca Boux is an 18-year-old singer-songwriter from Sidney and music is her absolute passion. When she was only 10-years-old, her dad created the very first “Motormouth Studio” and that is where she began recording her first songs with just a Casio keyboard playing behind her. Since then, the studio has grown and she has matured and so has her music. She performs extensively around the Victoria area and has just released her latest CD, One Day. She wants to sing for the world, and live in music. It’s her dream.
When you have no choice but to paint, you’re a painter. When you have no choice but to write songs, you write songs. Garnett Betts has been a singer/songwriter since his teenage years. Originally from Winnipeg, where he performed and was featured on CBC radio, he’s called Metchosin home for 16 years where he writes and records. Whether collaborating to provide material for other artists to record, or performing live, the goal has always been the pursuit of the thoughtful song.
Dave Gallant comes from a musical family. His dad was a fine guitar player and singer and several uncles also played an assortment of instruments from guitar to fiddle and mandolin. The music was mainly country and blue grass with the Celtic flavour of the Maritimes thrown in for good measure.
Dave spent his teenage years growing up in Montreal during the late 1950s and early 60s where he first learned to play Ventures tunes. Soon he was turned on to rock and roll and then along came the Beatles and that changed everything. In high school, he discovered Bob Dylan and was soon performing in coffee houses around Montreal, where he opened for such folk artists as Richie Havens, Eric Anderson and Tim Buckley.
A brief stint in the army brought Dave to Canada’s west coast. He has been playing in bands and as a solo artist on Vancouver Island since 1970. Dave has lived in Sooke for the past 30 years and is still performing as a solo artist or with the Blue Moon Band, and is finally getting around to recording a CD of his original tunes. He is hoping to release it within the next few months.
Please join us for an evening of inspired music form these gifted Singer/songwriters. It all happens at Holy Trinity Anglican Church, 1962 Murray Road, on Saturday Oct. 1. Doors open at 7:30 p.m. with the concert starting at 8. Tickets available at the door or in advance at Shoppers Drug Mart.