CityFolk may have been the reason swarms of people were found circulating the Glebe this past weekend, but Marvest was the reason they stayed past the closing act.
Running Sept. 15-16, almost 20 venues along Bank Street participated in hosting the lineup of free shows, such as Pure Gelato, Irene’s Pub, and even Whole Foods. The roster was made up entirely of local acts, many of which were also youth.
One example was Mia Kelly, an Ottawa high school student whose team of friends showed up at both of her shows with bright yellow shirts in support of her.
Kelly said the best part of performing at local venues is being able to meet new people.
“It’s great to have a bunch of people come out and meet so many new faces . . . and after to talk to everyone and get some great feedback is really helpful,” Kelly said.
As a young person in the arts, Kelly explained how beneficial it is to be a part of programs such as this, providing artists such as herself an outlet to get their name out there in a supportive environment.
“Every gig is kind of different but this time I have so many friends and family coming out so although I was a bit nervous, it’s gone now,” Kelly said.
“I’m just trying to follow the advice of some of the older artists I’ve met,” Kelly said, adding that she hopes to one day start a band with some of them.
Marvest was organized by CityFolk as a means to showcase the diversity of local talent. The free community festival was supported by CKCU shows Whatever’s Cool With Me and Indie City Madness, and even roped in members of the arts community.
Ryan Bresee, long-time host of Whatever’s Cool With Me was able to introduce a few of the artists playing at Pure Gelato on Sept. 16.
“It’s fun to have them [the shows] in these really unconventional locations . . . you can go to work on Monday and when someone asks you what you did you can say, ‘oh I went and saw this great free show at a gelato shop,’ ” Bresee said.
Bresee is no newcomer to the local music scene in Ottawa, describing Marvest as a great way to stay in tune with new music.
“They try to partner with people involved in the music industry in town, people who promote the local music scene and just try to work together so that CityFolk can support these artists . . . [and] so we can support them as well,” he said.
One of the artists Bresee was able to open for was Grace Marr, a first-year Carleton music student. She said her involvement in Marvest was an exciting surprise.
“I applied to work with Youth Ottawa RBC for the Road to Bluesfest and a part of that application was to apply to Marvest,” Marr said.
Upon receiving news of her being chosen she said, “I ran downstairs to tell my mom and called Liam [her guitar player] and said ‘please do this with me!’ ”
Marr expressed her love for the local music scene adding, “Ottawa is such a tight knit community that it really is so important to be able to get out there . . . there [are] just so many cool, wonderful musicians you would want to work with.”
Photo by Valentina Figueroa
