Owen McBride to be Inducted into the Mariposa Hall of Fame

Owen McBride to be Inducted into the Mariposa Hall of Fame

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Owen-Head-shot.jpeg_2Born in Ireland, Owen McBride arrived in Canada in 1963. Literally, within a matter of days he was performing at folk clubs and coffee houses in Toronto’s booming folk scene. As luck would have it, Estelle Klein, the artistic director of the Mariposa Folk Festival, saw Owen perform and was immediately captivated by the young musician/storyteller. From 1964 until the mid-eighties, he was a perennial performer at Mariposa, experiencing its moves from Maple Leaf Stadium to Innis Lake to Toronto Island and even to Barrie Molson Park. Then, in 2010 Owen returned for the fiftieth anniversary of the festival and appeared again 2011, 2016 and 2017.

Owen also appeared at the other major festivals around North America. His rich voice, traditional repertoire and genial personality both on and off-stage helped to make him a key figure in North American folk circles. In 1970, the New York Times called his Irish and Scottish ballads at the Philadelphia Folk Festival “sentimental and boozy.” (In a good way, we assume!)

He is also an accomplished storyteller who has appeared on CBC and various story telling festivals in Canada and the USA. Owen’s contributions to folk music – and to Mariposa Folk Festival specifically – are reason enough to endorse his induction into the Mariposa Hall of Fame this year. Owen will be inducted along with The Travellers and Sharon, Lois and Bram.

The Travellers to be Inducted into the Mariposa Hall of Fame

The Travellers to be Inducted into the Mariposa Hall of Fame

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If you are a Canadian, you know our version of Woody Guthrie’s classic This Land is Your Land – where Vancouver Island, Bonavista and the Arctic Circle are cited instead of the New York Island, California and the Gulfstream waters. We can thank the Travellers for that national treasure of a song, which they altered and made into a genuine Canadian folk song (and a hit record.)

The Travellers grew out of folk singing sessions at Camp Naivelt, a Jewish socialist vacation community west of Brampton in the 1950s. Modeling themselves after Pete Seeger’s group The Weavers, the band had tremendous success in a nation that seemed reluctant to promote home-grown talent. Led over the years by banjo player Jerry Grey, the group has had many members come and go over the years. Sid Dolgay, one of the founders of the Mariposa Folk Festival, played the mandicello in the group for a number of years. Joe Hampson, husband of Sharon Hampson of Sharon, Lois and Bram fame, was another key member.

The group produced several popular records in the fifties and sixties and toured extensively across Canada. In 1962 they were part of a cultural exchange with the Soviet Union and toured parts of Russia. They played for Queen Elizabeth during her 1964 tour of Canada. In 1967 they played at Expo 67 in Montreal and in 1970 represented Canada  at Expo 70 in Osaka Japan. They entertained Canadian military units in Germany and Cypress and were equally at home on university campuses. The group made numerous radio and television appearances over the years on shows such as Haunted Studio, Pick the Stars, and had five television specials of their own. They received a Juno nomination for their children’s record Merry-Go-Round in 1980. In 200, a National Film Board documentary chronicled the band’s history.

When the Mariposa Folk Festival began in 1961, The Travellers were the headline act and they repeatedly appeared over the next several years: 1962, 1963, 1968, 1990, 1993, 1995, and of course in 2000 at the first festival back in Orillia in over 37 years. Over their long career, the group has sung about and promoted values related to labour solidarity, peace, civil rights and social justice – values also espoused by the Mariposa Folk Festival. Therefore it is fitting to finally see The Travellers inducted into the festival’s Hall of Fame in 2019 alongside Sharon, Lois and Bram and Owen McBride.

By Mike Hill

In 2010, Jerry Gray of The Travellers conducted the Mormon Tabernacle Choir’s unique rendition of This Land Is Your Land.

Tell Us Your Volunteer Story

Tell Us Your Volunteer Story

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42548115260_c32c316dd1_oThis year marks the 20th anniversary of Mariposa Folk Festival back in Orillia. To help mark the occasion, we are collecting interesting volunteer stories for possible inclusion at a special Volunteer Recognition Display.

If you have a good volunteer story, please tell it to us. If you have more than one, or even several, please tell them all, but please limit your stories to 250 words each. If you could accompany your story with a digital photo, that would be awesome. Make sure to include your full name, volunteer team or role, and the approximate year your story took place.

The stories will be curated, and the selected stories will be attributed to you and assembled in a Volunteer Memories Display during the Festival. Some of these stories may also be shared on our social media platforms.

By virtue of submitting a story, you are authorizing the Mariposa Folk Foundation to publish it. All those who submitted a story will be entered into a random draw for a $50 gift certificate.

Please submit your story by June 21st, 2019, but the sooner the better. All stories and photo attachments should be submitted to reception@mariposafolk.com. Please write “Volunteer Story” in the subject line.

We are sure there are lots of entertaining Mariposa volunteer stories to be told. Please tell us yours!

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Sharon, Lois and Bram to be Inducted into the Mariposa Hall of Fame

Sharon, Lois and Bram to be Inducted into the Mariposa Hall of Fame

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It began at Mariposa in the 1970s and it appears that it will be ending at the 2019 Festival in Orillia.Lois2

Sharon and Bram, two of Canada’s best-known troubadours, are retiring.

“Because it’s time,” said Bram Morrison. At an age well beyond the normal retirement age, the duo has finally decided that it’s time to pass the baton to younger musicians.

Sharon, Lois and Bram – this country’s best-known folk group “for families” – has had a remarkable career and lasting impact on Canadian culture. Over forty years ago the trio began touring Canada and the United States, sharing their wholesome and eclectic style of music with children, their parents and grandparents. They became a duo in 1999 when Lois, who passed away in 2015, retired from touring. By means of records, television shows and especially live concerts, the musicians spread their happy and positive gift of song to several generations. Sharon and Bram find that they are playing for multiple generations at their concerts: children, parents, grandparents and even occasional great-grandparents.

Their contribution to Canadian culture has not gone unnoticed. All three are members of the Order of Canada. They’ve received myriad awards and accolades, including Folk Music Canada’s Estelle Klein Award (named after the legendary artistic director of the Mariposa Folk Festival,) the Queen’s Golden and Diamond Jubilee medals, numerous television awards and even Honorary Doctorates from Mount Saint Vincent University. They have played key roles with UNICEF, were honoured by a breakfast with Bill and Hillary Clinton at the White House and even have a playground bearing their names in Toronto.

Sharon and Bram2Now the group will be honoured with induction in the Mariposa Hall of Fame this July at the Mariposa Folk Festival. Bram played the festival as a solo artist in 1966, 1973 and 1976. Sharon was a solo performer in 1963, 1965, 1976 and 1978. Sharon and Bram were part of Mariposa’s 50th anniversary roster in 2010 and Bram once again played as a solo performer in 2015. Both Lois and Sharon were key players in starting Folk Play, the children’s area at the festivals in the mid-seventies. All three were heavily involved in the spin-off Mariposa in the Schools program in the seventies and early eighties. Their influence on children (and parents) cannot be underestimated. It is axiomatic to say that they have touched thousands and thousands of lives in Canada with their positive messages and tuneful, eclectic brand of music.

As the duo of Sharon and Bram make their final musical tour, they will be ending it at Mariposa, where this incredible partnership started over forty years ago.

By Mike Hill