Genticorum Workshops & Concerts

Quebecois music workshops and concerts with Genticorum

BELFAST & BLUE HILL – As the summer turns toward autumn, Canadian supergroup Genticorum will grace Midcoast Maine with their musicianship and teaching expertise. Local nonprofits, Bagaduce Music and Belfast Flying Shoes, jointly present the trio in an instrumental workshop and concert in Belfast on Saturday, September 6, and a vocal workshop and concert in Blue Hill on Sunday, September 7.

A distinctive voice of Québécois traditional music, Genticorum is Pascal Gemme on fiddle, mandolin, foot percussion and voice; Yann Falquet on guitar, jaw harp, and voice; and Nicholas Williams on accordion, flute, and voice.

In French, to describe the chemistry between people, you say they have atomes crochus—literally, that their atoms are interlaced—and Genticorum’s chemistry is magnetic. At its root, this is social music, and audiences connect deeply with the pleasure that Pascal, Yann, and Nicholas get from playing together!

The Saturday programs are at the UU Church, 37 Miller St in Belfast. At 3:00 pm, the band offers a musicians’ workshop on Québécois repertoire, including phrasing and ornamentation unique to this musical tradition. Pascal leads fiddle players, Nicholas teaches other melody instruments, and Yann works with rhythm accompanists. The concert starts at 7:00 pm, and workshop participants can enjoy dinner in Belfast before the show.

Sunday’s programs are at Bagaduce Music, 49 South St in Blue Hill. The 1:00 pm Québécois song workshop provides a rare opportunity to explore this distinctive vocal repertoire with Genticorum. The trio’s full-voiced harmonic singing draws on their deep roots in traditional music, which they share with skill and joie de vivre. The matinee concert starts at 4:00 pm, and after the show, audience members can plan an evening meal on the Blue Hill Peninsula.

These programs are made possible by supporters of Belfast Flying Shoes and Bagaduce Music, and by media sponsor WERU Community Radio. For tickets and information, visit belfastflyingshoes.org/events/

Bagaduce Music is a 501(c)3, working in community to make Maine’s musical coastline sing! From Blue Hill to Belfast, Freeport to Steuben -- offering classes, ensembles, concerts, dances, and musical experiences in folk, bluegrass, jazz, community singing, and more. Tuition assistance is available, all ages and abilities are welcome.

Founded in 2005, Belfast Flying Shoes builds community and cultivates well-being through the joy of traditional music and dance for people of all backgrounds and identities in Midcoast Maine. Among the nonprofit’s diverse programs are participatory arts residencies in local schools, a weekly radio show and podcast, concerts for older adults, music lessons for incarcerated men, and the First Friday Flying Shoes Community Dance & Contra Dance series.