It’s officially summer at Manitou Beach!
So said Mayor Cheryl Hanson as she welcomed a capacity crowd to Manitou Springs Terrace for the opening concert of the Manitou Beach Busking Festival.
On stage were Manitou Beach mainstay performing “brothers,” Brian Paul DG and Bruce Rawling, backed with the solid bass undertow of Hank “Butterdish.”
Hanson thanked the event sponsors and the corps of volunteers who are always ready to welcome visitors and guide them to the festival venues throughout town. She shared a brief musing about those committed individuals.
“Volunteer work is the act of offering free time and labour, especially for community service or charitable purposes without expecting financial compensation. It’s a form of giving that strengthens our community, so from the bottom of my heart, thank you to all the volunteers as well.”
Manitou Beach resident Scott Thoen was the mastermind of the Busking Festival in the dark days of pandemic restrictions when musicians were lacking venues and music lovers were sorely missing the live experience. Within the then guidelines for small gatherings, the notion of outdoor performances “shot gunned” through the resort village took hold.
“An event like the Busking Festival, in our 5th year, has this kind of support from local businesses and local people on the volunteer side,” said Thoen, at the mic to welcome attendees. Thoen reflected on his journey as a new resident in Manitou Beach over five years ago, at first reluctant to embrace a small-town life, to having been adopted into a caring community who seek to look after their residents and build on their strengths.
“We should all be proud that we live in the Watrous/Manitou Beach area,” Thoen concluded.
Jeff Siegfried, community enhancement director with the Watrous Manitou Marketing Group, is another champion of the region and its attractions like the Busking Festival. He reminded those in attendance that the generosity of business donors needs to be remembered and rewarded with patronage from community residents and visitors.
“I’ve said it before – buy from a store with a door.”
Listening to Brian Paul DG and Bruce Rawling swap songs and stories, backing each other up instrumentally and with harmonies, is pure summer magic. It’s a cross between hanging out with best friends and being awash in some of the most heartfelt, intelligent, and whimsical songwriting anywhere.
Classics from Bruce Rawling, including the upbeat “So Far, So Good” and the emotional “Hearts Living Free” were welcome summer starters. There’s new music from Brian Paul DG with upcoming songs and his newly released tune “Just Trusting.” Both artists will be performing out on the streets of Manitou Beach as part of the Festival.
Catch the best in busking on Friday and Saturday with an evening concert by slide blues virtuoso Tim Williams on Friday and high energy fun with the Oral Fuentes band on Saturday.
Summer is nothing without music, and the best of the best is at Manitou Beach this weekend with the Busking Festival.