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June 29, 2009 Cape Breton fiddling sensation Natalie MacMaster will be performing at the 33rd annual Rollo Bay Fiddle Festival, set for July 17-19. “I was so overwhelmed by the news. I’m still reeling from it,” said Peter Chaisson, a well-known Island fiddler and one of the organizers of the event. “She is a world-renowned performer. It certainly is going to be a big boost to Eastern Kings.” MacMaster has played a couple of times in Rollo Bay over the years, including one of her first public performances when she was about 10 years old. That early musical promise has been more than fulfilled as she went on to develop a signature Celtic sound that has resonated with audiences around the world through 10 albums, multiple gold sales and numerous Juno and East Coast Music Awards. Her decision to return to Rollo Bay this year came about thanks to a talented Prince Edward Island Celtic musician who has been performing on tour with MacMaster this spring. “Elmer Deagle mentioned to me that he should ask Natalie if she wanted to come to play at the fiddle festival,” said Chaisson. “I never really thought it would happen, but he got talking to her about it the last time they played in Santa Monica, California.”
MacMaster,
who is scheduled to perform at the afternoon concert on Sunday, July 19,
was more than happy to oblige once she realized she was available on
that weekend. “For us, going to P.E.I. was always a big deal. We went every year — that was our vacation spot. We’d do Rainbow Valley and go to the beaches. I can almost smell it right now, that’s the impact P.E.I. has on me. It is such a good, good memory. It was always excitement in itself.” MacMaster, who enjoys the atmosphere of a big outdoor fiddle festival, said the Rollo Bay event is the real thing. “What I like about the festival is that it is structured so locally with so many talented local musicians. It is very authentic. And now that I’m older and can analyze things, I do recognize that the festival has a longevity and authenticity, and that is so important in this day and age.”
MacMaster
also likes the idea of performing for people who truly appreciate Celtic
music. “I do want it to be really traditional and back to the roots,” says MacMaster, who expects to play for approximately 20 to 30 minutes, accompanied by Deagle and piano player Mac Morin from Cape Breton. MacMaster joins a Rollo Bay Fiddle Festival lineup of talented fiddlers, accompanists and singers throughout the weekend, said Chaisson, adding they come from across Prince Edward Island and various parts of the Maritimes.
Already
confirmed for a great weekend of music are Kimberley Fraser, Andrea
Beaton, the Queens County Fiddlers, the Cape Breton Fiddlers, Richard
Wood, Chrissy Crowley, Ward MacDonald, Peter, Kenny and Kevin Chaisson,
Cynthia MacLeod, Timothy Chaisson, J.J. Chaisson, Elmer Deagle, Alan
MacDonald, Francis MacCormack, Lemmy Chaisson, Urban MacAdam, Donna
Marie Peters, Chad Mooney and Mike Hall. .........................................................................................................................................
May 17, 2009 ALBANY — You didn’t have to know a jig from a reel or a strathspey from a waltz to enjoy Natalie McMaster’s music at The Egg on Saturday. Shielding her eyes to survey the near-capacity crowd and ask about hometowns, she found “enough [fellow Cape Breton Islanders] for a square [dance] set.” Armed with world-class talent and small-town charm, McMaster has long mastered the intimate art of invitation, of taking audiences to the traditional music of mind and heart she carries with her. She fiddles up a big blur of notes while also dancing, with microphones on the stage surface to capture the music of her flying feet. She and her three players (a “more trad” band, she said, than in past local shows, featuring bagpipes, drums and bass) medleyed jigs and reels to start, sketching the blueprint for their nearly two-hour show. Cape Breton Island may be a small place, but McMaster’s music, based in its Scotch-Irish traditions, felt big because of the energy she gave it. She also reached beyond tradition without compromising her cozy feel. Her (15-year-old!) cellist, Nathaniel Smith, led the band into McMaster’s own “Christmas Jig,” ably filling in for Yo-Yo Ma, who played on the recording, but it was McMaster herself, as usual, who flowed the song into a venerable and similarly happy Irish tune. No one sang in the show, but many songs told tales. The Norwegian “Josephine’s Waltz” that followed the “Christmas Jig” medley evoked a lover’s loss and then a survivor’s pride. And in her short string solo in the second set, McMaster told how a Scottish tune so ancient that it has lost its name echoed for her the melancholy of Scottish settlers arriving with hopes and fears in Nova Scotia. Somber songs were few as the band rejoined McMaster for the lively “Jean’s Reel.” For all her charisma and energy, she shared the spotlight well. Pianist Mac Morin, phrasing like George Winston in a Celtic mood, revved from a folkish style into something like Irish Harlem stride. McMaster said Cape Breton fiddlers use piano accompaniment, and to demonstrate and explode traditional duet technique, McMaster sat alongside Morin to improvise from tradition to spontaneous inspiration. The second set started closer to home but wandered both into ensemble surprises — a polka among the reels — and solos. Smith bebopped through “What a Wonderful World,” and self-effacing guitarist-banjoist-mandola player Elmer Deagle led the band through swift-flowing reels. McMaster enjoyed and made good use of her band, but she could probably have held the audience on her own. . The mother of three (the youngest was born in February), wife of a fiddler and proprietor of a cattle ranch, she displayed enough energy for about five people and looked utterly glamorous and musically commanding. .........................................................................................................................................
April 17, 2009 A hand shot up out of the audience and waved emphatically, attempting to catch the celebrity’s attention. The spotlit fiddler peered out into the darkness and candidly asked, “Do I know you? Am I related to you?” The whole room burst into laughter and I felt like I was right there with Natalie MacMaster in her kitchen enjoying a homespun “ceilidh,” (pronounced “kay-lee”) Celtic dance. This “kitchen” had a world-famous celebrity, a top-notch symphony orchestra and over 450 paying guests at $40 each, but that’s beside the point. It was still Natalie’s kitchen. She went on to tune her violin patiently, though hundreds of eyes watched anxiously. Perhaps she sensed the urgency when she joked that her tuning was, “Close enough for Celtic,” and the room chuckled again. Then this sweet, down-to-earth gal from Cape Breton Island picked up her fiddle and the “kitchen” went up in flames! There wasn’t a foot within earshot that could resist tapping to her phenomenal playing and dancing. Earshot, but not eyeshot. Unfortunately, most of the audience could only see the virtuoso from the waist-up due to the level seating arrangement of the hall. Natalie’s legendary clicks and clacks of tap shoes on the hollow stage stirred me to leave my seat and watch the entire concert from the side aisle. Soon after standing, I ran back to my aisle to fetch my young violin students, who were too short to catch the fancy footwork from their seats. In true Celtic tradition, our quiet observation from the sidelines grew into louder foot stomping, which rapidly escalated into energetic circle dancing and jigs. Natalie’s own dancing featured high kicks, quick spins and rhythmic tap dancing. As the show progressed, her traditional Scottish step dancing morphed into groovy modern hip-hop and disco moves, including the notorious and difficult “Moonwalk!” Much to my surprise and delight, the music also went through a breathtaking metamorphosis. The concert started with traditional Celtic melodies played by the silky string sections of the symphony. Next was a Cape Breton fiddle tune in A major, what Natalie called the “Canadian key.” After such traditional pieces, we learned that she was more multifaceted than imaginable. From a Latin mix to the gorgeous jazz ballad, “Autumn Leaves,” we were all captivated by her versatility. Concertmaster of the Okanagan Symphony, Denis Letourneau, was as mesmerized as the audience was! The classical virtuoso beamed from ear to ear and repeatedly shook his head in awe and admiration of Natalie’s fiddling fireworks. Then he contributed to the pyrotechnics when he joined Natalie for a musical goulash where “fiddling met violining.” Their duet blended the popular fiddle tune “Devil’s Dream” with the intricate Bach Violin Partida in E! “Denis, we have an expression back in Cape Breton,” said Natalie afterwards, “When we really dig in, we say we were ‘driving ‘er.’ Now you can go home and say last night you were really ‘driving ‘er!” Denis blushed. Natalie smiled. We all felt two worlds converge and it felt wonderful. As our cultures blend, I think we’ll be seeing a lot more “Traditional fusion” in music. Diverse forms of music, polar as they may seem now, will soon merge and create new genres that people of all ages and walks of life can appreciate. Put a symphony orchestra, a fiddler, a funk band and a bagpiper playing on stage at the same time and everyone from Grandma to the teenager with the spiked hair will approve. There will be growing pains, naturally. As in Natalie’s concert, there will be an obvious polarity in the audience in deciding proper concert protocol. Some people at the concert didn’t know whether get up and dance in the aisles, or to be content in sitting in quiet appreciation. Like any pioneers, we’ll find a middle ground that works for everyone. Heck, a friend of mine once created “seated dancing” in such an awkward situation. Natalie’s charm and talent, coupled with her obvious love of music, were enough to inspire me and several other violinists present to explore new avenues of expression and technique. I couldn’t wait to get home to try some of the things she showed us so flawlessly that night. Natalie provided further inspiration when she agreed to sign fiddles my students had brought with them. Then she stood, weary and tired, but smiling enthusiastically for group photographs with me and my fiddle students. My students, young and old, talked about Natalie’s concert for weeks and have found a role model who will guide them into wonderful new directions. Thank you, Natalie. You are one amazing Canadian pioneer and we love you for it! ** Rhiannon Schmitt (nee Nachbaur) is a professional violinist and music teacher who has enjoyed creative writing for years. She currently writes columns for two Canadian publications and has been featured in Australia’s “Music Teacher Magazine.” Writing allows her to teach people that the world of music is as fun as you spin it to be! Rhiannon, age 29, has worn the hats of businesswoman, performer, events promoter, classical music radio host and school orchestra music arranger in rural British Columbia, Canada. .........................................................................................................................................
March 20, 2009
GRAND RAPIDS -- You wouldn't know if someone didn't tell you. Just four weeks ago, fiddler Natalie MacMaster gave birth to her third child, Clare. You wouldn't know to see her step out on stage on Friday, looking svelte in a close-fitting outfit. You certainly wouldn't know it to watch her kick up her heels with a little -- all right, more than a little -- Irish step dancing. When MacMaster told the audience Friday night in DeVos Performance Hall that she had to nurse her newborn during intermission, well, that gave that away. An audience of 1,355 gave her a generous round of applause for that alone when MacMaster joined the Grand Rapids Symphony for its Pops Series in DeVos Hall. The evening of Celtic-flavor music comes just days after St. Patrick's Day. With a Scots musician named MacMaster on stage, we really should be celebrating St. Andrew's Day. But the feast day of Scotland's patron saint falls on Nov. 30, and we really don't want to go through all that again. MacMaster's fiddling was just what the doctor ordered for the first day of spring. Sunny, snappy music all around, with more fiddle tunes than you could count on all your fingers and toes. MacMaster entertained in a relaxed, let's-have-a-house-party style, both with the orchestra or alone with only her pianist, Mac Morin, who she referred to as her "neighbor from Troy," a community in Nova Scotia. Together, they tore up the stage with a set of tunes they call their "Tullochgorum Set," Morin accompanying with a Celtic, boogie-woogie stride piano style and MacMaster sawing up a storm, seated in a chair, and tap dancing with both feet. Toward the end, Grand Rapids Symphony's principal percussionist Bill Vits stepped up to play his wooden sticks, known as rhythm bones. With a full orchestra behind her, MacMaster played a lovely version of "O'Carolan's Concerto," a piece by the legendary Irish composer Turlough O'Carolan. Naturally, she played her most requested tune, the enchanting, "If Ever You Were Mine," from her 1993 album, "Fit as a Fiddle." The other star of the show was Grand Rapids Symphony concertmaster James Crawford, who joined MacMaster for fiddle and violin duets. Think of a comedian working with a straight man, a little like Gracie Allen and George Burns, and you get the idea of them trading licks with J.S. Bach's Violin Partita No. 5 and the traditional tune "Devil's Dream." Varineau and the orchestra did not coast through the evening. They opened the first half with Sean O' Boyle's "Baile Chruiach," an extravaganza of Celtic-flavored music with antiphonal brass and unusual percussion. Varineau worked in a little more traditional fare with Percy Grainger's deep-voiced arrangement of "Irish Tune from County Derry" -- better known as "Danny Boy." Victor Herbert's "Irish Rhapsody," with tunes such as "Believe Me, If All Those Endearing Young Charms," had a lush, post-romantic flavor to it. Early on, MacMaster asked if anyone in the audience was from Cape Breton. When no one replied, she said, "You never know." But, really, for a couple of hours, everyone was a visitor, at least, to the lovely island in Atlantic Canada. .........................................................................................................................................
March 20, 2009
The joy of performing is
readily apparent in Natalie MacMaster’s face as she delights the crowd
Wednesday night at the University at Buffalo’s Center for the Arts. Roughly three weeks ago, Cape Breton fiddler Natalie MacMaster gave birth to her third child, a new baby girl. On Wednesday night, she was step dancing, complete with flashing heels, tapping toes and pumping arms, up on the Center for the Arts stage on the North Campus of the University at Buffalo. If MacMaster hadn’t announced it early on in her performance, most folks in the audience probably wouldn’t have known of her recent delivery. People would have just chalked up her energetic show as perfectly normal for her, especially if they had seen MacMaster on earlier concert tours. But then again, some may remember how demonstrably pregnant she was while hoofing it on-stage when performing in Buffalo a few years ago and not been surprised at her current antics. All that aside, MacMaster’s fan base is loyal because she is a consummate musician and entertainer. Her fiddle artistry has all the traditional hallmarks of the Cape Breton style of playing, a genre with deep roots in the island’s overwhelming Scottish heritage, but MacMaster has always ridden on the edge of that tradition, adapting it to play to a larger audience. Wednesday night was a little different. For one thing, she was traveling with a slightly smaller ensemble than what she has used in the past. Eschewing her usual touring drummer and bass player, the fiddler embraced a more traditional stance. Joined by cellist Nathaniel Smith, her longtime keyboard player Mac Morin and multi-instrumentalist Matt MacIsaacs, MacMaster sought to bring to the stage the feeling of a Cape Breton dance hall, a place where the community gathers to hear music and move to time-honored rhythms. There was even a screen serving as a backdrop to the musicians and upon which video clips of Cape Breton life were shown. As MacMaster played and danced, bow and feet moving in tandem, the jigs, reels and waltzes flowed from the ensemble with deceptive ease. All of the musicians were top-notch. You could point to Morin’s spotlight moment where Mc- Master dropped out and the pianist was supported by cello and flute. Then there was the sterling duet between Smith’s energetic, almost rock-and-roll, cello playing and MacMaster’s dual artistry of fiddle and feet and Mac-Isaacs’ fluid movement between guitar, flute, and banjo and, most impressively, the highland pipes.
The end
result was a concert where the musicians took the audience to a
different place. .........................................................................................................................................
March 18, 2009
GRAND RAPIDS -- Celtic fiddler Natalie MacMaster, who will perform with the Grand Rapids Symphony in Grand Rapids, has garnered a Grammy Award nomination, a Juno Award, a couple of Top 20 albums on Billboard's World Music Charts and four gold-selling CDs in her native Canada. Natalie MacMaster will perform with the Grand Rapids Symphony in Grand Rapids. But her biggest project of 2009 was giving birth to her third child. Daughter Clare Marie came into the world on Feb. 18, and little more than a month later, mom Natalie MacMaster will be step dancing across the stage of DeVos Performance Hall. Her three-concert appearance this weekend with the Grand Rapids Symphony's Pops Series isn't even her first outing since giving birth. "These shows were booked before anyone knew I was pregnant," MacMaster said. MacMaster, 36, will join associate conductor John Varineau and the orchestra for an evening of jigs, ballads and contemporary tunes in the Cape Breton-style fiddling, which Scottish immigrants brought with them to Atlantic Canada. "No doubt evolution has occurred and will continue to occur," she said. "But I'm told that the music of Cape Breton is the most authentic of Scottish music today." The native of Nova Scotia grew up in a family of musicians, including her uncle, Buddy MacMaster, a legend among fiddlers. Natalie MacMaster began fiddling before her 10th birthday. "I got it through the blood and the environment and the upbringing," she said. "It was a very natural thing, almost like learning to talk." Her musical career, now entering its third decade, rode the wave of a Celtic fad that spawned such shows as "RiverDance." MacMaster recorded her first album, "Four On The Floor" at age 16. "That was a great time to be establishing your fan base and your sound and your brand," she said. "People were hungry for it back then. It was fresh and new, even though it's a very old music." MacMaster has worked with musicians ranging from operatic tenor Luciano Pavarotti to guitarist Carlos Santana as well as fellow fiddlers Alison Krauss and Mark O'Connor. At one point, she was doing 250 shows a year, but she's cut back to 50 shows in 2009. "I did 80 last year, and a hundred before that," she said. "But then the kids came along." MacMaster married fiddler Donnell Leahy of the band Leahy in 2002. Their careers often take them in different directions, so MacMaster will have kids in tow when she's in Grand Rapids this weekend. Two weeks ago, she was playing with her elder daughter and did a little step dancing. "I jumped for the first time," she recalled. "Oooh, that didn't feel good." But she's going to give it a shot when she joins the orchestra this weekend. "I can't not move, that's for sure," she said. "I'll dance. I say that confidently, now." .........................................................................................................................................
March 18, 2009
Canadian faith network VisionTV will stream its annual National Catholic Mission broadcast online. The National Catholic Mission 2009 broadcast on VisionTV is a two-part faith special that will offer reflections for the Lenten season, programmers describe. The marks the first time VisionTV is streaming the event, although the specialty service did launch a video streaming service VisionTV on Demand in 2007. VisionTV on Demand offers hours of program previews, exclusive clips and original content, all available for streaming free of charge. VisionTV's audience can also follow the station's activities on Twitter. Presented by the National Catholic Broadcasting Council, the annual National Catholic Mission invites Catholic Church members across Canada to rekindle their faith and seek new direction for their lives. The broadcast will include presentations by prominent Catholic clergy and educators, along with musical performances by fiddler Natalie MacMaster, singer Michael Burgess and singer/actress Arlene Duncan (Little Mosque on the Prairie). "We are proud to continue our longstanding partnership with the National Catholic Broadcasting Council -- and most especially pleased to introduce online streaming of the National Catholic Mission, giving more Canadians than ever the opportunity to experience this annual event," Mark Prasuhn, Chief Content Officer for VisionTV, said in a release .........................................................................................................................................
March 3, 2009 PORTLAND - Over the last decade, fiddler extraordinaire Natalie MacMaster has gone from the dance halls and traditional Scots-Irish music ceilidhs of her Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, to critical acclaim on folk, world and pop music stages around the globe. Tuesday, March 17, MacMaster and her band will return to Merrill Auditorium for a rollicking Saint Patrick's Day celebration featuring high-energy Celtic music and step dancing. The concert will begin at 7:30 p.m. A longtime Maine and PCA Great Performances favorite, MacMaster has taken the traditional sounds of her homeland in new directions while always staying true to the music's deep-seated Celtic roots. A MacMaster concert is part kitchen party, part traditional music and storytelling session (ceilidh) and part high-stepping dance hall charm. She and her band explore her cultural roots, tinged with bluegrass, pop and jazz. MacMaster's bandmates are Mac Morin, piano and step dance; Matt MacIsaac, pipes, whistles and banjo; J.D. Blair, drums; and Nathaniel Smith, cello. The niece of legendary Cape Breton fiddler Buddy MacMaster, Natalie first picked up the fiddle at age 9. She quickly became a lauded talent in her own right, earning numerous awards for her early traditional recordings. Branching out from her roots to embrace country, pop, and global influences, she quickly won kudos on the Celtic and world music circuits, picking up honors for Best Female Artist and Best Roots/Traditional Recording from Canada's East Coast Music Awards along the way. In July 2006, MacMaster became one of the youngest people ever named a member of the prestigious Order of Canada, Canada's highest civilian honor. MacMaster's live performances are renowned for their energy and rhythmic intensity. She has shared stages with Santana, The Chieftains, Paul Simon, Faith Hill, Don Henley, Luciano Pavarotti and numerous symphony orchestras. PCA Offstage, the education and community outreach arm of PCA Great Performances, will present a free preperformance lecture prior to the concert featuring Lewis MacKinnon, head of Nova Scotia's Office of Gaelic Affairs. An informal talk, he will discuss the origins and extent of Gaelic culture in Nova Scotia and share insights into Gaelic music, stories, humor and song. The lecture will take place from 6 to 7 p.m. in the Merrill Auditorium rehearsal hall. MacMaster's concert is part of PCA Great Performances' 2008-09 Traverser La Frontière series featuring performances focused on Canadian artists in children's theater, dance and music and their connections with Maine. .........................................................................................................................................
February 9, 2009 An "amazing and tremendous show" will bring in roughly $50,000 for the Lakefield Primary Health Care campaign, the campaign chairman said yesterday. Bruce Gibson said the two sold-out shows Thursday and last night by Leahy at Showplace have made a big impact on the campaign's goals. "It certainly maintains the momentum of our campaign," Gibson said. As part of the fundraising drive for the Lakefield Primary Healthcare Centre, Gibson said members of the Lakefield-based Leahy family and band were approached about participating. "Once they were made aware of what we were doing, they were very eager," he said. "We're building a medical centre for a family health team and we couldn't do better than a family like Leahy to support us." All the proceeds from the concerts go to the campaign, which Gibson said will be about $50,000. "It was an amazing, tremendous show," Gibson said of Thursday night's performance. "It's hard to believe one family has that much talent," Gibson said. "They had three generations on stage at one point last night." The campaign also received a $25,000 donation from Scotiabank at Thursday's show. After last night's concert, Gibson said the fundraising total will be roughly $4.1 million. The goal is $4.4 million. "It certainly shows the support all across the community," he said. Donnell Leahy told The Examiner the family wanted to contribute to their hometown. "We all have ways we can help and this is one way we can," he said. "So many people in this community step up and support their own. And we wanted to be a part of that." Health care is one thing Leahy said always makes the family happy to be home and proud to be Canadian. "We're having a little one every day in this family," he laughed. There are eight siblings in the group, several with children. Leahy's wife, fiddler Natalie MacMaster, is pregnant with their third child and due Feb. 10. Helping support the campaign is another way the Leahys want to stay connected to the community, he said. "We plan on living here forever." As much as the family tours and performs, Leahy said it's always different playing at home. For one thing, he said, it's very different to look over the crowd and recognize a lot of faces. The other thing is you definitely want the hometown show to be special. To add that special touch, the Leahys brought more of the family on stage. Some of the siblings' children and their parents as well as MacMaster became part of the performance. "There were 15 fiddles on stage (Thursday night)," Leahy said. "We've never had that many before." Another 14 fiddles were on stage last night. The impact of the fiddle-packed stage wasn't lost on Leahy. "To have our parents there ... it all started with them. It certainly makes this one to remember. It completed the whole show." .........................................................................................................................................
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Fiddler
Natalie MacMaster delivered an evening of reels, jigs and strathspeys
with associate conductor John Varineau and the Grand Rapids Symphony.
