Well as promised we are here at Salmon Arm Roots and Blues Festival. We travelled from Kelowna by school bus, towing our gear trailer behind! Below you will see a series of mini blogs from the first day on site. All of these images are courtesy of our digital photography students who have been working hard behind the scenes.
First up, Kaila Wirth:
Having the opportunity to photograph the Roots and Blues festival has been such an amazing privelege and it is only day one! Amongst many eclectic bands, I was able to enjoy live performances by some of the bands I admire. I am looking forward to what the next couple of days have in store as I am loving every single funky vibe I get from not only the bands, but from everyone who has come out for the event.
From Harvey Bremner… CREATION
As your feet walk through the dust and you see the stages for the first time, the anticipation builds. A good time awaits the lucky ones with Roots and Blues Festival tickets.
However, something has been running for days that belie the rock and roll image. Every piece of the show has been crafted and delivered with passion for delivering the artists to you in a way that touches your very spirit.
Before you arrive, there is an eerie calm, feelings of anticipation and pride in equal measures. The moment comes, a hush descends, a look is exchanged. A simple nod is all that is required to say… we are ready… and we are proud.
Take a moment – look around – appreciate CREATION.
From Jesse Felske:
So we came here, got here and here we are! First official day at the Roots and Blues Festival, in Salmon Arm. Extremely excited to watch the bands and maybe even do some people watching. It was a new experience watching all the staff and volunteers team together to set everything up. Amazing how much it takes to set up a festival like this! Having a wonderful time watching all the different cultures and people come together to enjoy music. Not to mention the amazing food that is also here! I cannot stop drooling over all the food that is walking around in people’s hands.
Had myself a wonderful freshly squeezed Iced Tea, which I thought was going to be the highlight of my day, however I was highly mistaken. The talent at this festival is unbelievable! Watching Mavis strut around on the stage and blow us away with her voice was something I am so pleased to have witnessed. Excited to see what Day 2 of the festival brings! Stay tuned!
Next up Cecile Zenner:
Refresh yourself with some freshly squeezed, tasteful, lemonade. Plenty of flavors to quench your thirst and satisfy your taste buds. Small, medium, large or even extra large, as much as you can drink and as fast as they can squeeze!
From beginning to end, enjoy some hand cut French Fries to satisfy your hunger. Poutine’s, fries and gravy you name it, they have it.
Finish it all off with a few pieces of delicious baked goodness. Cupcakes, crepes, gelato, if it involves sugar they have it!
From Sheila Martial Ridden:
It is such an honor to be here at the Roots and Blues Festival. The Festival was started with a blessing and welcoming to the Secwepemc people of this First Nations territory. There where also drumming and storytelling.
The crowds were large and many people where out having a great time and there was a lot of dancing and singing with the artist on stage.
It was feeling great to behind the scenes of the Roots and Blues Festival; everyone is so friendly and helpful. There are many volunteers that work this festival and without them this could not be done.
From Autumn Murakami:
The Little Things
Having an amazing time at the Roots and Blues Festival here in Salmon Arm. Day one was full of set up and getting settled with what we wanted to do.
There is an amazing amount of effort that goes into setting up a festival of this size; the transitions between performers is where if you look closely you will see all the little things that typically go unnoticed. The little things that go into the set up and the rest of the efforts that go unnoticed are the items that interests me the most.
You don’t want to miss out on all the exciting events happening this week, so come on down and get your passes. Hope to see all your faces here soon.
From Jacqueline Radcliffe:
The first day at The Salmon Arm Roots and Blues Festival was definitely an eventful one. We started off the weekend at the main stage with blues and soul legend Mavis Staples, who commands the audience with grace and style. Her band and backup singers complimented Miss Staples and brought the audience to their feet with every song. It was almost like Mavis was reaching up to heaven with her immaculate voice. We headed down to the Boogie Barn next for a set from Canadian rap artist Shad. With Kanye confidence he rules the room with an iron microphone and rhymes his way into our hearts. Can’t wait to see what delicious songs and sights we are in for tomorrow!
From Jessica Jillings:
From the moment we hopped off the bus and stepped onto the festival grounds the smell of Root and Blues filled the air. Although there was yet to be bands performing, good vibes were projected from the hard working volunteers setting up for the festivities. Things were slow at first but as the day went on vendors started up and festivalgoers began flowing in. The people who covered the festival grounds seemed to transport us back into a more retro carefree time. Tie-dyed outfits, dreadlocked hair and bare feet were everywhere. However, the best part of it all was that people of all generations were enjoying the sights and sounds of talented musicians such as Jon & Roy, Monkey Junk and the fabulous Mavis Staples. So, the first day of our action filled weekend was an overwhelming success. Can’t wait to see what the next two days will bring!
From Julie Charest:
So here we are at the Roots and Blues festival in Salmon Arm. I decided that my main focus would be to photograph the other photography and videography volunteers hard at work. All of the volunteers in today’s blog post are students at The Centre for Arts and Technology. None of my images were set up; they were all captured in the moment!
Here you can see the set up from the videographers. They put their creative minds to work and set up a cine-slider. They did an amazing job at capturing this beautiful pottery for their promotional Roots and Blues video. I don’t know about you guys but I can’t wait to see it!
Here you will see a photography student hard at work wearing his “Documentary” T-shirt for Roots and Blues. Look at that focus!
In this image you will see one of our volunteers pulled in by this beautiful jewelry by Lago: Exotic Jewelry and Designs. She ended up buying a lovely necklace.
Check out this photographer taking images at the main stage! Make sure to check out the shows!
In this set of images you can see a young lady with a head tilt. She really loves this music! But wait, she has 2 cameras. She’s a volunteer! It’s great to see volunteers able to enjoy themselves while hard at work.
From Kurtis Squissato:
It was a beautiful evening as things popped off yesterday at the Roots and Blues Festival in Salmon Arm B.C. The doors opened at 5:00pm and crowds were rolling in instantly. Many artists were giving memorable performances but Zakiya Hooker ft. Chris James really pumped up the Boogie Bar-N stage and got the crowd grooving. The hills of Salmon Arm held a perfect location for everyone to relax and listen to some awesome music. Their performance went under way at 6:00pm and led a perfect transition into the night. From guitar solos to tender loving lyrics they got everybody, young and old, on their feet.
From Mikaela Rohne:
It was a great first night at Salmon Arm’s Roots and Blues Festival. As the vendors began setting up I managed to snap a few photos. The homemade jewelry caught my eye and I couldn’t help but try to capture the beauty of the artist’s dedicated hard work. All of the shop owners were very friendly and welcoming and made it very easy to approach them. That seemed to be the vibe I got from all of the festivalgoers, which should make for a great weekend.
From Pierre Richaud:
Last night Shad hit the Boogie Barn with his crew and the crowd was Huge! The turnout was awesome, playlist they put together was steller, every song complemented each other. Shad busted out some wicked beats as his bass player had cosmic riffs that you won’t forget. Then there was his DJ and this guy can mix like there’s no tomorrow, he can make you dance without you even knowing it. In the end, the concert was amazing in the most possible way and all I can say is I can’t wait for the next show. It was Da_Bomb.Com
Next up is Rachael Archondous:
Music, camping, food, more music, more food…welcome to the Roots and Blues Festival 2014.
Here we go.
Arriving mid day gave us the opportunity to see just what goes into setting up a venue for this kind of event. People running around (or golf carting around) everywhere made me realize just how much goes into a festival like this. The result of the puzzle assembled by the massive number of volunteers and vendors was impressive.
I love the classic fair feel of the food vendors. Deep fried pickle, alligator tongue, donairs, smoothies, ice cream, maple bacon donuts (and other kinds of interesting donuts), waffle and chicken strips (which apparently go really well together), Chinese, Thai, Greek, so much…
My absolute favourite thing about the food vendors is not even the food (although there are raving reviews on the food thus far)–it is the signs. The best sign by far–The Ole Blues Shack–with bluesy musical instruments. Amazing.
From Rebecca Beatch:
Today I had the pleasure of meeting Sarah Paterson. Sarah has set up shop close to the main entrance at the Roots and Blues Festival in Salmon Arm with all of her unique hand-crafter jewelry and designs. Her crafty business is called, LAGO: Exotic Jewelry and Design.
Sarah has recently returned back to Canada after devoting seven years of her life in Guatemala. She has learned everything she needs to create her beautiful jewelry from the local people there.
LAGO is a definite tent every girl with a funky fashion sense must go and check out. LAGO offers necklaces, bracelets, earrings, bandanas, posture jewelry and more. I even bought a necklace myself with elk bone and Jade stone and I intend on going back for more!
From Sachelle Wotherspoon:
A highlight to see at the roots and blues festival are the little shops in the center of the grounds. One of the shops to see makes jewelry out of old watch pieces. She turns something unused into something new and beautiful.
Every piece is unique and you can spend tons of time there just examining the work.
All the jewelry is handmade and you can find this shop at different festivals in the summer.
From Simone Paul:
Watching everything get set up and people arrive was an amazing experience. Then to see the first set of artists perform was even more amazing. From fiddles to soul to rap they all gave very great performances. I rather enjoyed being surrounded by all different genres of music. The vendors have amazing food as well I got to have my first perogie poutine which had to be the best poutine I have ever had. I would have to say for the first day the best performer was Mavis Staple, her voice was unlike anything I was use to and the way she got everyone to join in was phenomenal. She had everyone at the front singing along and dancing the energy was awesome. Until tomorrow im looking forward to another day of amazing performances.