WARM HEARTS
Some of Edmonton’s finest poets and musicians weave their works together to warm our hearts this winter.
What is it?
A 4-concert series featuring unique pairings of live music and poetry by local artists.
These are ticketed events, with general seating available at a range of prices. All ages are welcome.
Schedule:
Saturday February 11th, 6 PM. Doors @ 5:30.
Saturday February 25th, 7 PM. Doors @ 6:30.
Sunday matinee March 12th, 3 PM. Doors @ 2:30.
Saturday March 25th, 7 PM. Doors @ 6:30.
Location:
St. Mary's Anglican Church, 11203 68 St NW, Edmonton.
Accessibility note: Wheelchair access on East side (alley) of building. Contact us at hello@bleedingheartart.space to access.
Participating Artists:
100 Mile House, Corine Demas, Cay de Dios, Meghan Eaker, Good Information, Naomi McIlwraith, Melafrique, Emmet Michael
100 MILE HOUSE: Edmonton-based husband and wife duo Peter Stone and Denise MacKay have shared their unique brand of transatlantic folk at shows and festivals across the globe. Their beautiful harmonies, rich arrangements and captivating lyrics make their sound truly distinctive.
CORINE DEMAS is an Alberta born and raised singer-songwriter, poet, storyteller, stand up comic, actor, playwright and producer. She adores living and working in Edmonton and has called this city home since 1998. Corine is chiefly concerned with community building through the arts and sits on the board of Heart of the City Festival Society of Edmonton and is the special events coordinator for McCauley Community League.
CAY DE DIOS (They/Them) is a spoken word artist and poet residing on Treaty 6 territory in Amiskwaciwaskakihan. Gentle, compassionate, and unapologetic, they are a firm believer in the transformative healing power of storytelling. They have performed in many local edmonton arts festivals and general performances. Currently, they are working on a poem anthology on change, dreaming and the different intersections our identity faces in the waking world.
MEGHAN EAKER (she/they) is an amiskwaciywaskahikan (Treaty 6) based poet, Registered Nurse, and artist of mixed european and nehiyaw (Cree) ancestry and is a member of the Woodland Cree First Nation in Treaty 8. She is currently pursuing a PhD in Indigenous Studies at the University of Alberta studying storysharing as a creative practice towards miyo pimatisiwin (a good life) for two-spirit, trans, and queer Indigenous youth.
GOOD INFORMATION lays down an indisputably hip-hop sound while maintaining the traditional elements of small-group jazz.
Calling upon neo-soul harmony and math-rock’s dizzying time signatures, their unique brand of “jazz with a beat-aesthetic” shines through interplay woven over minimalist structures; one moment they’re a groove-making machine, the next, a blur of collective improvisation. The band prides themselves on each performance being unique, as they lean into the unpredictability of jazz, leaving room for the music to bend and take shape in the moment as they react to one another.
Good information has become a significant part of the Edmonton music community through their distinct residencies. Most significantly, their “RE:JAZZ” series, which features the music of popular hip-hop artists arranged for their jazz context.
NAOMI MCILWRAITH hails from amiskwacî-wâskahikan, Plains Cree for Beaver Mountain House, also known as Edmonton. In all that she does, Naomi honours her parents, Lavona and Mowat McIlwraith, her four grandparents, Lucabelle and James Meakes, and Davida and Charles McIlwraith. As a Cree - Ojibwe - Scottish - English - Métis writer, Naomi is grateful for her education and pledges to use it to build a more peaceful world. Born and raised here, she has wandered near and far but always manages to find her way back to her home on Treaty Six land. A teacher, a talker, a poet, and a peacemaker, she now works as an Indigenous Interpreter, Researcher, Writer, and Supervisor at the new Indigenous People’s Experience at Fort Edmonton Park over there by that wee bend in the North Saskatchewan River just upstream of the Quesnel Bridge. Naomi is deeply honoured that you’ve invited her here today at the Warm Hearts Concert #1 to share some of her peacemaking poems.
MELAFRIQUE is an Afro-fusion band formed in Edmonton, Canada in 2016. The name Melafrique is a condensed form of the term "Melanin from Africa". They play a variety of genres: Jazz, R&B, Reggae, Neo-soul; in combination with different African styles of music. Melafrique hopes to inspire the world with good music. Through music, they express their identities as African people, as Caribbean people, as musicians, and as Edmontonians. The band includes members from Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Angola, Jamaica, and Canada.
The members include: Trae Chisolm-Lyn on Drums, Dominic Reynolds on Percussion, Nathan Hackett on Keyboards, Enoch Attey on Guitar, Aristoteles Canga on Keyboards, Riwo Egor on Lead Vocals, and Leshan Masikonte on Bass.
EMMET MICHAEL: Introspective and enthralling, with equal parts grit and grace, Emmet Michael is a musician who was built on his trials. Turning to music in his darkest times, he found solace in his ability to share his heart with others through his lyrics. Drawing on his experience of embracing queerness in a religious context, living with mental illness, and battling addiction, his songs carry a tone of desperation and angst. With soulful melodies and heart wrenching lyrics, his music conveys a message that is both powerful and vulnerable. Entirely unique, yet familiar.
Edmonton Arts Council / City of Edmonton
Warm Hearts is supported by the Edmonton Arts Council and the City of Edmonton.
