Kitchener Blues Festival - The Benefits of Free Music

Source: http://www.westjetfestivals.com/festival/images/544/td-kitchener-blues-festival-audience

The Kitchener Blues Festival has grown into a highly successful event that draws thousands of visitors every year. They have managed to do so while still providing high quality concerts at no charge. The festival has benefited from a very prominent presence of blues musicians and enthusiasts in the area. This has allowed the festival to grow to a point where local government, large corporations like TD Bank and many local business are large supporters of the event. Why? The event provides economical and maybe more importantly, social growth opportunities.

Source: http://media.mmgdailies.topscms.com/images/32/92/cb712f4f44efad3d0d7a859b31f3.jpeg

Art and culture experiences should not be limited to those who can afford it. Providing a free event such as the Kitchener Blues Festival attracts all types of visitors, including those who can't afford to pay for arts programming. This is an important social service that is being provided to the local community. The benefits of the event should not only be looked at in dollars, but also in social value. Stimulating the local economy for a few days is great. However, the real value of this event may be in the benefits of exposing those who couldn't afford it otherwise to outstanding free blues music.

http://www.kitchenerbluesfestival.com

Kitchener-Waterloo Oktoberfest - Preserving, Promoting and Progressing German Culture

Kitchener-Waterloo Oktoberfest (the largest outside of Germany) is an annual 9 day event with festivities promoting German food, beer and culture...and beer. Although the beer may be what keeps people coming back every year, it provides a great service of promoting German culture to a huge audience. The region around Kitchener and Waterloo has many residents with German heritage. Although proud Canadians for the most part, many people are proud of their German roots. Oktoberfest provides a great vehicle for preserving, promoting and also progressing German culture.

Traditional German food, beer, activities, and music can be found throughout the festival showcasing German culture at its finest. Other events such as the free pancake breakfast in Uptown Waterloo and University Nights help to promote Oktoberfest and German culture to new audiences. Progressive events such as Pridetoberfest, Rocktoberfest, and Hip-hoptoberfest help the festival to grow and branch out into new areas of German culture.

http://www.oktoberfest.ca

Source: http://www.myworldevents.com/images/kitche3.jpg

Warren Buffett - Stop Coddling the Super-Rich (More Tax Money for the Arts?)

Sparked by the recent debt crisis in the U.S., Warren Buffet has called on lawmakers to stop "coddling the super-rich". Buffet is referring to the tax breaks that the millionaires and billionaires receive. In a recent article by Buffet in the New York Times, he stated:

"Last year my federal tax bill — the income tax I paid, as well as payroll taxes paid by me and on my behalf — was $6,938,744. That sounds like a lot of money. But what I paid was only 17.4 percent of my taxable income — and that’s actually a lower percentage than was paid by any of the other 20 people in our office. Their tax burdens ranged from 33 percent to 41 percent and averaged 36 percent."

This is an extremely large amount of money from one person. Although Buffet is American and referring to U.S. taxes, the same types of numbers hold true in Canada. When you consider there are over 60 Canadians are worth more than $1 billion, the untapped potential of taxing the super-rich the same amount as everyone else (strange concept?) is extraordinary. Coupled with a growing philanthropy movement being led by Buffet and fellow multi-billionaire Bill Gates, a large influx of philanthropic dollars could be on the way soon. Social services and other often overlooked and under-financed areas such as the arts could be a likely recipient of this newly available funding. Arts and Culture managers, start planning your upgrades. The rich people are starting to feel bad and want you to have their money.

Warren Buffet NY Times Article

Warren Buffet and Bill Gates Philanthropy Challenge

Ottawa Blues Fest/Indiana State Fair - Almost, Stage Collapse Ends Night Early

On July 17, the final day of Ottawa Blues Fest 2011, a storm front blew into the region and brought heavy rains and winds with it. A large gust of wind struck the main stage before Cheap Trick was scheduled to perform, toppling it backwards. A similar event occurred recently in Indiana at the Sate Fair prior to a Sugarland Concert, killing 5 and injuring 40 people. Unlike the recent incident in Indiana, no lives were lost in Ottawa and only a few people were injured. These unfortunate incidents are reminders of the importance of proper planning when organizing an event.

Outdoor events, where weather and large numbers of people can be a factor, require plans to be made for a all situations that may arise. Planning for adverse weather, unruly crowds, or any other event that may unfold will allow for prompt and proper action to be taken should an event occur. By being prepared for any situation, patrons will receive the best and safest experience possible. Also, if things do still go wrong, prompt action will ensure the image of the event is not tarnished by appearing negligent or unprepared. For example, an emergency triage centre was set up in a tunnel following 
the events in Indiana. This allowed for prompt medical service to those in need.

Future events can take lessons from these incidents. Moving fans, performers and staff away from stages when stormy weather is likely is an example of a contingency plan that will most likely now be in place for many outdoor music festivals. Learning from mistakes is a great way to improve. It's a shame lives had to be lost in the process this time.

Sarnia Bayfest = Music Festival Success

Sarnia Bayfest began in 1999 featuring a handful of Canadian Rock and Country bands, Sloan and Prairie Oyster most notably. It has since grown into a multi-day, two-weekend festival that draws over 100,000 people per year and attracts internationally sought after performers such as KISS, Bon Jovi, Aerosmith, Black Eyed Peas, and Keith Urban. Sarnia Bayfest was awarded the Ontario Tourism Best Business/Event of the Year 2009, as well as being nominated for the Best Festival in Canada Award at the Canadian Event Industry Awards. The non-profit organization is aimed at promoting, preserving and perpetuating arts and cultural activities in the Sarnia-Lambton Area. The proceeds from the event are given back to the community through multiple charitable outlets. Local artists compete in contests prior to the event for the chance to perform as an opening act. This opportunity local musicians to showcase themselves to a very large audience, up to 75% of whom are tourists from outside Sarnia-Lambton.

Sarnia Bayfest (July, 2009)

The transition from a small festival to the two-weekend extravaganza that exists today did not happen overnight. Event organizer Michelle Stokely often speaks about the importance of listening to what the fans want. She also pointed out the event's Facebook page in a 2009 article in the Sarnia Observer, noting that discussion and speculation about perspective performers helped gain insight and also created a buzz. By keeping communication lines open between the event and the community and providing a great service to local charities and musicians, a well respected and widely supported festival has emerged.
http://www.sarniabayfest.com

Petrolia Art in the Park

Petrolia's edition of Art in the Park made its annual summer appearance in Victoria Park on July 8th and 9th.  The event is promoted as an opportunity for local artists to come together and show their unique skills and abilities. The annual event has grown in popularity due to its reputation of past successful events and interesting programming and displays. The two day event takes place in the shadow of Victoria Hall, home to the Victoria Playhouse. The playhouse has become a popular tourist destination in Southwestern Ontario, attracting visitors from all over the province along with bus tours from the United States. Because of the proximity to Victoria Hall, the festival receives many visitors who are in town to visit the V.P.P. Further helping the growth of the festival is the addition of a very modern and effective website. Petrolia's modest population of around 5000 still receives a lot of local information through the local newspaper, The Petrolia Topic. However, adding an effective website as a marketing tool of the festival was a necessary step that was recently taken to promote the event beyond the local scale and to the youth of the community.

Art in the Park - Petrolia, ON (July 9, 2011)

In my opinion, there are 3 main factors that are allowing this event to be successful. The first is the proximity to Victoria Hall. Although there are larger location options for the event, hosting the festival in the heart of the town next to the most popular attraction (V.P.P.) creates an excellent atmosphere and provides free promotion to playgoers passing by. The second factor is the involvement of local talent in the event. Petrolia is a small community where many people know each other. By facilitating a genuine interest in the event through a family or social connection, loyalty and greater support can be created. The third factor is the recent upgrade to the event's website. Past websites have appeared to be very amateur and difficult to navigate. The current website is easy to use and a huge improvement esthetically from the previous version.

Art in the Park with Victoria Hall in the Background

The event's website is an important tool that must be used properly to access its full marketing potential. There are still some changes that need to be made in order to do so. One example is that links to the event's social media pages (which also need some work as they are currently used as a closed group for the event's committee) should be front and center on the event's home page. This is an inexpensive and effective way to promote the event that is currently being unused. Another example is deleting past websites. It took me 3 tries to finally get to the right website because the old ones were still active. This is a simple way to avoid confusion and make the site easier to find.

The event is continuing to grow and may eventually need to expand to multiple locations. For now though, Canada's Victorian Oil Town can be proud of a great festival that provides opportunities for art and culture in a beautiful setting.

http://artintheparkpetrolia.com/

Euro Trip 2011 - Introduction & Stockholm, Sweden (Part 1)

Introduction
 
In April of this year I traveled through Scandinavia and Central Europe on a 2 week journey spanning 5 countries. The trip included stops in Stockholm, West Germany, Amsterdam, Paris, Barcelona, and Karlstad. I was accompanied by my girlfriend, Leanna, who is currently studying abroad in Karlstad, Sweden. An itinerary was prepared for the first 4 days of our trip. The rest was left open for flexibility, our only commitment being a flight on April 28th from Marseille, France to Karlstad (which we did not take). The trip was originally slated to include Madrid, Spain and Marseille/Nice, France. These stops were eventually vetoed as travel logistics came into play. The trip was a great experience for us and provided numerous opportunities to view a wide range of European culture.


April 18, 2011 - Stockholm, Sweden

My journey started with a 9 hour flight from Toronto, ON to Stockholm, Sweden (with a brief layover in Reykjavik, Iceland). Almost immediately after landing at Stockholm-Arlanda Airport, 20 minutes from Stockholm, I was blown away by the cultural differences. Entering the terminal from the plane, I walked past a customs officer. He was sitting behind a desk having a conversation with an airport security guard. The customs officer gave me a quick smile and waved me through customs without even showing a passport. I had heard stories from Leanna about how trusting the people are in Sweden but this was completely unexpected after a lifetime of dealing with North American customs.

After going through customs I proceeded to the Arlanda Express, a high-speed electric train built specifically to get people from the airport to Stockholm Central Station, or vice versa, as fast as possible. Even after not sleeping for over 30 hours because of my flight times (and a screaming infant behind me), I found myself wide awake traveling at 205 km/h toward Stockholm. I was the only passenger aboard my car and this was probably a good thing. As I stared out the window with my eyes wide open and jaw dropped at the Swedish scenery flying by, I caught myself say aloud "Whoa! This is pretty cool". The cleanliness and modern look of everything from the train itself to the building and cars I passed immediately caught my eye. Power outlets and complimentary magazines were abundant aboard the train with no traces of any litter. The "honour system" seemed to be a common theme while in Sweden as my ticket was not checked at any point of my journey.

After a brief wait at the station, I met up with Leanna (who I had not seen in over 4 months). She was already in Stockholm at the time with a group of her exchange student friends from Karlstad. We left the station and strolled through the old town of central Stockholm along narrow, cobblestone streets and pathways looking for a place to eat. Very old looking doors and pathways were a common sight throughout the old streets. A very large tourist presence was immediately noticeable in many areas. Many stores had signs indicating that they were tourist friendly. I had a plan to avoid the tourist trail as much as possible while traveling. However, this was very difficult to do as most of the cities we visited catered to tourists very well.

We eventually found a quiet place to eat in Stortorget, the oldest square in Stockholm. Located in the square is the Stock Exchange Building, containing the Swedish Academy, the Nobel Museum and the Nobel Library. We ate on the patio where we watched tourists snap pictures of the museum and other buildings in the square. Many other people simply passed through either on foot or bicycle while others sat on benches and the steps of the museum. It was a very surreal feeling to look at the old architecture of the buildings around the square and imagine what it would have been like hundreds of years ago. Stortorget that had been there for hundreds of years was still a popular gathering place. It was a very fitting setting for the Nobel Museum.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stortorget

After our meal we walked back towards central station, stopping at City Hall to take pictures and sit on a bench on the terrace. The bench offered a great view of the Riddarfjärden, a bay of Lake Mälaren. This was another popular tourist spot as many people walked through the outdoor courtyard and along the terrace.

Stockholm City Hall

Our next stop was at our hostel on Långholmen, an island in central Stockholm. Our hostel was a converted prison that used converted cells as rooms. Ironically it was probably the nicest hostel we stayed in on our trip. There are many buildings still on the island from when it was used as a prison that are now converted to house other facilities. This includes the hospital which is now a retaurant and pub. According to wikipedia.com, "Långholmen was originally rocky and barren, but in the eighteenth century, prison inmates covered the island with mud dredged from the surrounding waterways. After several years, the fertile soil transformed much of the island into lush gardens with a somewhat exotic flora, due to the introduction of various seeds that were spread via trade and merchant ships passing by the island. This peculiarity still persists, and today the island is considered a lush retreat." Many people were out biking and walking around the island. A group of children were practicing European football on a gravel pitch (home to Långholmen FC). This was clearly a spot where people many gathered to enjoy a wide variety of recreation and leisure pursuits.

Prison Cell Hostel Room