The Filberg Festival celebrates excellence in all forms of arts and crafts and music over the four-day BC Day long weekend in Comox.
This is the 30th anniversary. Besides wonderful Canadian music, there will be over 120 juried crafts booths. The guest artist this year is Mary Fox, a self-taught potter from Ladysmith, who creates beautiful raku stoneware.
And perhaps the most exciting thing of all is that this is the first time that the Filberg Lodge will be open to the public throughout the festival. Hand-built by master craftsmen in 1929, this distinctive residence features extensive use of local woods and stone, along with antique furnishings.
The principal objective of the Filberg Festival is to raise the money needed to restore and maintain the nine-acre property. It is a designated heritage property.
Here are a few of the musical highlights you will have the opportunity to enjoy.
On Friday, the festival starts with Canada's favourite folk rockers, Spirit of the West. This year, the annual Blues Panel Concert will feature David Gogo, Dave Harris, David Vest, and Gary Preston and Anita Bonkowski. One of the first well known musicians to play at the Filberg Festival many years ago, singer songwriter Roy Forbes, will follow.
On Saturday, The High Bar Gang featuring Barney Bentall, Shari Ulrich, Wendy Bird and Angela Harris will open the day with classic bluegrass for modern times. Then the musician, adventurer and playwright Ian Tamblyn will make an appearance.
Also playing will be songstress Babe Gurr, Juno Award winner Gary Fjellgaard, and jazz guitarist/vocalist Flora Scott.
On Sunday, the critically acclaimed sounds of John Reischman and the Jaybirds will start things off, followed by the country roots group PEAR, and more appearances by Gurr, and the Flora Scott Trio. Celtic songstress Mary Murphy will end the day with her traditional, original and contemporary tunes.
Monday is Jazz day, featuring Filberg Festival favourite Michael Kaeshammer playing boogie woogie and jazz piano, and multi-instrumentalist/jazz composer/arranger Phil Dwyer with his Canadian Songbook Project.
And finally the traditional closing to the Filberg Festival, the Great Canadian Songs Concert.
Don't miss the 30th annual Filberg Festival from Aug. 3 to 6.
For more information, go to www.filbergfestival.com
Tickets are $15 daily or $40 for the weekend pass.
— Filberg Festival