Spirit of Manitoba Winter Concert Series & Open Mic Night

The Spirit of Manitoba Winter Concert Series & Open Mic Night will bring the joyful experience of a live show into the living rooms of Manitobans while stay-at-home measures are in place this winter season.

On six Saturday evenings throughout the months of January, February, and March, folks of all walks of life can enjoy a 60-minute concert by a local Manitoban musical artist followed by a two-hour, interactive open mic.

Each event of the series (January 16 & 30, February 13 & 27, March 13 & 27) takes place from 7-10 pm CST, with the virtual concert running from 7-8 pm and the virtual open mic from 8-10 pm.

This virtual concert series and open mic night is presented by Whoop & Hollar Folk Festival and made possible thanks to the support of the Safe at Home Manitoba Program.

CONCERT SERIES PERFORMER LINEUP:

Jan 16 - Scott Nolan

Jan 30 - The Young Pixels

Feb 13 - Two Crows for Comfort

Feb 27 - Lucien Spence

Mar 13 - Raine Hamilton

Mar 27 - Twintwa + Forest Her Dress

HOW TO PARTICIPATE:

All concerts and open mic performances are FREE to enjoy and will be live-streamed to audiences watching from YouTube and Facebook Live (Whoop & Hollar Folk Festival social media channels).

If you simply want to watch the concert and/or open mic performances, no event registration is required. Simply follow the social media links above. If you want to perform during the open mic, sign-up details are provided below.

WHOOP & HOLLAR SAFE SPACE POLICY:

Whoop & Hollar Folk Festival and all its events welcome everyone to share our free spirit of creativity, diversity, and inclusion; to join together to help ensure a safe space free of bullying and discrimination.

Anyone feeling uncomfortable or unsafe at any time, during any Whoop & Hollar event, can immediately notify the Festival to resolve the situation as soon as possible.

This applies to the Spirit of Manitoba Winter Concert Series & Open Mic Night. All performances and livestream chats are closely monitored to ensure the Safe Space Policy is upheld at all times, by hosts, performers, festival personnel, and audience members.

OPEN MIC PERFORMANCE CRITERIA:

The main concert slots for the Spirit of Manitoba Winter Concert Series are already booked up, but if you'd like to participate in one of the Open Mic Nights that follow each concert, virtual slots fill up on a first come-first served basis ahead of each concert/open mic (see dates above). Registration details follow.

Open mic entries will include a short, live-streamed set showcasing the artist's original, creative work (or cover material with credit), including but not limited to:

• music or song (i.e. solo/duo performance)
• comedy
• poetry, literature reading, or other spoken word material
• drama/theatre (i.e. monologue)
• visual art or craft presentation
• dance
• short film (with option to screen share)

Only 8-12 open mic performance slots will be available each night, so early registration is key!

Performers are allowed a maximum of 3 pieces of material OR a maximum of 15 minutes in their set, whichever is less.

Live-streamed sets should feature no more than two people at a time for optimal sound quality.

All performers sharing a space should be from the same household. Public health orders must be respected at all times during the event.

It is encouraged that those signing up to perform are currently based in Manitoba, originally from Manitoba, or Manitobans living abroad.

All ages and skill levels welcome. This is YOUR chance, whether you're an emerging or established artist, to showcase new or refined material in front of a real audience in a safe, supportive environment!

OPEN MIC REGISTRATION:

Online open mic registration opens on the Saturday before the next scheduled event at 12:00 am CST (one week ahead of the show). That way, folks interested in sharing their music, comedy, poetry, etc., will get a little more time to register and prepare for their performance.

Simply click the "Open Mic Sign-Up" button to register, when it becomes available. Remember, registration happens on a first-come, first-served basis. Save the date so you don't miss out!

Registrants will provide some brief info on their performance set (name of act, type of art medium/genre, etc.) by filling out an online form during the sign-up process.

All successful registrants who are selected to perform will be emailed a StreamYard invitation/soundcheck link for a virtual "backstage" check-in at an assigned time on the Thursday OR Saturday before their performance. No software download is needed to use the StreamYard program, only the internet.

During check-in, the performing artists will be given the opportunity to complete a quick "soundcheck" to test their microphone, camera, and internet connection and mitigate/prevent any technical difficulties during the live performance.

Using a separate emailed PERFORMANCE link (different from SOUNDCHECK link), each open mic performer will then be invited onto the show by the event emcee and/or host artist at their assigned performance time (between 8 pm and 10 pm CST on the Saturday).

LIVE STREAMING TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS:

All open mic performers should have the following:

• Confidence for live streaming and familiarity with streaming platforms/equipment
• High-quality/HD camera and microphone (webcams will work but are not recommended for optimal broadcasting); a USB microphone and a good camera seem to work great for most musicians
• Decent lighting and acoustics in their performance space (feel free to practice and experiment with this ahead of time)
• Good or optimal bandwidth for live streaming (i.e. high-speed internet connection greater than 25 mbps; minimum of 10 mbps required)
• A desktop or laptop computer (mobile devices are not recommended)
• The ability to plug their device directly into an ethernet cable/router (please do not use WiFi if possible)
• If possible, no other programs/software running on their device and no other devices connected to their network, which may deplete the device functionality or internet connection, respectively
• If a musician, audio mixer/interface or other professional audio equipment for live streaming
• Latest version of Chrome or Firefox (Windows) or Safari (Mac)
• Sound levels, effects, and equipment are the PERFORMER's responsibility since the Festival is only able to present and host the virtual broadcast (musicians may choose to use an OBS virtual camera, audio interface/mixer (i.e. Apogee Duet), USB microphone, or other direct-input sound equipment for the best sound experience)
• On StreamYard, feel free to disable echo cancellation to turn on stereo mode (under mic settings) during your performance if you find that helpful (avoid talking while this setting is on)

Enjoy the show! 

(If you aren't able to successfully register for an open mic in time, you can always try again for one of the following events. Early bird gets the worm!)