It's hard to believe the opening day for this year's Battlefords Kiwanis Music festival is less than two months away. Last week I introduced the first adjudicator, Gaye-Lynn Kern of Saskatoon, who will open this year's festival March 7 with speech arts. After speech arts and choral speaking, strings students will showcase their talents March 9.
Strings adjudicator, Saskatoon-based Kim de Laforest, is a fiddle violin, and viola performer and teacher. In her classical world, de Laforest spent 10 years with the Regina Symphony Orchestra before moving to Saskatoon in 2000.
As a member of the Saskatoon Symphony. She has served as the assistant concertmaster, principal second violin, principal viola and section violin and viola player. She has been soloist, concertmaster, and section player of the University of Regina's Chamber Orchestra, Musica Viva, and the South Saskatchewan Youth Orchestra.
De Laforest has also been involved in chamber music groups across the province. Some highlights include Prairie Virtuosi, Saskatoon Composers' Society Concerts, Musici Amati, and the house band for CBC Christmas concerts.
De Laforest plays with local Irish band Siamsa as well as doing solo fiddle work. She released her first solo CD Kindred Spirits in 2004 and was featured on CBC's DiscDrive during its Saskatchewan tour. During Juno Fest 2007 in Saskatoon, de Laforest 's performance was recorded for CBC's Canada Live.
As well as being a busy performer, de Laforest is also a sought-after instructor. She currently teaches a large studio of students in Saskatoon. De Laforest joins an international roster of instructors to teach at fiddle camps in Prince Albert, LaRonge, Moose Jaw, Tisdale, at the Kenosee Lake Kitchen Party, the Tuffnell Fiddle Camp, the Frontier Fiddlers Camp ( in Manitoba ) and at the SCES Fiddle Camp (formerly held at Emma Lake).
For the past few years de Laforest has enjoyed coaching the Saskatoon Fiddle Orchestra. For the second season, de Laforest is assistant sirecting the Mysterium Healing Sound Choir in Saskatoon. She is also proud to be part of a project that is bringing fiddle music into two Saskatoon core area schools for a third year.
De Laforest's second solo CD 'Transitions' was released in November 2011.
For more about our interesting and colourful strings adjudicator, check out de Laforest's website, www.kimdelaforest.com
To all of you eagerly waiting to see the final program outlining dates and times of performances, we should soon be able to announce a date when you will be able to begin purchasing them at Sobeys for $7 each. Also watch again for posters around town with dates and schedule information.
Firm Festival dates and schedules cannot be set until all festival registrations have been fully processed. Tentatively the 2012 Music Festival Dates are: speech arts March 7 to 9, strings March 9, piano March 10 to 13, voice March 13 to 18, band March 19 to 21, with the gala March 23.
Did you know there are 49 music festivals in Saskatchewan; the most of any province? The Battlefords mark their 81st local music festival.
