Calling all teenage bands: Youthink Magazine and Tom Lee Music are on the hunt to discover the province's best teenage talent, and there are some big prizes up for grabs for the lucky winners.
"We are so excited!" Youthink's Editor, Janine Verreault, said in a recent press release. "B.C. has bred some of the world's top musicians - Nelly Furtado, Michael Bublé, Diana Krall, Bryan Adams, just to name a few. We know there is a huge pool of young talent out there and we want to showcase it."
The contest kicked off on Oct. 1, and will run until Dec. 15, with high-school bands from across the province submitting YouTube videos of themselves performing original songs. Industry experts will then pick B.C.'s Top 10 Teen Bands, with those 10 finalists showcased on www.youthink.ca for voters to determine the top three contenders, and ultimately, an online winner. The winner be given the advantage of playing last at the Best Teen Band Showcase, which will be held at the final event at Tom Lee in downtown Vancouver on May 1.
The winners will walk away with $500 in gift certificates from Tom Lee Music, a recording of one single by Jay Evjen of Juicemix Productions in a pro studio setting, a one-day songwriting session with Shaun Verreault of Wide Mouth Mason, a band photo shoot with photographer Adam Blasberg and art director Ben Oliver, a marketing consultation with White Tide Entertainment and, of course, the title of B.C.'s Best Teen Band.
The top three finalists will receive a chance to perform at Tom Lee Music Hall in Vancouver in front of a crowd of 200, a video of the finals, a media training session with the editors of Youthink Magazine, and publicity in Youthink Magazine/Youthink.ca.
For more information on the competition, check www.youthink.ca/band-contest .
Tricks and the trade
Canada's self-described national newspaper, the Globe and Mail , is going to make two aspiring journalists' dreams come true at the 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The Globe has just announced its Journalism Dream Contest, which will see one amateur writer and photographer win a "once-in-a-lifetime" shot at covering the Olympic excitement for the paper.
Amateur writers and photographers can submit stories or photos about any recent sporting event they've covered (anything from a professional game to a local softball tournament) and the entries will be uploaded to www.journalismdream.com , where Canadians will vote to select the top 50 stories and top 50 photos. The two grand prize winners will be selected by a Globe and Mail panel, and will be assigned to cover Vancouver 2010 as a writer or photographer as part of the Globe and Mail 's editorial team. They will travel to Vancouver, where they'll post regular reports and updates that will appear in the Globe 's newspaper and website in February.
"The Globe and Mail is delighted to give Canadians a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to cover first-hand the Olympic Games on home soil" Sean Humphrey, Director of Marketing for the Globe , said in a recent press release.
For more information on the contest, visit www.globeandmail.com/journalismdream .
A magical evening of sound
The Squamish Lil'wat Cultural Centre is playing host to a special musical event on Sunday, Oct. 18, as they welcome people to join in on a Crystal Journey that starts at 2 p.m. and runs until 3:30 p.m.
The concert features paiste planet, symphonic and sound creation gongs, special quartz crystal bowls and vibraphone. Musician David Hickey will lead the "journey to the outer reaches of the solar system" with his Sounds Of Space performance.
The Whistler stop is just one of many along the 50-city tour Hickey is embarking on this season. For more information on the event, visit www.crystaljourney.ca
Crystal Lounge hosts Whistler talent
The Crystal Lounge is hosting the second round of its search for Whistler's most talented musicians tonight.
The Whistler's Got Talent competition will see local musicians (solo or group with original or cover material) performing on Thursday, Oct. 8 and 15. The winners from each round will go onto the finals on Oct. 22. During each round, a panel of judges will select the top performers based on crowd response, technical ability, presentation and originality.
Anyone interested in taking part in the event can fill out a registration form at the Crystal Lounge. Even if you're certain you lack musical talent, feel free to come out and watch the competitors battle it out on stage.
Bannock served at SLCC
The Squamish Lil'wat Cultural Centre kicked off their weekly Sunday Speakers Series at the beginning of September, inviting a range of community and non-profit groups in to use their space to help raise awareness of local and global initiatives, and so far they've hosted groups like Bear Aware and Leadership Sea to Sky.
This Sunday, Oct. 11, they'll be hosting a fun, family-focused afternoon of teaching others to make traditional bread with a Bannock Bakers Workshop.
Entry to all SLCC Speakers Series are open to the public and are free or by donation, and for this event specifically, people are asked to bring their favourite non-perishable food item as a donation to the Whistler Food Bank, which is the recipient of this event.
