Music in the Park 2026

Off the Grid is an energetic, Kootenay-based funk, jazz, and fusion band. They're known for their high-energy grooves and tight ensemble playing spanning multiple styles, including Afro and Latin funk.

The 6-piece, multi-dimensional group consists of:

• Doug Stephenson (Guitar)

• Mark Spielman (Bass)

• Steven Parish (Drums)

• Clinton Swanson (Saxophone)

• Daralyn Fox (Trumpet/Horn)

• Keith Todd (Trombone) 

Musicians Bios: 

Trombonist Keith Todd was first inspired to take up the trombone by attending Canadian Brass concert when he was 10 years old. He went on to receive a BMus in trombone performance and his B.Ed from the University of Victoria. Keith has played with jazz group Bessie and the Back Eddies, the 11-piece funk band Hornography, Major Funk, Claire Ness, Declan O'Donovan, the Symphony of the Kootenays, Victoria and Okanagan Symphonies, and performs regularly around the Kootenays. He formerly taught instrumental music in Terrace, Nelson, South Slocan, and Whitehorse YT, where many of his bands received local, provincial, and national recognition. Keith has recently devoted more time to composing and arranging for Off The Grid, the Playmor Junction Big Band (which he currently directs), and the Nelson Community Band.

Doug Stephenson has been an integral member of Western Canada's music community for over thirty years. The Calgary native is a bassist, guitarist, composer, producer, and mixing engineer. He has performed with artists such as Charlie Rouse, Les McCann, Bob Murphy, Jay Thomas, John Stowell, Tommy Banks, P.J. Perry, Altered Laws, Campbell Ryga, and Blues legend Big Miller.

Mark Spielman is a bass player whose career has been divided equally between live performance, studio session and education. As a member of “The Circle,” a Florida-based contemporary jazz group, he opened for Hall and Oates, Chicago, Rod Stewart and George Benson. Other performance credits span a variety of styles including jazz dates with Frank Gambale, Dee Daniels and Jimmy Haslip, as well as pop/rock artists such as Ellen MacIlwaine, Shari Ulrich and Paul Janz.

Steve Parrish has a BA in Audio Engineering from the Berklee College of Music and studied Drum Set at Berklee, jazz drum set privately with Frankie Dunlop (Thelonious Monk, Lionel Hampton). Mentored by the legendary Les Paul at age 17, Steven's also played, engineered and/or programmed tracks for Rock 'n' Roll legend Cub Koda, Ian Hunter, Joe Bouchard of Blue Öyster Cult and Rap artist Stezo-E. He has played Jazz with Anthony Braxton and Pat LaBarbara, Robben Ford, John Handy, Jimmy Haslip, Max Bennett, Bob Mintzer, Frank Gambale, Mike Stern, Pat Mastellotto and Oz Noy, among others.

Clinton Swanson is a saxophonist, composer, arranger and leader of several bands in the Kootenays. Swanson grew up in the Slocan Valley and performs on sax with numerous ensembles under his own name and as a sideman, including Below the Belt, Hornography, Sax Drive, and Jazz at the Griff favorites Swing, Bluegrass, Old Country, Rock, Pop, and Disco aficionados The Devils You Don’t.

Daralyn Fox is a trumpet player and composer/arranger based out of Rossland, BC. Daralyn has studied music performance at MacEwan University in Edmonton AB and St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish NS with a focus on jazz. She has also studied with the likes of William (Bill) Dimmer, Dominic Spera, and Jon Faddis. In her time as a performing artist, she has had the pleasure of playing with the incomparable Tommy Banks, Bobby Cairns and Dominic Spera.

Purple Pistils is New Denver’s favourite and only rock band. Like their namesake, a rare mutant glacier lily with strikingly colourful reproductive organs observed high in the Selkirks, Purple Pistils (Dennis Lynch, Nancy Hillier, Adam Marvy and Sam Harrison) bring a rare sound never before seen at this altitude. With a one-armed drummer, guitar players with two heads and a keyboardist with an android voice (don’t ask her to airdrop), expect to hear colours adjacent to indigo in a rainbow of sound so sweet it’ll get you to your feet.  

Get ready for an unforgettable night of powerhouse vocals, soulful grooves, and inspiring musical artistry. The Kootenay Women’s Blues Review brings together some of the region’s most dynamic female performers for a celebration of talent, creativity, and soul.

Featuring an all-star lineup of Kootenay vocalists—Aryn Sheriff, Bella Cat, Rease Warner, Judy Brown, and Holly Hyatt—backed by a stellar band of local musicians, this electrifying showcase shines a spotlight on the women who help shape our vibrant music community. From deep blues roots to soaring jazz, soul, and R&B, audiences can expect rich harmonies, and tight grooves that'll keep you on your feet all night long!

Join us for an evening that celebrates the power of women’s voices and the timeless spirit of the blues.