Quest students welcomed an eclectic group of musicians to its first Open Mic Night on Saturday (Nov. 17) at the university's cafeteria. And while each played with their own twang, the songs worked to build a sense of community.
Organizer and Quest student Celeta Cook teamed up with Howe Sound Grade 12 student Samantha Soo to create a forum where locals and some of Squamish's newest residents could share their talents.
Meanwhile, $300 was raised for the Canadian-based Free the Children organization, which helps build schools and carry out other aid initiatives in developing countries.Quest students can feel isolated at their home in the Highlands, and the Open Mic sessions are designed to create a borderless campus where people from outside feel welcome, said Cook.
"Up here on the hill we have some really interesting, dynamic people and we don't want to seem that because we go to a private university we're all 'private university kids,'" she said with a laugh.
"So we're hoping if we had a really relaxed Open Mic Night the community would feel more comfortable coming up here. I think it's especially hard for the local youth here to have all these new university students come in to your community and have no way of amalgamating ourselves."
About 80 people gathered with guitars, drums, keyboards, and even a harp and flute to jam, play solo or just listen. Questers Ian Fornshell on flute and Sean Hamilton on acoustic guitar guided fellow musicians through the night.
Later in the evening, Fornshell exchanged his nu jazz flute style for a guitar and performed a song he wrote about life in Squamish, singing "I see the mountains every morning when I get up from my snoring."
Local Megan Bell went ballistic on drums, prompting loud applause midway through her set when she dropped to a single bass beat and felt her pulse - a move that suggests she was born to entertain.Quest student Alicia Cundel plucked sweet melodies on the harp, singing a Congolese duet with Caroline Hedin, who later played solo on the guitar.
The atmosphere became more and more relaxed as the night went on and the musicians got used to taking the stage and students and locals got a chance to interact.
"It was kind of funny at first, like a dance at a military school," said Soo. "One group all on one side facing the other."
Soo said she would like to continue the Open Mic Night on a bi-weekly basis but she and Cook are still trying to work out scheduling.Meanwhile, Cook wants to continue raising funds for the Free the Children campaign, to which she has a personal connection. Cook spent a month last summer in Kenya helping to build a school for the Enelarai community.
"It really was life-changing," she said. "It was really extensive and we saw such extreme poverty. It made me appreciate my opportunities for education."
