A new musician-in-residence program was launched in Stanley Mission Tuesday.
The project is scheduled to last a year and is called CAMP, which stands for Community Arts Mentorship Programming.
CAMP was organized by Eliza Doyle who will be one of four artists who will spend 12 weeks in the community.
“I was up in Stanley Mission in January of 2019 on a five-week residency and it went really well,” Doyle said. “The community wanted me to stay connected in some form. I got the idea to try to mentor the people who are already up there that want to learn how to be music teachers. We’re going to be bringing up a whole bunch of new instruments to use.”
Doyle is a former teacher and has performed with several bands including The Dead South.
Erik Mehlsen is the artist kicking off the program and he has also played with Doyle in The Dead South.
CAMP is being put on with the help of grants from the Saskatchewan Arts Board and TD MusiCounts.
“I want to do a five-week residency in Pinehouse in January,” Doyle added. “I want to do this all over Saskatchewan so I want to make sure that we get it right.”
Doyle is currently getting ready for this year’s Doylefest which is taking place 66 kilometers west of Saskatoon on her land from Friday until Monday.
Doylefest began in 2014 as a music festival and birthday party and now also serves as a fundraiser for bringing music programming to remote communities in the province.
(PHOTO: Left to right, Erik Mehlsen, Scott Pringle and Eliza Doyle performing with The Dead South. Photo by Brendan Mayer.)