Lineup highlights Inuit musicians, collaborations

By the time you read this, the lively purple-and-yellow stripes of the Alianait music and arts festival's big-top tent should already be flapping in the breeze in front of Nakasuk school.

Iqaluit is abuzz with excitement about the fifth year of this 11-day musical extravaganza that now bills itself "the hottest, coolest festival on top of the world."

Alianait number five kicks off this Sunday, June 21, with a free National Aboriginal Day concert that will feature a dozen throat singers, the Inuksuk drum dancers, local group Nuvu (featuring singers Leena Evic and Ellen Hamilton), and traditional Inuit athlete Johnny Issaluk.

And on it goes, all the way to Canada Day, July 1, with a different theme each day – including: opening ceremonies; storytelling; a St. Jean Baptiste day concert; music fusion; hip hop and rock night; circus day; a film festival; a family night; closing concert; and Canada Day itself.

The festival's 80-plus performers will come from as close as two streets over, and as far away as Scotland and Africa.

Performers are even flying in from Greenland, says Heather Daley, an Alianait founder and the force of nature behind its phenomenal success and growth.

You can get tickets and schedules at Arctic Ventures.

The line-up this year, says Daley, reflects an intentional decision both to strongly highlight northern musicians – from Iqaluit itself, from around Nunavut, from Nunavik and from Greenland – and to encourage collaboration between them and performers coming in from other parts of Canada and the world.

One group, Maanilu Asianilu, represents a surprising kind of collaboration by definition.

It started when a group of young Inuit musicians from Kangiqsujuaq, Nunavik, went to the Gaspé World Music Festival to perform their traditional music.

They were entranced by Brazilian percussion band, Kilombo, and ended up bringing bandleader, Rémi Giguère, north to teach them.

The result is a uniquely Inuit, Brazilian-style, samba percussion band that is the talk of Nunavik.

Next stop, Iqaluit and Alianait, where they will perform June 22 at the opening ceremonies, and will also offer percussion workshops. All workshops are free.

That means the festival also seems to be turning into a place not only for artists to show off their chops, but also to actually create new things.

Artcirq, for example, Igloolik's own, home-grown circus troupe led by Guillaume Salladin, will come together with Productions Kalabanté, which is already a collaboration of Guinean (Africa) and francophone musicians and acrobats, to produce something completely new right at the festival.

Look for the results of that collaboration on June 27.

The St. Jean Baptiste concert, on June 24, will offer another cross-cultural surprise, when Italian-born Quebecois singer Marco Calliari brings a mix of Montreal jazz and Italian folk traditions to the stage.

There's so much more, including the Trinidad-by-way-of-Toronto calypso-reggae band Kobo Town, Alberta folk stalwarts Bill Bourne and Wyckham Porteous in a new configuration known as Bop Ensemble, Toronto blue-eyed-soul singer Treassa Levasseur, and the rock-reggae-pop influenced world music of Liima Inui, from Nuuk, Greenland.

And there are more Nunavut performers, of course, including Iqaluit's own accordionist extraordinaire, Kaina Nowdlak and the traditional Inuit Repulse Bay band, Naujamiut.

For the complete list, go to www.alianait.ca.

The redesigned website has all the lowdown, including biographies of the performers, and a chance to sample some of their music.

National Aboriginal Day and Canada Day concerts are free. Others range in price from $5 to $35 (St. Jean Baptiste) for adults, less for youth, with a full festival pass available for $80.

Seniors are free, as are children under seven, with adult accompaniment.

If you haven't registered as a volunteer, show up at the tent well beforehand and offer. It might get you into an event free.

And don't forget the free art and photo exhibits taking place around town in conjunction with Alianait's music.

Foremost among them is the 10th annual Nunavut Arts Festival, running July 1 and 2 at the Anglican parish hall.

The museum will offer two special exhibits. One, from June 21 to July 1, will feature works by Kenojuak Ashevak, perhaps the best-known Inuit artist of the last half-century.

The other, from June 23 to July 1, is the inaugural exhibition of etchings from Kajjiq, the artist society of Grise Fiord.

Lastly, the British Council will present a photo exhibit from a youth polar trip, available for viewing in the Legislative Assembly from June 21 to July 1.

"Come and celebrate with us," Daley says.