Some tickets left for Valdy concert

Music-lovers can enjoy songs and stories, while at the same time support the Muskie Sports Association, when Canadian folk icon Valdy performs a fundraiser concert tomorrow night (April 19) at the Townshend Theatre here.
Tickets cost $15 in advance (available at Betty’s, The UPS Store, Cloverleaf in Emo, the Devlin post office, and Rainy River Drugs) and $18 at the door.

Dave Legg of the Muskie Sports Association said he’s looking forward to the show—and urged the public to come out.
“Valdy’s been around a long time. He had some hits songs in the late ’70s and early ’80s, and he’s got a lot of character when he’s on stage,” he remarked.
“He doesn’t just sing. He tells a lot of stories about his songs, about his travels, where he’s been, how songs came about,” Legg added. “He knows lots of people in the industry and has performed with lots of people.
“He’s just a great entertainer all around.”
Legg explained the concert came about through “tour de Fort” connections, as he’s a former director while current programming director Kim Cornell also is involved with the Muskie Sports Association.
Cornell noted Valdy has performed in Fort Frances several times, has a fan base here, and “plays a heck of a good show.”
“He has broad audience appeal. Everybody who goes to that show walks out feeling good,” he remarked. “That’s the kind of performer he is.”
For those who may not be familiar with Valdy, but have been a “tour de Fort” passport-holder, Cornell compared Valdy and his friendly on-stage demeanour and story-telling to Connie Kaldor, who performed here in March as part of the 2007/08 season.
Valdy, born Valdemar Horsdal in Ottawa, has been part of the fabric of Canadian pop and folk music for almost 35 years.
“A man with a thousand friends, from Newfoundland to Vancouver Island to Texas to New Zealand, he’s a singer, guitarist, and songwriter who catches the small but telling moments that make up life,” according to his press kit.
Valdy has sold almost half-a-million copies of his 13 albums, and also has two Juno Awards (Folk Singer of the Year and Folk Entertainer of the Year), a total of seven Juno nominations, and four gold albums to his credit.
He continues to hold songwriting workshops, write movie soundtracks, TV and film scores, and produce CDs.
He’s also made numerous television appearances on programs ranging from “The Beachcombers” and “Open Mike with Mike Bullard” to “Canada A.M.” and “Front Page Challenge.”
Valdy still tours in Canada, the U.S., Austria, Denmark, Germany, Holland, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland. He is an oft-invited performer at the annual Kerrville Folk Festival in Texas.
As mentioned above, proceeds from tomorrow night’s concert will go towards the Muskie Sports Association, which, in turn, supports the basketball, volleyball, curling, golf, swimming, track and field, badminton, cheerleading, and soccer programs at Fort High.
Legg explained the MSA has two different mandates.
“One, is that the Fort Frances High School Athletic Association only funds so much travel for the teams,” he noted. “If the teams want to go beyond that, the teams are required to pay for that themselves.
“So, if the MSA has some of this fundraising money, they can help the teams travel to more tournaments and more schools and more competitions.
“The other aspect of it is if there’s individuals who want to play on some of these sports teams but can’t afford it, they can also approach us and there’s different avenues we can get money for them, be it for personal equipment or registration fees, and that sort of stuff,” Legg added.
Find out more about the MSA at www.muskiesports.ca