Three Canadian musicians will add a new dimension to the term “underground music” in Rat’s Nest Cave next week.
On June 5, folk songstress Raine Hamilton, alongside musicians Brett Nelson and cellist Jeff Faragher, invite folk and classical music enthusiasts with an appreciation for live acoustic melodies to join them and 23 others in a one-hour musical performance entitled Into the Woods: Concert in the Cave. The live set will be played within the Grand Gallery of Rat’s Nest Cave, beginning at 5 p.m.
There won’t be any stage setup, lighting equipment, or sound gear typically seen at a live music venue, but deep in the Rat’s Nest Cave concert-goers will experience an intimate, acoustic music event like no other.
Into the Woods: Concert in the Cave is part of Hamilton’s Past Your Past: There and Back Tour, which sees the artist travelling to various venues throughout Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, B.C. and Alberta. Nelson will join Hamilton on stage for a select number of dates on the tour.
In Canmore, the in-cave performance is the first time the talented trio have joined creative forces. The musical collaboration is set to deliver a colourful – sometimes tender, sometimes toe-tapping – fusion of each of the artists’ signature styles; layering classical strings, acoustic folk and chilling vocals – all set to the original songs of Hamilton and Nelson.
A concert taking place 100 feet underground, of course, requires some effort. Before concert-goers settle into the Grand Gallery to enjoy the performance, they will have donned overalls, harnesses and hardhats and made their way through the mouth of Rat’s Nest and through the cave’s naturally-shaped tunnels and rooms; crawling, shuffling and squeezing their way to the Grand Gallery, where they’ll be met with the artists and their awaiting set.
For Nelson, originally from Winnipeg, but now based in Medicine Hat, the cave setting brings an opportunity to reach a whole new level of audience interaction and sense of connection.
“It will be raw and intimate,” said Nelson. “I was personally so overcome with the cave and how I felt in there. Being in complete darkness underground does crazy things with your senses; your hearing is dramatically enhanced and you become exceptionally aware of your surroundings and those around you.
“From a musical performance perspective, I’m really excited to see how our audience responds to this when we play, and how our combined sound will translate into the cave space. The acoustics are going to be mind-blowing.”
For Hamilton, there isn’t a better location for the Canmore date of the tour.
“Acoustic folk in its very nature is earthy, humble, raw and quite often songs are stories of the land and our relationships with it, as well as each other. How amazing to be able to strip back the traditional sense of a venue and, as a folk musician, be able to play in such an intimate setting; to tell these stories through song, physically within the depths of the land. We’re beyond excited.”
Max Koether, experience manager and guide with Canmore Cave Tours, has been working closely with the artists to make arrangements leading up to the June 5 performance, including detailed logistics involved to transport a cello through the cave’s intricate underground network.
“It’s a first for us – a cello in the cave. But, why not,” said Koether. “We like a challenge and it’s going to sound incredible.
“As cave guides, we have the joy of sharing Rat’s Nest every day, and seeing first-hand the individual experiences of it. But, when you combine that already-moving cave experience with an intimate, live music performance, well that’s very exciting to us.”
A small number of tickets are still available for the one-night-only performance, at $155, inclusive of the Explorer Tour caving experience and the full musical performance – see www.canmorecavetours.com for full details and to purchase.
Guests should expect a moderate level of exercise throughout the tour and need to be dressed accordingly. Canmore Cave Tours guides will safely escort all guests in and out of the cave (six hours, from 5-11p.m., with about three hours underground. Open to children over 10 years.
Into the Woods: Concert in the Cave will be the latest installment of the “unEarthed” series presented by Canmore Cave Tours.
