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Okanagan’s own Andrew Allen joins Songwriter’s Circle

Folk-Roots Society presents online show in lieu of live shows cancelled by COVID-19
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Andrew Allen

Paul Tessier

Special to The Morning Star

Lots of folks are very much missing live music. Now you have the chance to see some great music - live - online, in the safety and comfrot of your home.

Due to COVID 19, musicians are getting wonderfully creative in finding ways to share their music which has resulted in captivating shows online in a very intimate, up-close setting.

The Vernon Folk-Roots Music Society presents A Songwriter’s Circle featuring Vernon’s very own Andrew Allen, Mark Fossen and Olivia Penalva- Sunday, June 28 on Zoom at 7 p.m. Tickets are $7 with proceeds going to the artists.

Allen feels it’s a wonderful way to connect with an audience.

“Once the pandemic hit, I started doing a whole bunch of online concerts. Then Mark Fosson approached me about doing a songwriter’s circle online for the Folk-Roots Music Society. I jumped at the idea of doing it on Zoom and also invited Olivia Penalva to join us,” Allen said. “We thought the songwriting aspect of our careers would be appealing to folks. We’re really excited about being able to lift the curtain about where the songs came to be and what they’re all about. And because we’re doing the show on Zoom, it’ll be way more interactive and provide folks in the audience an opportunity to provide feedback and even ask questions about the songs.”

In the songwriter’s circle, all three artists take turns doing a song. There will be comments and banter after each song as each artist gets to tell a story in song. Allen loves doing songwriter’s circles. “It’s such a cool experience because it’s not just a concert where an artist just stands up on stage and performs song after song. Instead, there’s much more dialogue and conversation around the songwriting process and the background of the song.”

Allen feels the Zoom platform online has definite advantages. “After doing a few online shows, I switched over to the Zoom platform for more intimate groups of people and the experience was very powerful for me. Because of it being so much more interactive, it felt like it was almost real. I’m very much looking forward to sharing that experience on June 28.”

Get your tickets at: https://sidedooraccess.com/shows/UGt11jc1frVY40n5NaBV.

Paul Tessier is with the Vernon Folk-Roots Music Society.

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jennifer@vernonmorningstar.com

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Olivia Penalva
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Mark Fossen


Jennifer Smith

About the Author: Jennifer Smith

Vernon has always been my home, and I've been working at The Morning Star since 2004.
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