Gospel Music, Story Festival Aims to Inspire

Novi resident Michael Balon and his daughter Elisa hope their respective passions for storytelling and music will inspire the community at the Gospel Music and Story Festival, which they organized together.

The festival will feature more than 20 musicians and storytellers and will be held at Saturday, Aug. 13 from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.

The event was created and planned in 12 weeks by the Balons: Elisa, a 28-year-old music teacher and director of the Providence Park Place Choir, and her father, Michael, a 57-year-old doctor at the hospital.

“He like telling stories, and I like the music,” Elisa Balon said. “I didn’t want to put on just a plain old concert.”

After planning small performances with local musicians at Providence for a few years, the father-daughter pair came up with a new idea to combine music and storytelling in a day-long festival this year. 

“I think the combination of music and storytelling is an ancient art, and these things have been going on for a long time,” said Michael Balon.

Planned performances

Both Balons plan to perform in the festival.

While Elisa Balon will be performing with the Providence Park Place Choir, Michael Balon plans to share two stories. One is called The Meeting Place, and the other is Sherlock Holmes and Watson Go Camping, which he said is a mix of “science and spirituality.”

Michael Balon hopes that the music and stories will inspire positive action in Novi.

"The specific action that we hope to inspire is community service and sacrifice and while seeking their spiritual life along the way,” he said.

Other storytellers at the festival include doctors; firefighters from Arizona; the Morelli family, who competed on The Biggest Loser; and church members.

The musicians originate from several gospel genres, including Bluegrass Gospel, Urban Contemporary Gospel and Celtic Gospel.

One of the featured performers is the Gratitude Steel Band with its Gospelypso performance.

Chaz Russell, the musical director of Gratitude Steel Band, said the band's music is Christian, and it is Afro-Cuban in its origin.

“At festivals, we will have limbo, and we try to show people an active way of having a good time, but keep the Lord in mind, as well," Russell said.

The Balons and Providence Park Hospital hope to continue the festival annually.

“There are stories out there that the world needs to hear," Michael Balon said. “I don’t know in Michigan of anything quite like it.”

Admission is free, but all monetary donations will go to Love INC of Greater Novi, which is a network of churches and community organizations that work together to help people in need.

The festival is still looking for volunteers, and visitors are encouraged to bring a lawn chair. For more information, visit  gospelmusicandstoryfestival.com or call 248-465-4522.