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Dal Richards, the legendary Vancouver swinging big band leader celebrated his 95th birthday on Jan 05, 2013 and held a free concert in downtown Vancouver’s Robson Square Ice Rink on Jan 12th, 2013. While the skaters enjoyed free skates and was Twistin’ the Night Away with Diane Lines, some on the make-shift dance floor Sway and Straighten Up & Fly Right with Jennifer Hayes. As the band played some slick guitar, trumpet and saxophone Mambo instrumental, Dal Richards reminisced and remembered Where or When.

Some things that happen for the first time seem to be happening again…… A bit of Frank Sinatra, Sam Cooke, Mambo, Broadway and more. That’s the magic of the Dal Richards & His orchestra!

Richards was newly crowned BC ‘Hepcat Laureate’ by BC Minister of State for Seniors Ralph Sultan. The accolade is the musician’s long line of honors that included memberships in the Order of Canada and the Order of British Columbia.

Richards was born in 1918 and began his professional musical career in 1940 and has continued to this day. He has no intention to slow down as he often addresses the crowd who come to his many concerts around the city and elsewhere.

The BC Minister of State for Seniors Ralph Sultan has this to say about the big band leader, born and raised in Vancouver, “Mr. Richards is a true B.C. icon, and this award and celebration are just small tokens of appreciation that we can show him, thanking him for seven decades of music and community involvement.”

Happy 95th Birthday, Dal! The Best is yet to Come!!!

[A Video by Ray Van Eng | www.vancouver21.com ]

Ray Van Eng is an award-winning Photographer/Videographer, Screenwriter and Movie & TV Producer. One of his videos is currently on view at the Hava Nagila Exhibit, Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust in New York City. from Sep 2012 to May 2013.

Robson Square Ice Rink, Vancouver BC, Canada

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Irish musical quartet Leum plays traditional Celtic dance tunes and songs with a New World energy and a laid-back westcoast style. Annie Brown on fiddle, Keona Hammond on flute, Alys Howe on harp and Neil Hammond on guitar and bodhran. Leum performed in downtown CelticFest 2011 (Georgia and Granville streets in downtown Vancouver) as part of the St. Patrick’s Day’s celebration week in March 2011. The audience was more than ready for some heel-clicking fun and Gaelic jump.
VIDEO – Leum at CelticFest 2011, a St. Patrick’s Day event

Celtic Village, Georgia and Granville streets, Vancouver BC

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VIDEOS –
St. Patrick’s Day Parade 2011 Spectacular!
St. Patrick’s Day Parade 2011 (Part 1)
Colin Grant @ CelticFest 2011
Stephanie Cadman @ CelticFest 2011

© Copyright 2011 Ray Van Eng/Getty Images.




































Celtic Village, Georgia & Granville streets

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All the bells and whistles of the St. Patrick’s Day Parade 2011 in Vancouver. The most spectacular Irish celebration in western Canada. Irish dancers, clowns, fire engines, police, antique cars, floats, trucks, bagpipe bands, legend marching bands, horse-mounted drill teams, Chinese lion dancers, Celtic warriors etc. in a spectacular display of Irish pride and celebration. The parade was held on March 20, 2011 between Drake and Georgia Street on Howe in downtown Vancouver.

The St. Patrick’s Day Parade is just one of the highlights of the almost week-long Celtic Fest in the city with plenty of Canadian musical bands from across the country providing entertainment – Colin Grant Band, Stephanie Cadman, Leum, Spirit of The West, The Wheat in The Barley, Sionnaine Irish Dancers etc. Star of The County Down, a famous Irish tune can be heard playing on bagpipes in marching bands and on stage performances with electric guitars and fiddles.
VIDEO – St. Patrick’s Day 2011 Spectacular!

VIDEO – St. Patrick’s Day Parade Police Bands and Lion Dancers


Because of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games last year, the St. parade was cancelled. This year’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade 2011 was greeted with excellent weather and had a very large turn-out, some estimated to be about 200,000.

Georgia, Granville & Howe streets, Vancouver BC

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Stephanie Cadman and Jake Charron performed at the Celtic Village (Georgia & Grnaville street in Vancouver) in Mach of 2011 at the Celtic Fest 2011. Stephanie Cadman is not only a virtuoso fiddler, at 16, she was already the top female at the World Tap Dance Championships, and held three step-dancing titles at the Pembroke Championships. Cadman co-founded a dance show The StepCrew and toured on her own production, Celtic Blaze and as a main violinist in BowFire. Jake Charron plays the piano and guitar and is one of Canada’s most highly-regarded accompanists for fiddle music.
VIDEO – Stephanie Cadman Irish Fiddle and Dance at Celtic Fest 2011

Celtic Village – Georgia & Granville Street, Vancouver BC

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VIDEO – Colin Grant Band @ Celtic Fest 2011

Georgia & Granville, Vancouver

From the east to the west, Cape Breton’s Colin Grant Band came to Vancouver to perform at the Pacific Centre Plaza on March 15, 2011 to help kick off the Celtic Fest 2011. But as Grant himself indicated, they were a year too late for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games. The free noon-time concert was staged right off the entrance to Vancouver City Centre Skytrain station on Georgia and Granville street and will continue on from 15-19, March, 2011. Meanwhile, the Colin Grant Band will stay on to perform at ticketed venues such as the Doolin’s Irish Pub and other locations. Details at http://www.celticfestvancouver.com/

The instrumental sound of Irish rhythm and tunes were provided by Colin Grant (fiddle), Jason Roach (piano), Darren McMullen (guitar, mandolin, banjo) Donnie Calabrese (bass) and Colin Clarke (Drums).

There will be a St. Patrick Day Parade on Sunday (Mar 20) to cap off the almost weeklong series of musical performances. On Mar 19-20 at the Celtic Village or the section of Granville Street between Georgia and Smithe street, the Celtic Fest 2011 will be filled with Irish dance, songs, swordplay, workshops, storytelling, Gaelic Football and other family fun activities.


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Tzimmes, a group of Jewish musicians came to perform at the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden in the Vancouver’s Downtown East Side (DTES) on October 31, 2010. The band took its name from a Yiddish word meaning something sweet made from an ingredient of honey, raisins, carrots and prunes. Personality-wise, the trio is made up of Moshe Denburg (guitar/vocal), Yona Bar-Sever (bass/guitar/drum) and Saul Berson (sax/clarinet/flute). That afternoon at the most authentic classical Chinese garden in North America, some sweet harmony filled the air. The honey-dripping sound of guitar, bongo, saxophone, percussion and other musical instruments had the small jam-packed audience of about 70 enthralled with hand-clapping, feet-stomping and a sharing of more than a joke or two. The group claims to be at the forefront of the multi-faceted approach to Jewish music making today. It certainly is one multicultural event considering the setting. The free/by donation concert was also one of the highlights of the Heart of The City Festival 2010.
















Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden 578 Carrall Street, Vancouver BC

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Some bonus material for you Terri Clark fans out there. At the PNE 2010 concert on Aug 22, 2010, Canadian country singer/songwriter Terri Clark came to Vancouver and performed many of her hit singles including No Fear (which Terri co-wrote with Mary Chapin Carpenter), Emotional Girl, If I Were You and A Little Gasoline. No Fear was adopted by the Canadian Special Olympics athletes as their inspirational theme song. At the 2001 CCMA show, she sang the song on stage with the athletes.

Also, don’t forget to tune in this Sunday (SEP 12, 2010) for the Canadian Country Music Awards (CCMA) in which Terri was nominated for three awards: Female Artist of The Year, Album of The Year – The Long Way Home and Record Producers of the Year – The Long Way Home. She will perform live with Johnny Reid as well. Don’t miss it!

VIDEO – Terri Clark, No Fear, Special Olympics theme song

VIDEO – Emotional Girl, If I Were You, A Little Gasoline

PNE, 2901 East Hastings Street Vancouver BC

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It was loud, lively and energetic when The Road Hammers came to play at the PNE 2010 Summer Night Concerts series on Sep 05, 2010 in Vancouver’s Hastings Park. Lead singer Jason McCoy made it interactive as well with one fan in particular named Steven who was very eager to get into the swing of thing. And swing The Road Hammers certainly did with hit songs one after the other. The CCMA and Juno-winning band performed I’ve Got Scares To Prove It and Born Again In Dixieland which are featured in this video. Enjoy, Road Hammers fans.

VIDEO – The Road Hammers, I’ve Got Scars To Prove It & Born AGain in Dixieland

PNE, 2901 East Hastings Street Vancouver BC

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Former Barenaked Ladies frontman Steven Page wasn’t exactly naked at the PNE 2010 concert on Sep 04, 2010, but he laid bare his soul simply by being himself.

During the concert, he focused on establishing himself as a new solo artist happy to have left the group that had made him well-known and which he had also made famous in return. He acknowledge that part of the history, made references to it frequently but also hinted that he had moved on.

In the Vancouver concert, he sang songs from his latest solo album Page One including Clifton Springs and All The Young Monogamists and covered a few old material as well, notably Jane and Brian Wilson which he wrote himself some 20 years ago.
This is a new Steven Page we are seeing. A bit goofy yet with much seriousness about his work though you may not feel it and even if he was simply doing a bit of tango on stage.

VIDEO – Steven Page, Clifton Springs

VIDEO – Steven Page, Jane

VIDEO – Steven Page, Brian Wilson

VIDEO – Steven Page, New Tango Act

PNE, 2901 East Hastings Street Vancouver BC

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