Thursday, June 21, marks the summer solstice in the northern hemisphere. It's the longest day of the year and, here in Winnipeg, at least, we're going to need all that daylight to take in the many celebrations of the first day of summer.

Elsewhere in these pages, columnist Don Beat has the scoop on the ElementSircus show at the St. Norbert Arts Centre, so I'm here to offer up some basic info on two other musical celebrations.

First up is National Aboriginal Day, an important celebration for Canada's First Nations.

In Winnipeg there are six different events planned. The Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN) is hosting a live concert and broadcast at noon outside its studios at 300 Portage Ave. Lucie Idlout, Leela Gilday, Donny Parenteau, The C-Weed Band, Dead Indians, jiggers the Asham Stompers and hoop dancer Lisa Odjib are all set to perform.

At the Red River Ex, organizers of Manito Ahbee have put together an aboriginal day powwow featuring drum and dancing competitions, running from 1 to 7 p.m.

Later that night at the Ex the finals of the Star Catcher Talent contest will run from 7 to 10 p.m., featuring guest performances by Gilday, C-Weed, J.C. Campbell, Tracy Bone and Don Amero.

A day-long community celebration is also planned for 470 Selkirk Ave. and is set to run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., with free music and free food.

The two evening shows on tap are The Aboriginal Express at McPhillips Street Station, where Ray St. Germain will host the Clint Dutiaume Band, Diggers Jiggers, hoop dancer Buffy Handel and a local drum group.

For my money, the best gig of the day will be at the Pyramid, where the Aboriginal Day After-Party will feature sets by Dead Indians, X-Status, New Mexican groups Ethnic De Generation and Native Model Studio, along with the long-awaited reunion of the powerful rock band Peacemaker.

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June 21 is also World Music Day, more commonly known as Fête de la Musique.

This communal celebration of music began in France in 1981 as a grassroots movement intended to get people singing and playing and dancing in the streets.

In the 27 years since it has spread all over the world and, finally, to Winnipeg, where the Franco-Manitoban Cultural Centre at 340 Provencher Blvd. will play host to more than 60 artists between 3 and 10 p.m., including the likes of The DT's, Billy Joe Green, Lianne Fournier, Daniel Roy, The No Name Jazz Sextet and Marcel Soulodre.

Spectators are asked to bring their own lawnchairs.

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June 21 is also International Go Skateboarding Day and, in Winnipeg, local celebrations will be centred on The Plaza at The Forks, where the West 49 Flow team will be performing and where SK8 is also hosting a tricks and skills competition. The action takes place between 3:30 and 7:30 p.m., and the SK8 folks say there'll be a barbecue afterward.

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This last note does not concern a June 21 event, but it does mark a new beginning - the June 23 launch of The Parliament of Trees, a new record label formed by The Details and The Paperbacks that will handle their upcoming new releases.

Both bands will perform at the Collective Cabaret that night, where they will be joined by Halifax's Rich Aucoin, a one-time member of Hylozoists and FemBots who is cycling across Canada to raise money for The Childhood Cancer Foundation. Along the way, Aucoin is playing shows to promote his new EP, Personal Publication, which he recorded on his own and which, he claims, is perfectly in synch with the animated version of Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas.

For more info on Aucoin and his efforts, see www.myspace.com/richaucoin