On This Winter’s Night

On Sunday, Dec. 2, I will be performing my annual afternoon fundraiser concert at GigSpace at 953 Gladstone Avenue. The concert will start at 2:00 pm. Once again it is in support of Harmony House and its programs to assist endangered women and children.

This will be the last year for this concert and, to mark the event, I have recorded a CD covering the repertoires used in the previous seven concerts. Mark Ferguson accompanied me on piano. It was recorded at GigSpace and engineered by Mike Mullin. All proceeds, including any future sales, will go to Harmony House.

The CD is titled On This Winter’s Night and is in part financed by a small crowd-funding campaign organized earlier this year.

CD’s will be available for purchase at this time. Consider some beautiful music for holiday gifts this season. There are limited CD’s available and we hope they all sell. If you would like to reserve, please let me know via the Geri Childs contact page.

Samples of the music from this CD will soon be available for listening on this web site

Joining me on stage for the concert will be Mark Ferguson and guest performers, Kathy Eagan, Lindsay McLeod and story teller Evelyn Voigt.

Doors Open For Music At Southminster

Later in the month, on Wednesday, December 19, I will present another concert of this wonderful music as part of the Doors Open for Music at Southminster at Southminster United Church (15 Aylmer Ave. at Bank Street). For this performance I will be performing with Mark Ferguson on piano, John Geggie on bass, Rene Lavoie on saxophone and Scott Latham on drums.

Joining me at this concert is Cuppa Joe, a four piece accapella group.

I can promise you a heartfelt event that will surround you in the spirit of the season.

Hope to see you at these events!

Geri

Join me, Geri Childs, for the 6th annual concert and fund raiser in aid of Harmony House.

Sunday, December 3rd at 2:00 PM
GigSpace, 953 Gladstone Ave.

Once again Mark Ferguson will be accompanying me and this year we are pleased to have Cuppa Joe as our guest performers.

Cuppa Joe features, John Wilson, Valérie Bouillant , Mary Moore and Peter Feldman. The group was inspired by the sounds of The Manhattan Transfer and tunes like Java Jive. Its jazz-based repertoire includes a variety of their arrangements, along with those of New York Voices and other close harmony groups, and is augmented by songs of popular artists like James Taylor and The Beatles.

Evelyn Voigt will be reading a few stories from the soon to be released book titled, 150 Canadian Stories of Peace. A collection of stories by Canadians on building peace in their homes, communities and beyond.

There will be a silent auction of baked goods and crafts. Good chance to stock up for the holiday parties ahead and maybe cross a few names off your list. All these proceeds will go to Harmony House.

And of course refreshments will be served between sets. An opportunity to mingle in good spirit with new and old friends and maybe sample some of the goodies on sale too.

Tickets: $20
Purchase on line @ GigSpace: A Prelude to Winter
GigSpace: 613-729-0693

I have a couple of shows coming up that I am excited to be doing.

The Music That Makes Me Dance

Southminster United Church has started to host Saturday evening performances, Concerts By the Canal

I will be performing February 25th @ 7:00pm in a show titled The Music That Makes Me Dance.

Mark Ferguson is the musical arranger and will be accompanying me on piano. Joining us will be Rene Lavoie on saxophone and flute along with Normand Claude on bass.

The repertoire is a mix of wonderful familiar jazz standards. Expect to hear Gershwin, Ellington, Michel Legrand, Ivan Lins, Thelonious Monk and more.

Start the evening by having dinner at one of the many nearby restaurants in Ottawa South or the Glebe then walk or skate over to enjoy an evening of music in the warm and welcoming atmosphere of Southminster.

Paper Moon

In May I will be doing a concert at GigSpace on May 13th, Paper Moon, The songs of Nat King Cole.

Joining me for this show will be Art Lawless on Piano, Tom Dennison on Bass and special guest vocalist Laurie Nelson.

I am looking forward to working with this group of talented people. We go back a long way and have enjoyed many magical musical moments over the years. It’s always a fun time for us and the audience is always a part of it.

Autumn. That wonderful transition of colour and the knowledge that ahead of us are the cold winds and snows of winter.

December. A time to reflect on the year that will soon be passing us by and the wonder of what lies ahead.

Celebration. When we join with friends and family to share in some warmth and good cheer.

This will be the 5thyear for the Sunday afternoon concert and fundraiser.

Mark Ferguson will once again be accompanying on piano and we look forward to welcoming special guests, singer Dominique Forest and Carolyne Solberg on harp. Evelyn Voigt will be returning with her “Christmas in Africa” story, too.

For those of you who have come out before and helped to make this event a fun and worthy experience, I hope to see you again.

If you have never been part of this before, I invite you to share an afternoon with us as we welcome the month of December and the prospect of the year to come.

Once again, there will be baked goods and crafts for sale. It’s a good opportunity to get ahead of the baking crunch and pick up a few little trinkets for the Christmas season. All the proceeds from the sale will go to Harmony House, a local home for women in need of refuge. Cash and cheques only, please.

Refreshments will be served after the concert. Hope to see you!
Geri

GigSpace
953 Gladstone Ave.
Sunday, December 4th
2:00pm to 4:00pm
Tickets: $20
Purchase : 613-729-0693

Last year ended with another wonderful Sunday afternoon holiday show and a silent auction that raised money for Harmony House.

Each year just seems more festive and I am always thankful for the help and support of so many friends -those who perform with me and those who roll up their sleeves and pitch in, helping to making the day extra special. What a great way to enter the holiday season and wrap up another year.

The silent auction donations were wonderful too. From local artists, artisans and writers along with tasty baking donated by members of the music community,

I have already booked for December 4th of this year, so mark it down in your calendar.

Winter is generally a time for me to hunker down and let things simmer. I never know what the next project is going to be without letting things go. Somehow, when I pick it up again ideas, and songs and styles come pouring through me.

Here is how my professional calendar for the start of the year is shaping up:

I will be back at Santé Restaurant Wednesday, March 23rd with Garry Elliot. I always enjoy working with Garry and he is doing a wonderful job showcasing both new and familiar singers and musicians in the city.

Once again I have booked a night at GigSpace for a special concert with Mark Ferguson. The show is called the The Music That Makes Me Dance. It is set for Saturday. April 23rd at 7:30pm.

In my musical career I have accumulated a very large repertoire of songs. Some that I haven’t done for many years and some I have been meaning to do, but for some reason have never got around to performing.

For my next concert on April 23rd, dug out of a dusty old file folder will be a mix of memorable and melodic tunes. You can expect to hear the music of Ellington, Gershwin, Monk, Ivan Lins, Michel Legrande and much more.

I hope to see you there!

Sunday, December 6th I will be putting on my annual holiday show and fund raiser – Winter, Fire and Snow.

This year there will be a silent auction of donated items from local artists, musicians and writers to choose from. All proceeds from this auction will go to Harmony House, a shelter for women and children.

This is an opportunity to find some original gifts. Get a start on filling your list, add a new ornament to your home or tree, load up your freezer with tasty treats for the coming days or just enjoy the company of new and old friends.

I will be accompanied by Mark Ferguson on piano and special guest harpist, Carolyne Solberg.

Evelyn Voigt will share a holiday story and read passages from one of her books and a couple of my musical pals will be there to help out on a song.

Of course there will be a couple of songs for the audience to join in on too.

This will be a nice way to start the month and holidays.

Silent Auction bidding will begin before the show. You will have time after the performance to put a final bid in while enjoying some refreshments.

Cash or cheque only for the auction.

2:00p.m. to 4:00p.m.
GigSpace Performance Studio
953 Gladstone Avenue
Tickets are $20
Telephone: 613-729-0693

This year started out with several projects on my agenda. I knew it was going to be a great year for a lot of things and I am happy to say it turned out well for me.

I had already started working on songs for my CD in 2013, but it really started to roll in the early spring of this year as I set out to the studio with a wonderful group of musicians and an equally wonderful recording engineer.

I was about to celebrate my thirtieth wedding anniversary with my husband by taking a trip of a lifetime. A river cruise on the Danube. This was like the quiet before the storm, because the organizing and the last few details regarding the CD and release event were front and centre in my life.

After many years of performing I have come to believe there is no gain without a bit of pain. You’d think I had learned by now. It’s what keeps the juices flowing. This challenge of pouring your heart and soul into a musical venture not knowing for sure what the outcome will be.

More than Magic was released on October 31st at the Fourth Stage, NAC in Ottawa. Everything happened so quickly that night. One minute I was doing a sound check and the next minute I was signing CDs. I was fortunate to work with amazing musicians, Mark Ferguson on piano, John Geggie on bass, Margaret Tobolowska on cello, Rob Graves on percussion and joining us for the evening Rene Gely on guitar. We had fun and the audience was responsive and attentive.

You know when things are right when at the end of a performance the musicians are saying, “Let’s do this again”.

Now here we are in December getting ready for the holidays and preparing to greet a new year.

This year, as in the previous two years, I put on a small, seasonal concert at GigSpace. It was a lovely afternoon shared with many wonderful people. Mark Ferguson played piano, Sharron Timmins sang a couple of songs and my dear friend Evelyn Voigt read her lovely Christmas in Africa story. Marilee Townsend sat in on drums for a tune too.

Part of the proceeds, once again went to Harmony House.

After the performance we shared some cider and cookies. All in all a warm and cheerful way to start off the month of December.

There are no plans for recording a full CD in 2015, but the mind is churning already and who knows what I will venture into next.