They sang along, harmonized, tapped their feet, clapped and learned a lot. An enthusiastic audience welcomed Rob Lutes as he gave the first of his six-part interactive series The Stories Behind the Songs at the Arbor Gallery on Tuesday, October 3.
“We didn’t quite know what to expect from a workshop that combines a performance, storytelling, history lessons and a chance to participate,” says Sylvie Bouchard, Chair of the Arbor Gallery. “We had fun and learned a lot about the early days of music in America.”
The Stories Behind the Songs, generously sponsored by Groupe Harden, reviews the history of popular music, from its earliest iterations in the 18th century, through the flowering of genres like blues, ragtime, jazz, country, and Rock and Roll, among other musical movements.
The goals of this series are to entertain, inspire and bring joy to participants through the sharing of musical memories and learning some of the fascinating stories behind the songs we know and love. The first session delivered all that, covering early patriotic music and the origins of slave spirituals, such as Oh Happy Days and When the Saints Go Marching In.
An engaging performer
The instructor/performer for the series is Montreal-based Rob Lutes, an acclaimed songwriter and performer, a multiple Maple Blues Award and Canadian Folk Music Award nominee and recipient of the 2019 Canadian Folk Music Award for Contemporary Singer of the Year.
The Stories Behind the Songs continues at 7 p.m. Tuesday, October 10 and runs five more weeks to November 14, except for Halloween. Cost is $50 for adults, $40 for seniors. Drop-ins can attend a session for $10. You can reserve at [email protected], call (613) 518-2787 or visit the gallery at 36 Home Avenue, Vankleek Hill.
The Arbor Gallery is open Wednesday to Sunday, noon to 4 p.m. Admission to exhibits is always free. It is located at 36 Home Avenue, in the heart of Vankleek Hill.
