Voices of the North showcases young talent

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The ninth annual Voices of the North Aboriginal talent showcase took place Feb. 15, 16, and 17 at the Exhibition Centre in Prince Albert. Like its eight predecessors, it made for an entertaining evening for all ages.

The evening began with the show's theme being introduced. "I find that it keeps it more family-oriented if we have a theme, something that we can dedicate our performances to," said assistant producer Sheryl Kimbley.

"I know we've had one where we were 'Looking back, stepping forward' before, where we brought a lot of our older performers in to sing to the younger crowd."

About this year's theme, she said, "We had 'Honoring our Veterans', of course, which is very close to our hearts. It's an issue that needs to be brought up every year. Actually, I wish we could do that more often."

The veterans were not only honored by the theme of the show, but also by a couple of the performances. The first song sung during the two-hour show was called "Crimson Red", which was both written and performed by Carl Crane. Inspired by the re-burial of the Canadian Unknown Soldier on Canadian soil, he wrote a song about two men who fight alongside one another, "Who go down fighting for our freedom," said Crane.

The final song performed was written by Doug Moran. It was entitled "What About Tommy?" and told the story of the life of Tommy Prince, the highest-decorated Aboriginal soldier in Canadian history. He was a veteran who fought in both Second World War and the Korean conflict, and the song described many of the all-too-true ups and downs associated with being an Aboriginal war veteran.

"At first, when I wrote the song, I had a lot of anger and contempt for the powers that be that let this situation happen," says Moran.

"After I got to know the man that I was writing about, things kind of changed. I realize it's still an issue that has to be resolved. At the same time, I'd like to focus on keeping their memory alive."

Although this year the theme of Voices of the North was about honoring veterans, the main focus of the show itself was on the young performers on the stage. About 75 per cent of the performers for the 2001 edition were under the age of 21. There were also quite a few first-time performers in the show, including 14-year-old Teagan Littlechief, who was introduced to the appreciative audience as she sang "Sweet Child of Mine" -a song from a much different musical genre from the one she was singing when her talent was originally "discovered".

"We never took [her singing] serious until her preschool teacher heard her singing the Little Mermaid song in the bathroom," recalled Littlechief's mother, Sarah Lonechild.

"While they were all sitting in a circle, she went to the bathroom, and [her teacher] said 'Out of the bathroom came this voice, and it was her.' That was how we got her going, because the teacher said 'Do something, because she has a voice'."

Littlechief, a member of the Whitebear First Nation, was one of the youngest performers in the show. Another who was even younger was 13-year-old Jarrod Jobb from Southend Reindeer Lake. Like Littlechief, his musical performance preferences have changed considerably from when he first started singing.

"I first started singing gospel, then I worked my way up to country, and now I sort of enjoy singing country and alternative songs," said Jobb, who first began singing at the ripe-old age of four.

Dean Gauthier, a country singer from Beauval, was also in the rookie category, adding to the talented mix at the two-hour show.

"Basically, I'm from a community that has a lot of musicians there. Basically, from looking at them and playing, that's how I got interested [in music]," said Gauthier.

"D.C. Corrigal inspired me quite a bit, and so did Marty Ballentyne, so basically watching them gave me the chance to actually learn things. That's where I started music."

And Gauthier was singing through what only the most dedicated musician would try. "I have a really bad cold and I'm having to go out there and sing again. The show must go on. After two bottles of Tylenol and many headaches, I'm still here, trying to give her."

In the audience was one of the more famous of the Voices of the North alumni. Chester Knight, who has a Juno award for his achievements, was impressed by the show.

"It's really exciting," said Knight. "It's a successful music show and every year, a lot of people come here. The artists, they get to develop themselves here, and it's just a great show to be at. You know, the lights, the sound . . . everything's just perfect."

Bernice Sayese, the Voices of the North producer, was pleased with the show.

"I thought this year's edition was a tremendous success, both in terms of performers, and band back-up, and lighting, and sound production, and work by all the volunteers and sponsors that helped us out," said Sayese.

"I'm really pleased with the talent that is coming forth for Aboriginal entertainers, and it's very encouraging to see these young kids up on the stage. I want to just continue to pursue the promotion and development of Aboriginal talent through the Voices of the North venue."