Kozue Matsumoto

Koto is a traditional Japanese musical instrument that has been enjoyed by people for thousands of years. The style we play now was established around 400 years ago. The classics played today were mostly composed in the Edo era (1600s to 1800s), as well as in the Taisho and Showa eras (the early 1900s.) Composers of this era experimented with mixing Western and traditional styles. Their compositions remain popular today. Moreover, many contemporary Koto musicians enjoy following traditional scales and styles while fusing this with popular Western music. I mainly learned the classics when I was a child but I've been playing a variety styles for the last 10 years and would love to play with other musicians here in Canada as I believe tradition is always developing.

LUX PAINT-IN

3-6pm 65 East Hastings


Eat a Lux cupcake, paint the wall!
Make a mark on this transition as a new housing project goes up. Local residents can create their own small paintings to go up on the construction hoarding, joining a larger outdoor exhibition from Gallery Gachet member artists.

Thirteen artists from Gallery Gachet have produced large site-specific artworks at the former Lux Theatre site. The art will be hung on the Hastings Street construction hoarding at what is the future home of the Triage Emergency Services and Care Society housing development; a nine-storey, ninety-two unit facility for adults living with mental health issues.

The artwork for this project celebrates the history as well as the future of the Lux Theatre site within the Downtown East Side community.

Participating artists include Laurie Marshall, Clare K-V, Diane Thorn, Leah Martin, Barb Hinton, Sharon Burns, Take 5, Quin Martins, W.N. Pope and Frederick Cummings.

Cupcakes come out of the oven at 4pm!

Heidi Morgan

Heidi Morgan is a Vancouver based singer/songwriter who believes strongly in the power of love and positive change. Her experience over the years has shown that hope is omnipresent. That is why she focuses her music in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver. Her wish for the community is that they won’t give up on themselves. And that the people that are well enough to help won’t either. Context creates compassion and that is what Heidi is all about.

Murray Black joins Heidi in the Fearless Festival to add his wonderful piano playing with her original music. Murray’s a pro who’s been playing music around the Downtown Eastside for years.

You don’t want to miss these two; they are indeed a force.

www.myspace.com/heidimorgansmusic

City Opera

Soprano, Michelle Keobke, [kepp’key] recently returned from a 7 month apprenticeship with Calgary Opera’s 'Emerging Artist Program'. With Calgary Opera this year Michelle sang the role of Kate in the world premier of Estacio/Murell’s ‘Frobisher’ broadcast Nationally over CBC Radio. She also sang the role of Dortchen (Burry’s ‘The Brother’s Grimm’)in their school tour as well as other performances/galas and training in voice, dance, acting, and stage fighting. Michelle's operatic performances have encompassed tragic roles such as Tatyana (Tchaikovsky’s ‘Eugene Onegin’) and Donna Anna (Mozart’s ‘Don Giovanni’), both performed in the Czech Republic, as well as spirited characters such as Zerlina (Mozart’s ‘Don Giovanni’), Menotti’s Lucy (‘The Telephone’) and Gretel (Humperdinck’s ‘Hansel und Gretel’). For Michelle’s final year at UBC she performed Mozart's clever maid,Susanna (‘Le Nozze di Figaro’), to great success, bowing with her colleagues to full houses at the Chan Center under the direction of Tyrone Paterson. In addition to opera, Michelle's enthusiastic passion for art song has led her to present many independent recitals in Vancouver. This past year Michelle was invited by Rena Sharon to take part as a special guest Soprano in the 'Follow the Lieder' lecture series put on by the Vancouver Recital Society. Michelle has also been a soloist with the Canada’s National Youth Orchestra, the West Coast Symphony Orchestra, UBC Chamber Strings, Richmond Orchestral and Choral Association, as well as Sinfonia - Orchestra of the North Shore, where she sang under the baton of Maestro Clyde Mitchell. In 2002, Michelle made her solo debut on the stage of the Orpheum Theatre in a concert: "Stars of Tomorrow". At this event she was a honored with a scholarship from the BC Entertainment Hall of Fame. The following year Michelle went on to compete in the Senior Voice Class of the BC Provincial Festival, representing Vancouver, where she received 1st prize. Michelle is currently enjoying new married life with her husband, singer/lutenist, Jacob Doherty and expecting the joyous arrival of their first child in Februrary of 2008.


Dominique Hogan, BMus, MMus

Dominique is a Vancouver based professional musical director, accompanist, arranger and MIDI programmer and has worked and taught in Vancouver, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Maine, and Montreal. Her most recent work was as musical director and MIDI programmer/arranger for the North Shore Light Opera Society’s production of Orpheus , Gone To Hell!, an original adaptation of Offenbach’s operetta, Orphée Aux Enfers. For this production she fully orchestrated the accompaniment and played it live from her macbook. Her most memorable credits include: Musical director: And the World Goes 'Round, Romance, Romance., She Loves Me, The Robber Bridegroom, Broadway in the 90s - a musical review, Bye Bye Birdie, Once Upon a Mattress, The Wizard of Oz, Musical director/vocal arranger for Not in Earnest!, an original musical adaptation of The Importance of Being Ernest, Assistant Music Director/accompanist: Into the Woods, Closer than Ever. Composer for the children's play Just So Stories with the children’s troupe Imagination Station in Santa Monica, CA. She has also done numerous MIDI "backtracks" for dance schools, professional singers and theatres.

Dominique holds a Master's Degree in musical directing for musical theatre/lyric opera from Arizona State University, where she attended under full scholarship, a Bachelor of music degree in music theory, from McGill University, and a Diploma of Collegiale Studies in Piano Performance from Marianopolis College in Montreal. www.cityoperavancouver.com

Dalannah Bowen

Dalannah Gail Bowen is a versatile high-energy consummate vocalist. Her experience as a performer ranges from intimate settings to fronting big bands and concert tours.

Her musical career started by working in an all-female band out of Winnipeg, Manitoba opening for The Guess who and The Monkees. Since then, Dalannah's career has given her the opportunity to play with many of the greats in the jazz & blues industry including opening for B.B. King, Buddy Guy, The Temptations and Martha Reeves, as well as playing with Willie Dixon, Jerry Doucette, Jim Byrnes, Freddie Hubbard, Pat Coleman and many more.

Her repertoire ranges from jazz standards, in a duet to septet setting, to blues and r& b with her eight piece band.

Dalannah has spent time in San Franscisco & Oakland, playing with such greats as Carl Lockett, the Sy Klopps Blues Band (Steve Miller's rhythm section) and grammy-award winner Dr. Ed Kelly.

Dalannah Gail Bowen continues to create music that speaks to her audiences.

The industry speaks:

"Dalannah completely captivated the audience, "In The Heart Of The City Festival”

"A high-energy performer ... intoxicating....Dalannah Gail Bowen is interpretation at it's best" KJAZ Radio - Alameda,California

"Beautifully sultry interpretations" The Vancouver Sun - Fiona McQuarrie

"Standout performance" The Vancouver Sun - Neal Hall

Brendan McLeod

"Canada's top SLAM spieler" - CBC Brendan McLeod has been Vancouver's Grand SLAM poetry Champion (2005), the Canadian SLAM poetry champion (2004), and finished second at the 2004 World SLAM championships, held in Holland. He has toured extensively in North America and Europe as both a solo performer and member of the spoken word/music troupe The Fugitives. He has an MA in Philosophy from the University of Waterloo. Recently, he beat out over 500 original entries to win the 2007 International 3 Day Novel Contest. The book will be published this August.

Poco Locos

Poco Locos has been rocking in the downtown eastside of Vancouver since 2000. They have brought their Latin sounds to a wide variety of events in the area. Their music ranges from Latin American folk songs to modern classics by the Beatles. On July 1^st they’ll be playing crowd pleasers like La Bomba and Guantanamera. Through the years, the band members have changed but Alfredo Flores and David Botten remain founding members.

Alfredo is from Guatamela, via Montreal and Toronto, finally landing in Vancouver in 1997.

Antu hails from Chile and has entertained in Vancouver since moving here from Montreal.

David is an artist and Musician from Canada who originated in Ontario.

At the Fearless Festival Poco Locos will consist of Alfredo Flores, (pan flute, guitar and vocals) Antu Arrulaya (flute and vocals) and David Botten (percussion).