Shopping at Broadmead is getting a bit more musical, with Saturday afternoon concerts taking over the plaza this month.
Summer Music at Broadmead kicks off Aug. 6, offering concerts every Saturday in August from 1 to 3 p.m. The shows are put on in partnership by the Broadmead Area Residents’ Association and Broadmead Village.
“The lady who was doing it retired from the board and I was given the responsibility because I was a professional musician all my life,” said Sophie Siebert, one of BARA’s directors, with a laugh.
The lineup includes jazz group Dave Lang & The Insolent Rabble (Aug. 6), Celtic quartet Cookeilidh (Aug. 13), the genre-spanning Arbutus Wind Quartet (Aug. 20) and light popular classical three-piece the Candlelight Trio (Aug. 27).
“I decided to try to get a variety of kinds of music instead of the standard pop-rock,” said Siebert, noting the artists cover everything from swing and blues to folk and multicultural music. “I tried to stress diversity among the groups.”
Siebert said the plaza has proven to be a great venue during community festivals and events at Broadmead, making it an appropriate use for a four-concert series.
“Since the mall has been redone, it really has a more community feel,” she said. “There’s a gazebo and seating and open space and restaurants all around the plaza. It seemed like a really good thing that might turn into more of a community event.
“On either side of the gazebo is Romeo’s with some outdoor seating and the Artisan Bistro, which has some outside seating and a door that opens up the inside.”
Siebert said she hopes the concerts will attract more people to Broadmead Village, and with any luck, will lead to more musical performances at the plaza in the future, especially classical ones.
“Because I’d been a classical musician, I wanted to make sure there was one classical performance because no one does it anymore,” she added with a laugh.
For more information, visit broadmead.ca or broadmeadvillage.ca.