Michael Kaeshammer isn’t sure how many times he’s played at the Dream Café over the years, but he does remember the first time.
“I was really excited to go there and Pierre got a piano from the convention centre,” said the jazz and blues musician. “It didn’t have wheels and we had to put it up on some lighting sockets or something.”
For Kaeshammer, it was the first of many visits and the start of a long friendship with Dream Café owners Pierre Couture and his wife Debra.
“I’ve come there every summer for the past eight or nine years,” said Kaeshammer. “For me, it’s always a highlight of the summer.
“It’s the only gig where I contact the promoter — Debra and Pierre — and ask to come and play.”
And when Kaeshammer got a call in return to participate in the Dream Music Festival, he didn’t have to think about it.
“I said from the very beginning, if anything like this comes up, I am there,” said Kaeshammer. “If they wouldn’t keep going the way they do, it would be a real shame for the whole music industry.”
The Dream Music Festival, which takes place on May 1 and 2, is a fundraiser to help the Coutures transition the café to a new future, after Pierre decided to step back from the day-to-day running of the venue because of health issues.
The concert features a number of Dream Café regulars, coming together to help what festival host Jim Byrnes calls “an oasis.”
The lineup includes names like Harry Manx, multiple Juno winner Bill Bourne; Ben Waters; Chris Nordquist; Jerry Cook; Rick Fines; Brandon Isaac; Gary Comeau; Paul Pigat; Keith Picot; and Juno Award winner Rita Chiarelli.
Kaeshammer said a venue like the Dream Café is a real rarity, not just because of the location, but because of Pierre and Debra.
“A lot of promoters treat you well, but they really go the extra mile and Penticton in the summer is a beautiful spot — it’s always a beautiful spot, but in the summer especially,” said Kaeshammer.
Even with the smallest grand piano he can find, Kaeshammer said the stage gets very crowded with himself and the band.
“But it makes for a really intimate, nice atmosphere,” he said, adding that because he is so close to them, he even gets into conversations with the audience.
“There is always a good part of the audience there that I know from the previous year. You don’t go backstage, you just hang out with everyone, so you get to know people.”
An attentive audience is expected when playing a theatre, but that’s what performers get at the Dream Café too, according to Kaeshammer.
“It’s a performance place. It’s not like a restaurant with some music. When they put on a show, it’s all about the show,” he said. Being able to perform for multiple nights also makes the Dream Café special.
“Everything is one nighters. It is so great to park yourself in one place,” said Kaeshammer, adding that he enjoys exploring the city when not performing.
“It feels like home on the road, which goes a long way,” he said.
Tickets are available at the SOEC box office, the Penticton and Wine Country Visitor Centre or online through thedreammusicfestival.ca.
This article is part of a series profiling artists coming to support the Dream Café on May 1 and 2.
