Cajun SpotlightCajun and Zydeco Music and Dance in the Upper Midwest July 2003 THE KREWE PRESENTS...On Friday, July 18 the Minnesota Cajun and Zydeco Music and Dance Association (The Krewe de Walleye) welcomes Sean Ardoin & Zydecool for their first appearance in Minnesota. This great band is fronted by a musician from one of the first families in Creole and zydeco music. His great-great uncle was Amede Ardoin and his grandfather is Bois Sec Ardoin. The dance will be at the Marian Knights of Columbus Hall located at 1114 West 79th Street in Bloomington. There will be a free zydeco lesson at 7:30 pm and dancing from 8 to midnight. Tickets are just $12 for members and $15 for others.The 3rd Annual Cajun Cruise on the St. Croix is Saturday, July 26. Music will be by The New Riverside Ramblers. The four-hour evening cruise leaves from and returns to Stillwater and includes an hors d'ouevres dinner. Tickets are $35 per person and are available now from Carroll Franco at 1455 Osceola Ave, St. Paul, MN 55105. Tickets are also available at Homestead Pickin' Parlor, Cadenza Music and the Podium. To learn about Minnesota Cajun and Zydeco Music and Dance Association and to view other useful information check out www.krewedewalleye.com. CAJUN HOT SOLES HIT THE FESTIVAL TRAILThe Cajun Hot Soles appear at two festivals in July. On Sunday, July 20 they will be at Farm Heritage Days in Forest City, Iowa. They do an afternoon concert and play for an evening dance. On Saturday, July 26 they will play an hour set at 5:00 pm on the Minnesota Folk Festival Stage at the Antique Power Show near Hastings, Minnesota. Contact CAJUN SPOTLIGHT for details.LOCAL FAVORITES AT SUMMER EVENTS
AUGUST CAJUN JAM AND POTLUCKSNancy Tennessen hosts her annual Cajun Jam and Potluck in her backyard on Sunday, August 3. These have become a tradition in the local dance community - a chance for folks to get together, relax and visit with friends. Nancy lives in northeast Minneapolis at 626 4th Street NE. This is one block east of University Avenue; turn at Emily's Lebanese Deli on University at 7th Avenue NE. It's just a few minutes from downtown. The party starts at 2:00 pm. Bring a dish to share with the group. Plates and silverware (and ice cream!) will be provided. Stop by and play a few tunes, dance or visit with friends. Also, mark your calendar now for another Jam & Potluck on Sunday, August 17. This one will be at Steve and Nancy Dungy's in Cannon Falls. Details will be in the next issue.OSHKOSH SAWDUST DAYSSawdust Days in Oshkosh, Wisconsin are July 2 to July 6. There's a great schedule of performers, including Wisconsin-favorites The Cajun Strangers and, from Louisiana, Moise and Alida Viator with EH LA-BAS! A schedule for Sawdust Days can be found on the Web or contact CAJUN SPOTLIGHT.FREE DANCE (AND MORE) IN AUGUST (FROM JOAN GUILFOYLE)Free Dance with JUMBO YA YA on Saturday, August 9!Come on down to the plaza of the Science Museum of Minnesota (120 E. Kellogg, St. Paul) for fabulous dance and listening tunes by one of the Twin Cities' most popular Cajun-Zydeco-Latin-Tex Mex-R&B-Gumbo band. The dance (from 3-5 pm) is part of Grand Opening Days of the brand new Mississippi River Visitor Center run by the National Park Service. It's free and has exhibits, merchandise and trip planning assistance by National Park Rangers. There will be a special exhibit on the Cajun and Creole cultures of southern Louisiana. Events on Saturday run from 10:15 to 5 pm including catered Cajun food and ice cream! Other activities that day are Sing-along-River Songs w/ Bob Walser, Paint the River with real artists, make your own fish puppet, origami boat and ranger hat, river poetry readings and more music including Singing Ranger Charlie Maguire, Pilgrim Baptist Church Men's Chorus, The Mouldy Figs, Heart of the Beast river pageant (10:15 a.m. only), Native American drumminga and a live eagle and falcon. Kids of all ages can become a Junior Ranger all in one day, too. Free souvenir give-aways, including 2 for 1 tickets to a paddleboat tour and trolley tour. FREE admission to the Omni Show "Grand Canyon" (5:00 p.m. only). And see Joan Guilfoyle in her Park Ranger hat, oh boy!Sunday August 10th will feature three trips on river paddleboats to watch birds or hear Native American guides tell their stories of the great Mississippi river; a guided canoe trip on the "upper" river, family fishing clinic and archaeology program at Mill Ruins Park. Some fees and reservations apply to the Sunday programs, 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Special programs by rangers from other national parks in the Mississippi River Visitor Center including Yellowstone National Park (WY), St. Croix National Scenic Riverway (WI), Effigy Mounds National Monument (IA). The complete schedule of the two-day event is at www.mississippirivervisitorcenter.org. or www.nps.gov/miss. Or call 651-293-0200. We will have Big Ya Ya (fun) on August 9 and 10! See you there! CAJUN/ZYDECO FEVER IN WISCONSINLynn and Tom Stephany continue working to build interest in Cajun and zydeco music and dance in the Oshkosh, Wisconsin area. Dance lessons in Cajun and zydeco dance are offered regularly in Oshkosh and Menasha. Contact CAJUN SPOTLIGHT for details.NINE NIGHTS OF MUSIC FUNThe Minnesota History Center and Tapestry Folkdance Center presents NineNights of Music Fun on Tuesday nights in July and August. Each free performance will feature live music and dance instruction. Shows run from 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm. Here are the bands scheduled and the instructors:
UPCOMING CAJUN AND ZYDECO EVENTS
TASTE OF "TASTE OF MINNESOTA"Again this year the Taste of Minnesota gathers together a variety of food and music and presents them in Saint Paul around the Fourth of July. This year the Taste moves from the area in front of the State Capitol to Harriet Island and the nearby Wabasha Street Bridge. Over fifty restaurants are scheduled to have food booths. There is also a variety of music, including jazz, blues, southern-fried rock and more. This month's quiz features some of the groups scheduled at Taste of Minnesota and their hits. Can you match the song with the performer? For extra credit, see if you can also match the year the song hit the pop charts.
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