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Live music coming to Downtown Guelph at a different time and place

Music Weekends brings a variety of styles to non-traditional music venues during the afternoon at pay-what-you-can shows
20170104 music downtown ts

Live music is coming to Downtown Guelph at some different times and places.

Beginning Jan. 7 and Jan. 8, Music Weekends will offer a variety of acts of various musical styles performing mid-afternoon mostly in downtown coffee shops.

The 10-week, 20-event series kicks off Saturday at 2 p.m. at Ebar with a performance by Lily Frost.

All events are pay what you can and all are family-oriented.

There will be swing, bluegrass, roots, afro-funk, 60s surf and other styles over the course of the series, which runs until March 12.

It's being put on by the Downtown Guelph Business Association through funding from the Regional Tourism Office.

"What we're really trying to do is capture a demographic that isn't usually able to attend live music events," said Marty Williams, executive director of the Downtown Board.

He said they have seen the success that Hillside Inside and other events have had putting music into non-traditional settings during the day and wanted to tap into that.

"Somebody who is too young or who has a young family isn't going to be out at 10 o'clock at night waiting for a band to come on," Williams said.

"This gives those people an opportunity for those people to see live music and for some people to see live music for the first time."

On a more practical level, he said, it also brings people into the core and into businesses on slower days and at a slower time of the year. Those people might also visit other downtown businesses when they come for the music.

"We're hoping to get people to come out to the downtown that don't usually come out," Williams said.

Ebar, The Common coffee shop on Wilson Street, The Cornerstone, the new Robusta Cafe, Royal Electric, Red Brick Cafe and Red Papaya are the hosts for the first month's events, which start at either 2 p.m. or 3 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.

Artists for the first month are Lily Frost, Gary Diggins and Jeff Bird, Coszmos Quartette and Luka, Jason Raso Trio, The Jim Heineman Trio, The Medicine Hat and High Park, The Highest Order and Off World and Bolete.

Others involved in supporting the event are Hillside Festival, Kazoo! Fest, GAIN, Silence, CFRU and Kaleidoscope Music.

Full updated information with times, places and artists can be found on the Music Weekends Facebook page.


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Tony Saxon

About the Author: Tony Saxon

Tony Saxon has had a rich and varied 30 year career as a journalist, an award winning correspondent, columnist, reporter, feature writer and photographer.
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