In just a few days, Prince George’s annual volunteer-run winter music festival will take over the city.
Every year, musicians from around the world come to the province's northern capital for more than a week of entertainment.
“It's nine days and nights,” says Aidyl Jago, Coldsnap Society board member and treasurer.
“We have our big dance shows at the Ramada, and then we have our softer more intimate shows at the playhouse and we have our two regional showcases that showcase bands from all across northern B.C. from Telkwa to Quesnel.”
As well as the concert series, the festival includes free daytime shows called Ice Jams and workshops with an educational component.
The 2020 festival runs from Friday, Jan. 24 until Saturday, Feb. 1 and features over 20 musicians.
“What’s unique about Coldsnap is that we bring in non-mainstream artists from across the country and some from overseas," says Jago.
"We’ve actually got a band coming from the UK called Trials of Cato and we have a band coming up from Oregon, called the Foghorn Stringband. It’s multiple genres — we’ve got a hip hop night, we’ve got songwriters, we’ve got Celtic music, we’ve to Quebecois traditional music, and for our regional nights we’ve got a couple of rock bands playing.”
She says the festival features something for everyone and provides the opportunity for the public to experience artists from around the world who wouldn’t otherwise come to Prince George.
“This is our 13th year doing Coldsnap, we’ve always presented high-calibre performances and we’ve established ourselves well enough that you can trust that even if you haven’t heard of the artist, you are going to see a really amazing show with great performers and amazing audio production.”
She says people should come out and enjoy the free daytime shows if they’re worried about not recognizing the artists.
“If you haven’t heard of the band just come out and see them play because those are open to the public and if you are so inclined then by your ticket,” says Jago. “We are going to put on a great festival for everyone.”
Personally, Jago says she is most looking forward to the Sensational Songwriters concert featuring Juno award-winning David Francey, Indigenous group Twin Flames, and Vanderhoof’s own Sam Holden.
A full schedule of events, artist bios, and videos can also be found on Coldsnap’s website or take a glance at the line-up below:
Coldsnap at a Glance. (via Coldsnap)
