Volunteers, committee, audience, performers, you all made it happen! The Nokomis Recreation Centre came alive with the sounds and sights of Govan’s Fiddle Festival on July 3, 4, and 5, 2009. It was a chance to see top musicians from SK, MB, ON, QC, BC and AB perform on stage. Fans signed the guest book from White Rock, BC to ON and as far south as TN, AZ, and CA.

To kick off the Friday evening concert, Don Mortenson, Committee Chairperson, introduced Ruth Anne Richter of Nokomis to lead in the singing of O Canada.  Willard Beeler, the Mayor for the Town of Nokomis, welcomed everyone to Nokomis and area and expressed his wishes for a successful Festival. Willard also volunteered as the Security Guard for the two evenings.

The spotlight then fell on Dan Mighton from Hanover, ON. This young 18 year old fiddler has risen to the top of the competition world in only 9 years of playing, has two albums to his credit, performs with different bands, teaches at fiddle camps, and truly loves to entertain with his fiddle.

Dan was accompanied on keyboard by Guylaine Gagner from Montreal, QC. She showed amazing expression and creativity in her musical arrangements with the many contestants and performers she accompanied. Also accompanying in the warm-up rooms and on stage was Lionel Gilbertson from Saskatoon. Lionel is a great friend of the fiddlers in this province. He willingly gives his time and skills to keep fiddle playing alive. Missed was Gary Larson from Prince Albert with his guitar accompaniment. His partner in Prince Albert had a bad attack of MS and he was unable to make it this year.

The Korte Family of singing sisters from Muenster brought four of the sisters to sing in harmony to family songs and traditional and contemporary gospel songs. The group performs professionally with 5 albums to their credit.

The featured group was the delightful Ballagh Bunch from Teeswater, ON. They are a family of 6, Mom Janice on keyboard, Dad Gary on guitar, and four children ranging in age from 8 to 18 years who all played the fiddle and also excel on drums, guitar, flute, mandolin and piano. Janice is a stepdance instructor at her home studio. Janice and the children delighted the audience with their award-winning stepdance routines. They were often joined by Dan on fiddle and Guylaine on the keyboard. Their award winning talent and classy stage presence made them a true crowd pleaser.

Gary Ballagh was also the masterful MC for the weekend. There was never a dull moment on stage. Gary always had a joke at his finger tips and kept the audience in stitches while waiting for the next stage act to get set up.

Saturday morning brought fourteen registrants for the Govan Fiddle Contest and the Saskatchewan Fiddle Championships to the stage. They ranged in age from 11 years to 87 years. Judges were Dan Mighton, Rodney Krip, and Paul Dacier.  The three judges entertained the crowd with tunes ranging from waltzes to jigs to reels before they started to work.

Rodney Krip of Saskatoon has either been a contestant, a performer, or a judge for the Festival’s 24 years.  Rodney has won the SK Grand title five times, represented SK and judged at the Canadian Championships, toured with a musical group called “The Cleavers” through Canada, Australia, Canary Islands, Spain, and the USA. The Festival is fortunate to have him in the yearly line-up.

Paul Dacier is an accomplished musician from Quebec. He is a top-notch musician on many instruments including the fiddle, guitar, and keyboard. At the moment he is training to be a pilot at 15 Wing Moose Jaw Air Force Base and the Committee was pleased he was able to work the Festival into his hectic schedule.

The number of contestants was down but the quality was still there. We missed the numbers of young fiddlers that have been attending in other years. The Committee is left to ponder whether the mandate to preserve and promote olde tyme fiddle music is coming up short. Discussion during the weekend centered on how to attract the young fiddlers, parents, and teachers. Saskatchewan has been the leader in starting up fiddle camps in Canada. More fiddle camps have been started in other areas of SK and other provinces now. These camps offer excellent instruction on many instruments and make wonderful camps for the entire family. Perhaps they are conflicting with the limited family funds available for traveling and attending fiddle contests and festivals. The Festival could look at adding workshops and more open jam sessions with less emphasis on contests.

The 2009 Govan Fiddle Association Inc. Scholarship was awarded to Raymond Knorr (11 years) of Regina who will be attending the Kenosee Lake Kitchen Party Camp in August.

Results from the contests have been printed in the two local papers and will be posted on the web site later. Congratulations to Cammy Romanuck of Saskatoon for winning both the Govan Championship Class and then the Saskatchewan Grand Championship Class. Rodney noted that she now has her name on the Saskatchewan trophy five times and ties him for the most wins.

A moment was taken to honor two fiddlers who left us over the past year, Gordon Radu of Regina (November 2008) and Bill Bryant of Pelly (killed in a car accident in January 2009). Gordon is now playing his fiddle with other musicians who have gone before him. He worked at keeping fiddle music alive, especially the waltz tunes by sponsoring a plaque and cash for the best waltz played in the 18 and under category at various contests in the province. Bill is missed by the dance bands he played with in his area of the province. In 2008 he took home the Govan Senior Award.

The audience was entertained on Saturday by two sets from Quick Draw. Charlotte Neyedley sings vocals and plays bass guitar. Her strong, pure voice was featured along with that of Ken Goodman and Frank Newcomb singing country classics. Ken plays fiddle, guitar and banjo. Frank is an accomplished drummer and has been an excellent sound manager for the Festival for many years.

Throughout the weekend the concession was capably operated by the Rink Food Committee. The Nokomis Chiefs Hockey Club prepared a delicious Saturday evening Pit Beef BBQ supper. The Nokomis Legion served refreshments during the supper and dance.

The Billy Young Band from Regina supplied great country dance music. He has been a road musician since the 1960’s and helps keep the tradition of old time country dances alive. How did the enthusiastic dancers like the concrete floor? Those who love to dance quickly filled the dance floor. They did find it very tiring and after two hours of dancing, they were ready to call it a night

There seemed to be an air of excitement at our new venue both evenings. This excitement spilled over into the warm-up rooms. These jam sessions with music and laughter from the musicians and friends continued into the wee hours.

On Sunday morning, Pastor Rick Shott welcomed all the churches in Nokomis. He thanked them for coming together for a joint service with the community of festival attendees. For all of those from out of town, he prayed that they would have a wonderful time and a safe journey home. He noted that Nokomis is a wonderful community with great potential. Rick was joined for the hymns by guest artists Paul Dacier on piano and Dan Mighton and Francis Bouchard on fiddle.

The finals in the competitions wrapped up with presentation of the awards and a grand fiddle finale with all the fiddlers and accompanists on stage at once. Cammy Romanuck called out the chord changes and fiddlers of all ages joined in on the tunes they were able to play.

Why do people go to a Festival? Is it for the fun atmosphere, the fiddle concerts, the competitions, the dancing, to renew acquaintances, or to get to know fellow musicians from across Canada? Survey sheets left at the door were mixed as to what they felt about the venue, program schedule, advertising, entertainment, and food. The Committee will take a look at all the comments. They invite anyone to send comments to Fiddle Festival, Box 70, Govan, SK S0G 1Z0 The 2009 Festival Committee included: Neil Banbury, Willard Beeler, Darlene Horvath, Clara King, Wes and Diane Kirk, David Mark, Don and Carolyn Mortenson, Florence Rattray, and Mary Whitehouse.

And guess what? They hope to do it all again next year! Don Mortenson closed the weekend by inviting everyone to attend the 25th annual Fiddle Festival on July 2, 3, and 4^th, 2010!