Anticipation is heating up for this year’s Roots and Blues Festival – the 20th anniversary of an event that draws performers and fans from around the world.
The Salmon Arm Roots and Blues Festival began in 1992 as a small indoor festival, the result of the Shuswap Coffeehouse movement of the 1970s and ‘80s.
From these roots grew the not-for-profit Salmon Arm Folk Music Society and an event that has something for everyone.
As they share their best memories, the society board wants to know what moved festivalgoers the most.
Where were you in ‘92, the year of the first Roots and Blues? Did you join the conga line at Gleneden Hall?
What about the first outdoor Roots and Blues?
Maybe you remember the year ash fell from the sky, resembling snow as it gently descended around the spotlights.
Maybe you have fond memories of cooling off in the sprinklers on a torrid day made hotter by the music.
Did you experience last year’s summer of love vibe?
Do you still wax poetical about your favourite festival performance?
Did you meet the love of your life at the festival?
Whatever you remember – be it happy, sad, beautiful, funny and more, festival organizers would like to hear from you.
Roots and Blues is collecting festival anecdotes, memories, images and memorabilia to be used in a series of memory projects this summer.
“Nobody’s story is insignificant,” says marketing manager Scott Crocker. “Tell us your happy, sad, funny, beautiful, thrilling story.”
Sharing your memories, videos and pictures could win you a pair of tickets to the festival. Participants names will go into a draw with the winners being chosen July 27.
Enter by posting your story or uploading your photos to the Society’s Hub Project or send it by email to scottcrocker@rootsandblues.ca.
Participants can also mail their entries to Hub Project, Salmon Arm Roots and Blues Festival, Box 21, Salmon Arm, B.C. V1E 4N9, or stop by the office and drop it off.
Date your entry with the festival year in which it occurred and don’t forget to include your name and contact information.
“Like the old folk story Stone Soup, where the villagers come together in the spirit of sharing, the more people who bring something to this year’s memory pot, the richer the story becomes…” Crocker says.
And the out-and-about adventures begun last year will be offered again this year.
Routes and Blues will roll out Aug. 9 to 16, giving fans the option of choosing an adventure in one of many beautiful Shuswap locations.
The first six days of the program include route-specific daily itineraries comprised of a series of interesting hikes, a broad variety of side activities, and a delicious local meal.
Cap this with a Roots and Blues satellite concert, which will introduce travellers and locals alike to the wonderful elements of the Shuswap lifestyle.
Block these days in your agenda:
Thursday, Aug. 9 – Kingfisher,
Sunday, Aug. 12 – Blind Bay,
Friday, Aug. 10 – Mara,
Monday, Aug. 13 – Squilax,
Saturday, Aug. 11 – Seymour Arm,
Tuesday, Aug. 14 –Malakwa,
Wednesday, Aug. 15 – Salmon Arm Wednesday On the Wharf.
On Thursday, Aug. 16, just one sleep before the festival, join the Salmon Arm Music Crawl being held in partnership with Shuswap Tourism, Shuswap Trail Alliance, BC Parks and the Adams River Salmon Society.
