Mission Statement

The mission of the Spirit of Rasputin’s Arts Society is to create a home for the Ottawa folk music community where we celebrate and promote folk and folk-related music, provide an opportunity for participatory music, and create a launching pad for developing talent.

Rasputin’s Folk Café was a legendary folk music venue with a 27 year history.  On July 5, 2008 a fire led to the shutdown of the café.  Subsequently, owner Dean Verger decided to retire from the restaurant business, and Rasputin’s Folk Café was closed.

On June 13th, 2009, a meeting of 18 of the Rasputin’s orphans was held, and the Spirit of Rasputin’s was born.  As Chris White, artistic director of the Ottawa Folk Festival noted at the time: “This is an historic day!”

The closure of Rasputin’s Folk Café left a number of gaps in the music community in Ottawa.  The Spirit of Rasputin’s overall goal is to revive the musical traditions of the Folk Café through a volunteer-based organization to support the folk music community of Ottawa.

Our specific objectives are:

• Provide a physical home for folk events;
• Promote participation in folk music and generally promote folk music;
• Support, promote and house the Rasputin’s jams;
• Develop performers through the open stage;
• Celebrate folk music by presenting paid performances; and
• Provide a listening environment for the enjoyment of folk music;

Our New Homes

Thanks to the owners of The Elmdale House Tavern , we were able to start presenting our events there on Sundays and Mondays. Our first event there was an open stage on October 26th, 2009.

In the summer of 2010, the Westboro Masonic Hall (http://westboromasonichall NULL.ca/WMTL/Home NULL.html) at 430 Churchill Ave (at Byron) became home to all our concerts. Along with the challenges of stocking and running the kitchen, we were also faced with providing the required concert infrastructure including a stage, sound system, and stage lights. But thanks to the invigorating enthusiasm of the Spirit volunteers, all the requirements were met and we gave our first concert there on September 26, 2010.

The Georgetown Pub (http://www NULL.georgetownpub NULL.ca/) hosts the Folk-Along Jam every Tuesday at 7pm.  Whispers Pub and Eatery hosts our weekly Open Stage every Monday evening as well as the Next Stage on the first Sunday of each month until April 1, 2012..

Le Michel-Ange Café (http://lemichelange NULL.ca/)is the scene for: the Next Stage at 8pm on the first weekend of the month beginning Saturday May 5; the Bluegrass Jam on the third Sunday of the month at 2 pm; and from Saturday June 9, occasional Cabaret Concerts.

The Spirit of Rasputin’s Board of Directors

Mark Evenchick – a singer/songwriter and retired businessman.

Alrick Huebener – a bass player, budding videographer and public servant

Pat Moore – a singer/songwriter, retired public servant, and impresario.

Hollis Morgan – a musician, audio engineer, and businessman.

Carol Noel – a singer/songwriter, guitarist,and public servant

Our Current Volunteer Staff

Hollis Morgan – President, Webmaster, Concert Stage Manager
Pat Moore – Vice-president, CKCU Events, Artist Liaison
Mark Evenchick – Treasurer, Merchandise, Open Stage, The Next Stage
Wen-Jeng Chen – The Next Stage
Isabel Bouchard – Auditor; Hospitality
Sylvia Bogusis – Audit Committee
Kate Morgan – Artistic Director; Graphic Design; Photography
Carol Noël – Rasputin’s Beard; Graphic Design
Sjef Frenken – Open Stage
Paul Spafford – Folk-Along  Jam
Katherine Gunn – Membership, Communications; IT
Stan Neathery – wherever, whenever, whatever
Heather Evenchick - Ticket Management, Open Stage
Elaine Gibson – Volunteer Coordinator; Hospitality
Tony Turner - Concert Emcee; Artist Liaison
Brian Silcoff – Gets the word out (OFME)

Join us…

As a volunteer-driven organization, our objective is to engage sufficient volunteer help to ensure that no single person is unfairly burdened by his or her volunteer workload.

If you are interested in participating in any capacity, we’d love to hear from you.