Last year’s Summer Music at Broadmead went so well it inspired organizer Sophie Siebert to pick up her clarinet and strike up a band of her own.
“I was a professional clarinetist and I had stopped playing for a few years,” said Siebert, adding organizing last year’s Summer Music series “inspired me to get back to playing.”
Siebert joined with two other musicians, playing viola and accordian/piano, to form Eclectissimo!, who will make their debut performance Aug. 19 at Broadmead Village, performing some classical and Broadway tunes.
The Summer Music series kicks off this Saturday with Lookin’ California, who will perform classic rock with blues and reggae in the Broadmead Village plaza from 1 to 3 p.m.
Summer Music comes to Broadmead Village every Saturday afternoon in August, with Los Gringos Locos performing latin jazz on Aug. 12 and Cookeilidh makes an encore performance from last year’s series to again fill the plaza with Celtic sounds Aug. 26.
“They were such a hit, people said ‘Please bring them back’,” said Siebert.
The Summer Music series was introduced last year by the Broadmead Area Residents’ Association and Broadmead Village.
“We had a very minor event that wasn’t advertised for years. Usually it would be a local music teacher and student on a Friday evening,” said Siebert, who was tasked with organizing the inaugural Summer Music series last year.
“It was pretty successful, thanks in no small part to the Saanich News,” she said. “The only problem last year was I had no experience in advertising. I knew to call the Saanich News, and that’s about all I knew.”
But the quality of the performances and the appeal of the venue helped smooth over any hiccups.
“It’s a beautiful plaza,” said Siebert, adding the area is surrounded by restaurants with lots of seating throughout. “Cookeilidh was eager to come back because they said ‘This is one of the nicest venues we’ve played’.”
