An award-winning folk duo from Winnipeg will play for one night in Nanaimo during their international tour.
The Small Glories have already toured through Alaska, Alberta, Manitoba, Colorado, New Mexico, California, Nevada and Arizona.
The June 13 performance in Nanaimo, as part of Harbour City Concerts, will be their last in B.C. before they continue across Canada and the United States. They’ll even appear in Denmark for the Tønder Festival for four days in August before continuing on until at least November.
“We just really love to connect with people,” said group member Cara Luft. “And it’s really great to finally be able to do that again in-person after not being able to do so for a couple of years. There’s a lot of joy that we feel when we get to play for the people.”
She said they only just started touring again in March, their last being in February 2020.
“After two years of not being able to do our job the way that we’re used of doing it – and now we’re back with non-stop flights and car rentals and driving … I didn’t think I was going to enjoy it as much as I thought, even though I’m really exhausted,” Luft said.
Before the declaration of the COVID-19 pandemic, the duo had won multiple 2020 Canadian Folk Music Awards, including the Contemporary Album of the Year, Ensemble of the Year and Vocal Group of the Year. They also won the 2020 International Folk Awards Artist of the Year, and were nominated for the 2020 Juno Award Traditional Roots Album of the Year.
“We were booked for a year and a half once the pandemic hit. So a lot of the gigs that we’re doing now have just been reshuffled … So now we’re booked until May next year,” Luft said.
For the Nanaimo show, she said the audience can expect more than just songs.
“A live show with us is a whole extravaganza. It’s not just listening to music – we like to tell stories, we like to get people laughing,” Luft said. “We want to have a special evening with the Nanaimo folks that will never be replicated.”
The Small Glories will play the First Unitarian Fellowship Hall on Townsite Road on Monday, June 13, at 7:30 p.m.
READ MORE: Folk music tells West Coast history
mandy.moraes@nanaimobulletin.com
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