What do you get when you take a group of young, bright-eyed musicians and music-industry enthusiasts and pair them with seasoned (and salty) musicians and presenters for a weekend?

Chaos? Mayhem?

Well, yes. That’s part of it.

But you also get the wonderful world and community that is the Ontario Council of Folks Festivals Youth Program.

“ What a rewarding experience to work with such talented youth and see them integrate themselves into the community and manoeuvre the conference with confidence and grace.”

Sue Passmore, 2012 Youth Mentor

What exactly is the Youth Program?

The OCFF Youth Program is an annual program integrated with the OCFF Annual Conference. The program is open to residents of Ontario and the National Capital Region, between ages 15 and 21, who are chosen for their interest, ability and experience.

The program has two streams: Youth Performer and Youth Presenter. Successful applicants pay the reduced Youth rate for the conference. Youth under 18 years of age must be accompanied (to the conference, not the program) by a parent or guardian, who may also attend the conference at the Youth rate. The 2012 conference saw seven young people take part in the program.

Please take a few moments to view a short testimonial video featuring Tim Jackson, a 2009 Youth Performer Program participant, and his mentor, David Celia.

Performer Stream

In the Youth Performer stream, young performers are teamed with established artist mentors for the entire weekend. The program provides young folk/roots performers with an excellent opportunity to shadow an established artist, to experience hands-on learning at the workshops and master classes, and to integrate into this tightly knit musical community. The highlight of the program is the Youth showcase on Saturday afternoon.

The program features many hours interacting one-on-one with the mentors:

• developing a showcase performance;
• participating in professional development activities;

and attending:

• workshops and master classes on Friday and Saturday;
• the Saturday evening Gala dinner;
• industry networking events on Friday and Saturday;
• the exhibit hall; and
• all levels of showcases.

Additionally, participants are encouraged to attend or take part in the youth and alumni-produced, late-night showcases on Friday and Saturday.

“Participating in the OCFF youth program has been an absolutely amazing experience for me. There were so many workshops to attend, to further my musical abilities, and polish my techniques and to learn new ones. It was a fun-filled couple of days where I got to meet with and talk to other artists and be involved in an astonishing musical experience. Having my own mentor allowed me to get further integrated into the experience, and performing with her made it even more amazing. I can certainly say that this is an experience I won’t ever forget. The diverse music, the people and the ability to learn from others has allowed me to gain more confidence in my musical abilities. Thank you so much!! I have been in such an amazing environment and I would love to do it again, thanks again!”

Maria Tullio, 2010 Youth Performer Program

Presenter Stream

In the Youth Presenter stream, participants are teamed with industry professionals in a series of hour long one-on-one mentoring sessions.

Participants also are invited to attend:

• the Saturday evening Gala dinner;
• industry networking events on Friday and Saturday;
• showcases;
• workshops and info sessions; and
• exhibit hall.

Wherever possible we offer the young Presenter an opportunity for hands-on experience, either at the sound board or in assisting with the various official and sponsored showcases.

Additionally participants are encouraged to participate in planning and producing the youth and alumni-produced, late-night showcases on Friday and Saturday.

“I just wanted to thank you again for such an amazing experience at the OCFF conference! I really felt that I got a little taste of many different jobs in the music industry and I must say that the taste has awaken my appetite to learn more.”

Gabrielle Gwyn-Neumann, 2010 Youth Presenter Program

All Youth Program participants are expected to attend the program orientation session and jam on Thursday night as well as the Youth Wrap-up session on Sunday morning.

For more details, please download the 2012 Youth Program Information PDF. The 2013 Youth Program will begin accepting applications in late spring.

The OCFF Taylor Mitchell Bursaryis awarded to one youth program participant each year. For more information, visit OCFF Awards.

OCFF Youth Program 2012

At the 2012 conference, we were honoured to have five excellent artists mentoring and guiding our 2012 youth performers:

Mentor	Youth Performer
David Essig	Cassie Dasilva (Orillia)
Gregory Hoskins	Sam Boer (Guelph)
Kerri Ough	Julia Cromarty (Strathroy)
Sue Passmore	The Musettes (Ottawa)
Ann Vriend	Emily Kohne (Thunder Bay)