Mary Pendergast Crane, one of the founders of the Indian River Festival and provided assistance of the beginning of the Friends of St. Mary’s Foundation, laid the groundwork for the musical magic we’ve been presenting for the last 24 years. Simply put—without Mary, there would be no Festival, and most likely no St. Mary’s either. Having put so much love into the historic church and the concerts held within, it’s no surprise that she would handle an interview with the same passion and care. Interviewing Mary is like flipping through a lovingly-made scrapbook—each memory, each story, is placed with such thoughtfulness and warmth. Grab a cup of tea, play some classical music, and enjoy reading Mary’s founding story.
Tell us the story of how you helped found the Indian River Festival.
The Indian River Festival (IRF) ‘founding story’ stems from many directions, starting with the church itself which was always known for its acoustics, thanks to renowned architect William Critchlow Harris. This is something I always knew growing up, as I attended St. Mary’s with my family throughout my life—generations of my Pendergast family had been baptized and buried there. So, as the church fell into disrepair in the 1970’s and 1980’s, we were part of the parish group interested in trying to save that beautiful building.
After the fateful decision was finally made in 1986-1987 to save the building, I was asked to organize a concert series for the summer as part of the 1987 Save St. Mary’s Campaign. That series went so well! We had so much cooperation from groups such as the Summerside Community Choir, the Northumberland Brass, Prince Co Fiddlers, UPEI, CBC, and many others. That concert series called “Sundays in the Summer” continued each summer and kept growing and growing.
The series was so popular that it soon became too large to run, especially when the “organizers” were just the parish and other volunteers. In its 8th and 9th seasons, I began to feel the concert series needed to have an organizational structure separate from the parish. Just at that opportune time, in August 1995, New York musicians Richard Kapp and Mela Tenanbaum, conductor and principal violinist with the Philharmonic Virtuoso Orchestra, were vacationing on the Island and asked if they could play at the church. They fell in love with the acoustics and atmosphere of the building. We organized an additional, spur-of-the-moment concert for them in the fall, which proved to be a great success.
After that concert, CBC became interested in recording music for their Radio Two program the next summer. With all this traction, we knew we had to do something more. Richard Kapp was the one that first suggested a festival, and came up with the name Indian River Festival. We organized a community meeting for the winter held in the Kensington Train Station, and Richard came up to speak about organizing this summer festival. He had so much enthusiasm, coupled with a wealth of experience in the presenting sector. So it was agreed, and an ad hoc Board of Directors was put together—myself, now Senator Libbe Hubley, Heather Mountain, and Katy Baker.
We had great meetings, got some funding, and thanks to the first Executive Director Sue Urquhart’s good work, received charity status with the Government of Canada. We planned it as a four-day “festival weekend”, while the Sundays in the Summer continued throughout, and CBC was coming from Halifax to record the whole thing. We were underway! Richard Kapp was Artistic Director for 1996-1998, but we eventually needed a Canadian Artistic Director. In the winter of 1999, Robert Kortgaard, formerly AD of the New Brunswick Music Festival (at UNB) agreed to sign on, and of course he was—and continues to be—a fabulous fit for the IRF!
You also assisted with the founding of the Friends of St. Mary’s Foundation. Tell us a bit about that.
Friends of St. Mary’s came into being in 2009, at another key moment in the Festival’s history, when the Indian River Festival Association became the “owner” of the building. I had stepped down as Board Chair in 2007—after 20 years of organizing concerts at St. Mary’s, I was ready for a break, and my personal life had become very busy at the time. But of course I continued to be as helpful as I could be, and I was able to contribute to the discussions in 2009 between the Government, the Festival, and the parish to explore how a transfer of the building to the Festival Association could happen.
The parish was focused on the Kensington church as their primary facility, and there was not much interest in continuing to be financially responsible for such a building as expensive as St. Mary’s. Becoming owner of the church was a large initiative for the Festival, but it seemed to be the next logical step. The suggestion to create a “parallel” group seemed perfect, as the members of that committee would take primary responsibility for the building and grounds around it and work in cooperation with the Festival.
There were enough local parishioners who wanted to support the maintenance of the building, especially many of the MacLellan family who had originally donated the grounds for the church back in the mid-1800s. Having that committee and creating the Friends of St. Mary’s foundation meant the Festival could focus more on its main purpose: the music.
St. Mary’s is an incredible venue. Can you explain a bit about what makes it so special?
St. Mary’s was designed by architect William Critchlow Harris to resemble the structure of a violin, so that the resonance would resemble that of the instrument. He was a musician himself and very conscious of acoustics—really, he was probably one of the first ‘acoustic engineers’. The warm wood interior is very carefully designed with five types of local Island woods, all to reverberate music better.
I’ve always found it interesting that music would ‘flow’ in the building, but words were not the same. The setting is also special, on a rise overlooking Malpeque Bay, and I’ve often thought it is one of those special, sacred places that provide one with a sense of peace and joy. There really are few such places in the world—Delphi in Greece, St Kevin’s Monastery in Ireland, Assisi in Italy—where I have felt that kind of serenity.
What is your favourite Indian River Festival memory?
Wow! Where do I even begin!? I will have to briefly give you four special memories. The first is in the mid 1990’s: while it is technically prior to IRF, it was the first indication of what we could do with that special space. We hosted The Rankins, who were doing a tour, and our first concert sold out so quickly that we added a second that sold out too! It was so exciting!
Another special memory happened on Canada Day, 2000. At a concert celebrating the new millennium, the children’s choir from Lennox Island sang O Canada in Mi’kmaq. It was so special for me—I hear it in English and French all the time, but this was the first time in Mi’kmaq! It felt so meaningful!
The 3rd and 4th special memories are Measha-related—her voice was perfect for St. Mary’s. The summer of 2001 was a turning point for the Festival when Measha Brueggergosman literally blew the roof off the place—more than once! Artistic Director Robert Kortgaard did not believe in doing encores; however, on this particular night featuring Italian composers for a truly beyond sublime experience, the audience literally demanded one. When clapping and cheering didn’t work, they started pounding the floor with their feet, causing huge echoes in the building—it felt like it was actually shaking! After a few minutes of that, Robert and Measha finally came back on stage and did an encore.
That same summer Measha and The Jive Kings blew the roof off again to a completely sold-out audience who LOVED it all! The fourth memory was in 2003, I believe, when the National Youth Orchestra, with Measha as featured soloist, asked to perform at St Mary’s. It was an orchestra of 80 musicians from across Canada so we had to bring in platforms in order to seat them. At first we didn’t think we could do it, but where there’s a will, there’s a way! It turned out to be one of those incredible musical moments again— just beyond words.
You’ve been with the Festival since the beginning. How has it changed over the years?
The Festival has changed for sure, becoming well-known as a destination event, but I believe the mandate we started with has been kept at the heart of the organization throughout it all—to present quality music in this historic building. The summer of 2001, noted above, was a pivotal year; in the spring of 2007, when I stepped down as Chair, I was thrilled that the Festival was named Best Small Classical Music Festival in Canada by the Globe and Mail. It was wonderful how in 20 years—from 1987 to 2007—the event had grown and blossomed.
Two other key events bringing about growth and change, in my opinion, were the transition year when the Festival gained ownership of the building in 2009 and again in 2016 when the Pavilion opened.
Live music has taken a huge hit from the COVID-19 crisis. Why do you still believe live concerts are an important tool for community engagement?
Live music is so important, in my opinion, as it will always engage people in a special way. Listening to recorded music can also be lovely, and will always have a place in its own way. However, the feeling of being part of the performance, and if you are fortunate enough becoming completely caught up in the experience, makes live music that much more meaningful. It can be spiritual, cathartic, exhilarating, and emotional all at once.
There is nothing quite like a quality live-music experience, and when it is in a place like St. Mary’s, the setting becomes a part of that experience in a very special way.
How do you think community concerts and festivals like IRF will change given the current circumstances? And what are you most looking forward to when IRF returns in 2021?
It’s hard to know how community concerts and live music events like the Festival will change with the current pandemic. I believe this summer of 2020 will look quite different as restrictions will still be in place; however, I also believe it will give people an intense craving for the kind of live musical experience the Festival provides.
I know there is one performance coming up June 30th and I’m sure those 50 allowed tickets will sell out quickly. Hopefully those watching online will also contribute something to the Festival—perhaps people who have never attended will tune-in given the convenience of online streaming.
Next summer in 2021 people will be hungry for the kinds of musical experiences the Festival offers—I would watch out next year for another year of growth, an explosion in attendance with a large increase in both Island and off-Island devotees! Personally, I’m looking forward to being present for one of those special magical moments that happen so often at the Indian River Festival—one never knows when it might occur, but it always does!
Written by: Dani MacDonald
Vickie Anderson’s IRF Mixtape