The summer-long Music in the Forest series at Sir Winston Churchill Provincial Park continued last Saturday with a lively performance on the island park's amphitheatre stage by indie folk artist Taylor Lang.
Standing in front of a capacity audience that filled the small, intimate venue, set among the natural beauty of the park, the Saskatchewan-born, now Calgary-based musician, whose hybrid musical panache has been labelled “fingerstyle folk” — explained as a combination of storytelling and percussive and acoustic guitar with fingerstyle elements — kicked off the show with his debut single, “Potential Paths”, released last year.
While concert-goers got to hear many of Lang’s most popular songs, he also treated them to stylized covers of hits by famous artists such as Chaka Khan and The Tragically Hip.
Throughout the evening, Lang maintained a strong rapport with his audience, interspersing songs and instrumentals with insightful and poignant tales about his childhood and family, about touring Western Canada, the challenges of life, relationships, and even prairie ghost towns. Lang’s diverse life experiences have been the inspiration for many of his thought-provoking lyrics.
During a brief intermission, Lang, who last played Lac La Biche in 2019, chatted with fans, who purchased merchandise such as shirts, CDs, pins, and guitar picks that were on sale.
“It’s great to be back,” he said. “The first time I played at the park was in the middle of winter. While that was a great show indeed, though I prefer to travel in the summer months.”
Lang, who took a partial hiatus from touring and recording during the COVID-19 pandemic, has been hitting the road regularly this summer playing gigs around Alberta and Saskatchewan, with more on the way.
“This is the fourth show I have played so far this month,” he stated. “I have one more concert booked for July and two for August, all of which will be in Calgary.”
More details on his touring schedule and bookings can be found on Lang's website.
Next is the last
The Music in the Forest series is an initiative by Alberta Parks to showcase the province's independent musical talents at one of the province's most pristine old-growth forest location. So far this season, Churchill Park has hosted five Music in the Forest cncerts. The next Music in the Forest performance is on August 26 with folk trio Casati. The show is the last of the series for the Music in the Forest. Tickets for the Casati show can be found at the Alberta Parks website.
