IN CONCERT
What: Daniel Lapp鈥檚 Home for Christmas
Where: Alix Goolden Performance Hall, 907 Pandora Ave.
When: Friday, Dec. 21 (7:30 p.m.) and Saturday, Dec. 22 (2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.)
Tickets: $14.85 to $29.10 at Ticketfly.com, by phone at 250-386-5311 or in person at the Victoria Conservatory of Music box office, 900 Johnson St.
When he steps on stage at the Alix Goolden Performance Hall today, for the first full-cast dress rehearsal for his Home For Christmas concerts, Daniel Lapp expects he鈥檒l have to be more creative than usual. That鈥檚 saying something.
With more than 200 participants in the concerts set for Friday and Saturday, the festival director and artistic leader might have to put his fiddlers 鈥� more than 70 鈥� in the upper balcony of the Pandora Avenue hall, alongside the audience. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know how else we鈥檙e going to do it,鈥� Lapp said with a laugh. 鈥淚 haven鈥檛 counted, but the choir is 100 people and Folkestra is 50. We鈥檒l have 50 kids and then we have musical guests. It鈥檚 going to be wild. It seems to grow every year,鈥�
Indeed it does, both in performers and audience appeal. Lapp, one of Victoria鈥檚 favourite musical sons and community leaders, has been at the helm of Home for Christmas since he founded the event 15 years ago. In the years since, it has enjoyed a string of sellouts. Lapp tweaked some details for the 15th edition, and is heading into Home For Christmas weekend with a new creative spark.
In years past, the series was held on the weekend nearest Dec. 15, to avoid the schedule crunch later in the month. But Lapp made an executive decision this year, switching the three Home For Christmas concerts to a later date so he could fully bring his vision to life.
鈥淚鈥檝e had an extra week to prepare,鈥� Lapp said. 鈥淚t feels like in the last few years, we had to let go of some of my fun ideas because we just didn鈥檛 have time.鈥�
Though he only gave himself an extra seven days, Lapp has made full use of it. He wrote a new song for the production on Tuesday, after hearing a Led Zeppelin tune on CBC Radio while driving. We Wish You a Merry Heartbreaker is the result. 鈥淏efore noon, I had charted it up and sent it off to the string and the horns in the band. When I heard that bass riff [by John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin], I thought that would be so fun.鈥�
He also added saxophonist Ryan Oliver to the roster of players, after meeting him for the first time 鈥� during a live performance, no less 鈥� just weeks ago. 鈥淚 said: 鈥楬ey, what are you doing Dec. 21 and 22? Come and play,鈥� 鈥� Lapp said with a mischievous laugh.
The showcase of artists from Greater Victoria has no end of options for music lovers. For brass fans, there鈥檚 The Shiny H鈥檕rnaments, while The Swingin鈥� Shepherds will appease jazz lovers. Strings of Lights (featuring harpist Julia Cunningham, who toured with soul legend Solomon Burke and has her instrument signed by the Rolling Stones) adds a classical flair, while Lapp鈥檚 students in the Joy of Life Choir, Folkestra and B.C. Fiddle Orchestra 鈥� now in its 25th聽year 鈥� will bring Celtic-inspired sounds.
There is always a strong 91原创 undercurrent to the show. Cara Luft of The Small Glories (formerly of award-winners The Wailin鈥� Jennys) has worked up several carols on clawhammer banjo, including what Lapp calls an 鈥渁mazing鈥� version of the Bryan Adams favourite Christmas Time. Lapp鈥檚 12-year-old daughter, S贸ley, will also perform, tackling Doris Day鈥檚 version of Winter Wonderland with her older sister, Mary.
Lapp is dedicating the Home for Christmas concerts to his father, Clarence, a former logger who died in Prince George at the age of 88 on Nov. 14, leaving six children, 14 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. Lapp plans to play his father鈥檚 favourite harmonica at the concerts, along with the older man鈥檚 most cherished instrument 鈥� a banjo 鈥� for the first time. Lapp鈥檚 mother, Charlotte, was a widely regarded music teacher in the Prince George area, and served as a major influence on her son. Lapp said his dad never chose to take the spotlight, but he could play, nonetheless.
鈥淗e always had a harmonica in a cupboard above the fridge, which is also where he kept his chewing tobacco. Most of the time, he would go in the cabinet and I鈥檇 see him pull down a new pack of snuff, but once in a while, instead of snuff, he鈥檇 pull out the harmonica and play a tune. My mom was the musician with a capital-M, but my dad was a musician, too 鈥� just with a small-M.鈥�
In his dad鈥檚 honour, Lapp plans to play For Our Fathers, a song he wrote 20 years ago, after reading the work of celebrated Cape Breton author Alistair MacLeod. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a tribute to a generation of characters we鈥檝e lost. We don鈥檛 celebrate a 鈥榗haracter鈥� anymore, because everyone feels like they need to conform. My dad鈥檚 generation, it was encouraged to be yourself. To be authentic.鈥�
