Island artists receive high praise at English Folk Expo
Cody MacKay | CBC News | Posted: November 5, 2017 9:44 PM | Last Updated: November 5, 2017
'It was really quite an incredible afternoon,' says Rob Oakie
A group of Island folk artists recently showed off their chops on the international stage, performing at the English Folk Expo in Manchester.
P.E.I.'s The East Pointers, Irish Mythen and Vishtèn caused a stir at the expo in late October, receiving high praise from delegates and people in attendance, says Music P.E.I.'s Rob Oakie.
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The expo is typically for English artists to showcase their music to festival programmers from the U.K. and across Europe, but every year they have a spotlight region and this year it was Prince Edward Island.
I had a lot of delegates coming up to me saying we had the best three artists there. —Rob Oakie
"Our artists were really competing for work with a lot of really great English artists," Oakie told Mainstreet P.E.I.
The artists played in Manchester Town Hall — a gargantuan, gothic, Cathedral-looking structure at the heart of the city.
'We had the best three artists there,' delegates told Oakie
Each artist had a 20-minute showcase and it was "nothing short of phenomenal," Oakie said, with Irish Mythen even receiving a standing ovation.
"At these events, an artist rarely gets a standing ovation, because these are industry folks and they're hardened and jaded," he said.
Oakie said there were people coming up to the Island artists offering them spots right away, asking to book them two to three years in advance.
"It was really quite an incredible afternoon and for the rest of the conference I had a lot of delegates coming up to me saying we had the best three artists there," he added.
"And I have to agree with them."
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