The LDSMusic IV Festival

I’m very excited.

The email group I’m in (for LDS musicians) is again sponsoring a music festival, currently in our fourth year, and I’m in charge of it again this year.

Here’s a press release I wrote for it:

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For immediate release

LDSmusicians.com has announced that Maren Ord will be headlining their fourth annual festival of LDS music this August.

Ord began writing songs as a hobby at an early age, and at 15 entered four songs in a song contest in her home town of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. “Edmonton has about a million people and I was a little nervous about going up against thousands of other accomplished artists, ...I think at this time I had only written five songs, ...and they needed me to enter four, Ord explained, “So, I sat in my room with this old eight-track recorder and just sang my songs with my guitar (I was 15 at the time), ....and when I got a return phone call that I had won along with five other artists, I was ecstatic!”

One of her songs was chosen as a single from the compilation album that accompanied the contest, and soon it was getting airplay all over Canada.

She then joined the Lilith Fair tour, and signed with Sarah McLaughlin’s manager. “Soon after signing with Nettwerk records and Capitol EMI records, I was off recording in New York and London, England. Now THAT was a neat experience!”

Recently, after getting a few songs placed on soundtracks in locally produced movies, she had a chance to do some acting as well, appearing as Sariah Phelps, Jared’s sister, in Halestorm Entertainment’s “The RM”

“Shooting the RM was something I never want to forget,” says Ord, “I still do not claim to be an actress, but it was such a fun and different experience for me. I think I enjoy more of the ‘behind the camera’ stuff more than being in front of it.”

The festival will be held at the park amphitheatre at 800 E on 700 N in American Fork (just west of the Mt Timpanogos LDS Temple) on Saturday, August 30. While events and performances are scheduled there throughout the afternoon and evening, the headliner showcase will start at 7:30 PM.

This is the fourth year for the festival, showcasing budding and rising stars on the LDS music scene. It arose out of a email group started by Brad Thompson, now of the folk duo Border Crossing, in an attempt to find friends that shared his passion for uplifting, well-crafted music.
“We’ve got a wide variety of sounds and styles performing this year,” says Mark Hansen, performer and festival organizer, “And it should be a great show. There are performers that are traditional and folk and rock musicians as well. Some really break the mold!”

In addition to Ord, Stephanie Smith, Rich Bischoff, David Edwards, Sam Payne, and Wayne Burton are also slated to perform, among many others.

While Ord’s music appeals to church members, it also has a broader audience. “Yes, I've played EFY's, ...but I have also played Lilith Fair. I don't think I am one side or the other. I play a lot of shows to a lot of different people, and I think everyone sees the same person on stage. I still have values, ...and people see that whether they are LDS or not.”


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So, mark your calendars! It’ll be a great show.

MRKH
Mark Hansen
http://markhansenmusic.com