20 Years of Folk Music Magic!

🎶 What makes a winter folk festival last 20 years?
Join us as we talk to Rob Pape, Executive & Artistic Director of the Tongue on the Post Folk Music Festival in Medicine Hat, Alberta. This festival has become a hallmark of winter entertainment, bringing together musicians and music lovers alike — even during tough times like the pandemic.
From its founding vision to adapting to challenges like COVID-19 with live-streamed performances from the historic Medalta kilns, this festival is a story of community, resilience, and the power of music.

To get show times and learn more visit their website at https://www.mhfolkmusic.com
You can get tickets at
https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/20th-anniversary-tongue-on-the-post-folk-music-festival-2026-tickets-1980013313120

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Transcript

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Hey, this is Brian again. And I'd like to ask you to do a favor. We can't do this work without people like you. So if you can, please. Like, share, subscribe, tell your friends about. Bring back the porch. It's hard to beat, you know. Pricing is always a tricky one. We know the economy. But, you know, when you. When you've got the the artists that you have and the food that they, you know, hometowns bring in things we can't go wrong. This episode of Bring Back the Porch, brought to you by Bernie Leahy, River Street Realty. Let's get you home. If it's January, it must be time for turning on the post music festival. Folk music festival. And joining me now is Rob Pape, the executive director and the artistic director of medicine h at Folk Music festival. Yes, sir. That's a big mouthful. It's great. You should see it on a business card. Oh, yeah. Well, let us say welcome, Rob. Glad you could pull up a chair here on the post on the porch for the post. I appreciate it. Now 20 years. That's quite a milestone. It is. So we've been, we've been waiting and wondering and wanting for this for a few years now, watching it come. And all of a sudden it's here. Now, you've survived a lot of things over 20 years, not the least of which was the pandemic. Yeah. We, we're actually quite proud of what we managed to pull off in the pandemic. We were one of the few festivals that managed to continue on. We switched, pretty quickly to a live stream, scenario. And we recorded out of the kilns at Mendota, which was absolutely magical. Was not an easy thing to do. There was definitely a few politicians in this province that wondered how they got personal phone calls on their cell phones, and, but we managed to get, get the approval we needed to to continue on and make our way through that and keep the music going. 20 years ago, when the idea was first born, how did it come to fruition? So I wasn't part of the original, the founding members. You know, we had, Donald Swasey, Donna Robinson, Betty Aiken, Les Pearson. You know, we're kind of the founders of the festival. You know, we've since lost less. Yeah. Couple of years ago. But, you know, and then there were some other early, early starters like David Gou and, individuals like that. And so they had been, you know, they were avid folk music festival fans. And, as a general rule, most folk folk music festivals are all in the summertime. And so it's pretty hard to find a find a weekend to carve out to to to fiddle niche in and and they realized pretty quickly that, you know, wintertime was a great opportunity to, you know, it's a bit of an open calendar as well as the fact that, it's very much a time where musicians need to get, you know, find an income. It's not a big pay time for them. And so it, you know, it began in the early days and they were they did some shows up at, Crescent Heights. And we were at the college for a number of the festivals. And then I think about or I think our ninth year, I think we moved over to, to Medalta And, you know, we've been there ever since. It's it's home, you know, know the name. It's not hard to remember. Right. Tongue on the post. I think my son putting his tongue on, on a steel railing when he was young and it just, it just sticks in the head. Absolutely. You know, everybody's kind of got that story, you know, and it's also a little, you know, tongue in cheek and, and making it happen. And, you know, it's definitely, a brand that, it's been well, well received over the years. Now, 20 years. Is anything special this year that you got? Oh, we've got all kinds of special things this year. It's, we're we're so looking forward to it. This year is going to be the first year that we've, we're going to have a pancake breakfast on Saturday morning down at Medalta So from 8 to 10, you know, by donation, you know, we've got, we're going to have a pancake breakfast out, outside. It went out to their songs. The weather's, working with us. It's. It's kind of a funny scenario. Was having a festival in January in Medicine Hat. You know, we've done we've done shows in September. And you know, it's been minus five up the teepee. But, you know, more often than not, generally we can we can generally find about plus ten, sometimes up to plus 15 for a winter folk music festival in January here. Yeah. Yeah. Because pancake breakfast, they don't happen in the wintertime. I mean, there was always a stampede. Yes. Well, you know, we've, you know, the board and everybody wracking their brain trying to figure out what we can do new because we feel that we've got a pretty good hold on on what we do. You know, throughout the week in the sense of, you know, we do, a number of free shows throughout the, the coffee shops here in town Cafe concert series. And so, you know, we've got station and Cafe Verve and Zucchini Blossom and Note and Empty Nest, you know, all taking part and, and, you know, free concerts that are able to people are able to come in and check out local artists. And then in the evenings we've got, you know, various things happening over at Madalta. Yeah. It's, it was hard to try and find a spot to do something new. Yeah, well, you picked the winner when you got to move to Medalta with those kilns. You know, like, I always like to say, like that place I saw, you know, the walls have soul. It's, I remember early on when I started volunteering with the festival and, it, being at the college and, you know, the white walls and everything else, it just felt very institutional, you know, nothing to take away from the college. You know, they've got a beautiful theater there. You know, the rooms really worked for us. But once we moved into the Delta, we knew it was home. It just it, you know, it's it's one and the same. The acoustics are incredible. Well, it's it's it's kind of a funny room, you know, when you're, when you're, when you're doing sound and acoustics in a, in a brick room, you know, our sound, guys that, at Al’s Audio have definitely had their work cut out for them over the years, but they always do a phenomenal job of taking care of things. And. Yeah, we love it. Yeah. It's great. Let's kind of go through the calendar here and just talk about, Monday you kicked things off with the supper and song event. Yeah. So, you know, in the past we've we've gone around town to different, you know, restaurants and whatnot. You know, last year we were up at Blower's in Grafton, with the traveling Mables. And so this year, you know, we wanted to bring as much back to the Delta as we could. And so, you know, we're in the big room, the reception gallery. And, we've got hometown color, culinary, facilitating the catering, which, I mean, if you've ever eaten there, it's just it's phenomenal. You know, Adam and Jen just do a phenomenal job. And, so we've got John Wort Hannam coming to play that night, and, John's a, you know, a club and a festival favorite. You know, coming up from Lethbridge, phenomenal career. You know, he's actually, at the moment he's the provincial arts ambassador for Alberta. And so he's, I mean, yeah. So he's coming down, along with a couple of friends of his, Morenz and Fremlin and, so they're gonna put on a phenomenal night of music, and then, John's going to stick around for a couple days, and he's doing a a free, singer songwriter workshop at my Delta, Tuesday and Wednesday from, five till nine. You said the magic word free, right? Right. Everybody loves free. And when you can pick somebody's brain like John. Yeah, you. That's a that's a no brainer. Yeah. I think he's, he's getting pretty close to being at capacity. I know as of yesterday, he had six slots left. I think he was taking 24, but, I mean, he I'm pretty sure you can bump it up a little bit if he needs it. And I think what is I'm just reading here, $65 get you in and also get you the meal and the entertainment. Absolutely. Pretty good night of fun for the 26th. And you're just getting started. Yep, yep. It's, it's hard to beat. You know, pricing is always a tricky one, right? We know the economy. But you know, like when you when you've got the the artists that you have and the food that they, you know, hometowns bring in and we can't go wrong. Tuesday the 27th, the first of what, three nights, the VIP killing series where you're actually going to get into the kills, but there's not a lot of elbow room there. Well, the kilns are magical space and years ago, you know, we only used the kilns on our on our Saturday side stage. And the problem with that is, is we only got a booth, you know, four, maybe five sets out of the kiln before we had to close things down to prepare for our evening gathering. So a number of years ago, we tried to figure out how we can utilize that more. And out of that came the VIP kiln series. And so we to a very intimate setting, you know, maximum capacity of 70 people. And, it's a show like no other. You know, the musicians absolutely are knocking at the door wanting to play that room. And, anybody that, you know, comes in to experience a show just walks away just amazed. And you have Jim Bryson. Yeah. Yeah. Jim's going to be a phenomenal show. He's, you know, he's been around phenomenal Canadian singer songwriter. You know, even a shy guy with the Tragically Hip for a while. Yeah. So not a bad thing to have on your resume. Looks pretty darn good, right? Yeah, yeah. And now that is, $30 for the show. Yeah, but like you say, you're limited. Yeah. So I don't know if they're, they still available. Yeah, we still got a few seats left. Okay. Wednesday the 28th. You've got some local legends. You call them the prairie chicks? Yeah, well, they call themselves that. I just do as I told. Ali, Celine and, Connie Jean are just a phenomenal pair. And it just seems so fitting to to bring them back for, for the 20th. And, they'd kind of been in a little bit of a hiatus, you know, everybody's got things going on in their lives, and, you know, Connie lost her partner here, a year ago, two years ago. So, you know, it's, you know, life. Life takes its turns, but, you know, they're they're back pushing and they're they're just as amazing as they ever were. And so we can't wait to to have them in there. Okay. And then we'll go to Thursday where you got JJ Shiflett. And you know, I don't even sometimes I shouldn't wonder how we managed to bring JJ in for the kill and show. You know, the last time JJ was in town, he sold out the Esplanade. And so, yeah, she will have seats in this one. Yeah. So JD is a phenomenal, phenomenal artist. And you know, that is a show that, to is going to be an extremely special one. And that's the third of the three. That's the third of the three okay. And there's a bar available. Absolutely. My dog, my daughter loves running a bar at and all the events, you know, and that's all handled and and facilitated by Medalta And so, we're happy to, to partner with them and work with them. They're such a phenomenal place. All right, Friday night, then we have, a local singer songwriter night starting at 7 p.m.. Yeah. So that's always a big hit. You know, I think it's 400, seat capacity. And the reception gallery there at, Medalta as a general rule, it's it's a packed house. You know, it's a free evening. You know, we do ask for donations if you if you can afford it, you know, and, and all that money goes back into, you know, artists and whatnot in our community. But, you know, by no means any obligation. We just want to have everybody come out and enjoy a night without that barrier. And it's it's an evening for us to to highlight, the local singer songwriters as they're up and coming in and making their accomplishments, in the community. Did you want to talk about some of the ones that will be, on that night? Sure, sure. You've got, Jason Crooks, Brandon Thomas, Natalie Roberts, Brad. Hoss. Derek. Gabby. Gabby. Yeah. Okay. Joy Bauer. Yep. Jack. Duminy. Yep. Kim. Kramer. Yep. Nettie. Mack. Michael. Shane. And roots and Boots. Roots and boots is another one with, Connie. Gene. Another one. I've heard of the projects, with, Tim Herman. And so, you know, Tim kind of had his, his fame for the for the, the country band Wichita and, you know, phenomenal, both phenomenal artists. And so they've been doing some great things together, playing off each other's harmonies and, and working it out. And that's on Friday the 30th, starting at seven in the evening. You betcha. And, you know, we'll have a 5050 going that night and everybody just has a good time, you know, Friday nights, a very relaxed, enjoyable evening. And, you know, this year, just, the ability to showcase some, some phenomenal local talent is there, you know, growing and making their way. And then we get to the Saturday pancake breakfast, which is eight until ten. Yes, sir. Again, by no nation down at the Medalta And then on the 31st on the evening of the Saturday, you've got some side stages at 11 in the morning. Yep, yep. So we've got, the before stages running throughout Medalta It's pretty amazing to think that we can actually put four different stages and four different rooms in that building, and, and it not really interfere with each other. Yeah. As well as, Amanda Crawford, our, vendor coordinator, has put together a phenomenal assortment of, you know, local vendors and artisans, you know, showcasing and selling their wares. So it's, Yeah, we've got some amazing artists lined up that day, you know, you know, Derek Haynes is another local favorite that everybody just loves to come see. Wheels. He's a former hatter. Jay Bulcott and his partner. We've got Michael Bernard Fitzgerald. It's just unbelievable. It's going to be quite the show with him. We've got Jeannie Allen. We've got Carter Felker, Amy Nelson. I'm sure I'm forgetting some other people cast a thousands, right? It's, you know, it's a busy day, and, it's an interesting one where it's one of those scenarios. We try and schedule things out so people can kind of cross, you know, catch both shows. But, you know, when you're when you're loving music, it's hard to pick, you know, one of four. And so, yeah, it's, we just fill the day with music and then we get to the big event Saturday night. A man that I saw play in Medicine Hat oh, I think it was 1985. And he's still going, yeah, Valdy Yeah. Valdy is, I think he's 80 now. You know, we can't wait to have all to here And truth be told, Valdy can't wait to be here. I was speaking to Valdy in October, up at upper to showcase, with the Arts touring alliance of Alberta And he was in, you know, presenting. And once I introduced myself, as you know, from, you know, being from Medicine Hat. And as soon as he heard Medicine Hat, his eyes opened wide and he says, you know, I really want to play that tongue on the post festival. And I said, well, sir, today's your lucky day. And, you know, he's just chomping at the bit, know we're we're so excited to have him back. I mean, Valdy is a legend And and to have Valdy come for our 20th. You know, it just seems so fitting. Okay, now you have somebody that'll be opening for Baldy as well. Tera Spencer is an absolute gem. You know, just a storyteller like no other. You know, Pictou County, Nova Scotia girl. She's, the 20, 25, Music Nova Scotia Artist of the year, and, oddly enough, former funeral director, real. Well, that's until 880 degrees, right. And and to to see her, to listen to her, to meet her. You would never know. And it's she's just the sweetest girl was, you know, the most amazing vocals and stories. And we can't wait to have them both in the same room. It's it's going to be a night. You have a full week. Now, where do I buy my tickets? Well, we've got tickets on Eventbrite. You know, on your tongue on the post. You know, there's lots of, marketing going through, social media on Facebook and then, on our website, top.festival.ca and MHmusicfestival.com Sounds like you're going to have a busy week and Maybe we'll have you back again in the summertime. You do something with, porch. Yeah. That's, that's a personal project of mine. It's the porch. Yeah. We, you know, the folk music club has always been a supporter, but we, you know, my wife and I started that, that event, would be going on five years now, I think, you know, just wanting to have an opportunity to, to share our community, share the musicians, and showcase the southeast Hill. And so, yeah, we've, Porch Fest has become a big thing. Well, the hills are alive. Yes, sir. The sound of music. Rob. Pape thank you for your visit. Thank you.