Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival Now Accepting Submissions for Harvest's Galaxie Rising Star Competition
July 5, 2010
Calling all new bands and artists! With the help of their long time partner Galaxie, The Harvest Jazz & Blues Festival is offering new and upcoming New Brunswick artists a chance for exposure at a local, provincial and national level. The festival encourages all interested and eligible artists to apply. Applications will be adjudicated by a festival-appointed jury and the final contestants notified by August 20, 2010.
“The Galaxie Rising Star Program helps in the promotion and discovery of emerging Canadian talent and allows for fantastic showcase opportunities”, says Louis Bellavance, Director of the Galaxie Rising Stars Program. “The valuable partnerships between the Galaxie Rising Stars Program and The Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival has allowed us to highlight and reward the talents of gifted artists year after year”, he adds.
Submissions for Harvest’s 2010 Galaxie Rising Star Competition opened today and will be accepted until Friday, August 13. All applications will be accepted electronically through Sonicbids, which can be accessed directly from the Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival website. The competition is open to all New Brunswick artists and bands who have never played a Harvest mainstage (Tannery, stage, pubs and clubs, and past showcases are not considered Harvest shows). 50% of the band members must be born in New Brunswick or must be living in N.B. since January 1st, 2009.
Harvest’s Galaxie Rising Star Showcase event will be held on Friday, September 17th at the Galaxie sponsored Barracks Tent in downtown Fredericton. Up to 5 finalists will perform a 20 minute set and will be judged on talent, originality and stage presence by a panel of music industry experts. Votes are also taken from members of the audience that evening and online voting, so participants are encouraged to bring out family and friends for support. The 5 industry judges will comprise 50% of the final vote tally and the audience and online voting will represent the remaining 50%. In the event of a tie, the choice of the industry judges shall prevail.
“Harvest’s Galaxie Rising Star competition is always a big highlight of the Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival,” said Harvest music director Brent Staeben. “It’s a fantastic opportunity for young and up and coming bands to get some major exposure in the music industry, as well as make a lot of new fans. It’s also a great way for people to discover amazing new talent from right here in New Brunswick.”
The winner will be announced right after the competition of September 17th. The wining band or artist will kick off the Galaxie Barracks festivities on Saturday, September 18th, opening for former Galaxie Rising Star winner Ross Neilsen, and Mississippi’s Hill Country Revue. The winner will also receive $2,000 donated by Galaxie and the Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival, and will have the opportunity to have their music played on one of the Galaxie TV channels and be featured on galaxie.ca.
