Andrea Beaton is an award-winning fiddler, composer, and recording artist who tours and teaches internationally, and is in great demand as a teacher at music camps and fiddling/dancing workshops. Coming from a long line of musicians, composers and dancers, the Mabou native is known for her powerful bow and driving style. 

 

Betty Lou and Kinnon Beaton have been playing the Cape Breton style for decades. Betty Lou Beaton began playing the piano at the age of five learning mainly by ear. At age, she started playing dances with her brother Buddy MacMaster and has been accompanying fiddlers for dancers ever since. She has played on numerous recordings including the Smithsonian Folkways recording The Beaton Family of Mabou: Cape Breton Fiddle and Piano Music and with her daughter Andrea Beaton. Kinnon Beaton is a left handed fiddle player and has composed and published a book of violin music called The Beaton Collection. The Beatons have released numerous albums and recordings over the years.  

 

Margie Beaton is from Mabou, Cape Breton and is the Marketing Director for Colaisde Na Gàidhlig, The Gaelic College. Alongside her sister Dawn, both were step dancing and playing fiddle at a very young age, and continue to be active within the cultural music industries. Over the years they have performed at concerts, ceilidhs and festivals all around Cape Breton Island and worldwide.  

 

Màiri Britton is an educator, musician and cultural project manager who has nurtured a life-long love and appreciation for the Gaelic language and culture. Originally from Scotland, her interest in Gaelic was sparked at the age of five through attending her local Féis, and she has learned the language to fluency with the support of generous teachers and prolonged immersions with mentors. As a Gaelic singer, step dancer and harpist, Màiri has been lucky to teach, perform and record with different projects in Europe and North America, including as lead vocalist with the Gaelic trad group Fàrsan.

 

Mary Beth Carty is a multi-instrumentalist and singer from Antigonish, NS. Accordionist, guitarist, and player of pocket-sized instruments, she earned the 2024 Canadian Folk Music Award’s Traditional Singer of the Year. Carty’s second solo album, Crossing the Causeway, fuses traditional pieces, instrumental tunes, and original songs to create a multilingual tour-de-force that reflects the diverse yet unified roots of her region. Carty’s first solo album, Les biens-nommés, was nominated at the East Coast Music Awards in 2018. 

 

Melody and Derrick Cameron live in Mabou, Cape Breton on the property of the small dairy farm where Derrick was raised. They have been performing music together throughout Canada's Maritime Provinces and the New England States to very receptive audiences for years. They have performed alongside other Cape Breton musicians at festivals, taught workshops and play for many dances, pubs and concerts throughout Cape Breton Island. Melody is also an accomplished Cape Breton style step dancer. Melody is also an accomplished Cape Breton style step dancer and hosts the Mabou Step Dance School each summer in Mabou. 

 

Shelly Campbell is a traditional Cape Breton style fiddle player from Inverness County. For close to 20 years she has been playing local concerts, pubs and festivals and is a popular player for dances. She has taught Cape Breton style fiddling in workshops and in private lessons throughout Cape Breton and in Scotland. Shelly also has an avid interest in the Gaelic language and its preservation in Cape Breton and is currently a Gaelic language teacher. 

 

Stan Chapman is a retired elementary school music teacher currently residing in Antigonish, Nova Scotia. Stan is an accomplished fiddle player and has taught the Cape Breton style of fiddling for close to 40 years, both in private and group lessons to students like Natalie MacMaster and Ashley MacIsaac. He has also directed the Cape Breton Fiddler’s Association and many youth groups in public performances. Stan has conducted fiddle workshops in Canada and the United States as well as having taught at the Gaelic College for many years.

 

Allan Dewar grew up in Halifax and Antigonish and picked up the music at home. Allan learned by ear and attended every concert, dance and house party he could. For many years he toured with several well-known Cape Breton artists and these days, Allan mostly accompanies local fiddlers at dances, concerts and ceilidhs.

 

Robert Deveaux is an Acadian fiddler, pianist, and singer who grew up in St-Joseph-du-Moine, just south of Chéticamp on Cape Breton Island. His influences as a fiddler include Arthur Muise and Donnie LeBlanc. He has a Bachelor of Arts degree in French from St. Francis Xavier University and worked as a fiddler and guide at the Fortress of Louisbourg Historical Site. He has revived the unique style of playing fiddle and singing of Joseph Athanase Larade and is a respected researcher and collector of Acadian songs. He can be heard playing fiddle on the album Pure Celtic Hearts Volume 2 by Cape Breton pianist Maybelle Chisholm McQueen.

 

Kimberley Fraser holds a degree in Violin performance from Berklee College of Music and in Celtic Studies from St. Francis Xavier University in Nova Scotia. Education is important to her, reflected in Kimberley’s dedication to teaching Cape Breton music both at home and abroad. A master at the trio of fiddling, step dancing and piano, Kimberley is a much sought after teacher for all three.

 

Dr. Glenn Graham is a composer, songwriter, music instructor, published author, and academic from Judique, Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. Glenn’s roots stretch far into the rich musical past of Cape Breton. Glenn is a member of the renowned Beaton family of Mabou. Many generations of this family have produced countless musicians including fiddlers, piano players, Gaelic singers, pipers, poets/songwriters, composers and dancers.

 

Peter LeBlanc operates Front Porch, a small working farm located in the Margaree River Valley on Cape Breton Island. Peter hosts numerous concerts at the farm and organizes and promotes square dances and other musical events in and around Cape Breton.

 

Mary Jane Lamond is a sharer of songs, stories and spirit. She is a renowned Gaelic singer who has dedicated her musical career to the preservation of Scottish Gaelic songs, garnering numerous JUNO and East Coast Music Award nominations, critical acclaim, and a worldwide audience for her music.

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Carmen MacArthur is from Gillisdale, Cape Breton. Originally from Pictou County, she became interested in all things surrounding the Gaelic culture during a gap year as a L’Arche assistant in Whycocomagh. She studied Gaelic at St. F.X. University in Antigonish, then traveled to Memorial University in Newfoundland to take an MA in Folklore. She currently teaches Gaelic classes from her home, as well as at Cape Breton University.

 

Joanne MacIntyre is a Gaelic language educator from Mabou Coal Mines, Inverness County where she was raised in a culture-rich environment of Gaelic music, dance, and language. She has sung on stages around Cape Breton since her teen years, bringing the Island’s distinct style and “swing” to appreciative listening audiences. 

 

Kenneth MacKenzie is a piper and fiddler from Mabou, NS. He grew up in a Gaelic speaking household and Gaelic culture has been an integral part of his life from the early years. Kenneth has many roles working to promote Gaelic culture including previously working as the Director of Education at Colaisde na Gàidhlig [The Gaelic College] and Vice President at the college’s Beinn Mhàbu campus. 

 

Howie MacDonald is a well-respected fiddler from Westmount, Cape Breton County. Coming from a musical family, he has released 12 albums and a DVD, and spent many years touring and recording with the Rankin Family. An accomplished piano-player who has accompanied just about everyone on the Island, Howie is very much in demand for dances, concerts, ceilidhs and recording sessions. He takes great inspiration from the tunes and musicians from prior generations, like Winston “Scotty” Fitzgerald and Jerry Holland.

 

Taya MacDonald is a young multi-instrumentalist from Mabou Harbour, Cape Breton with a passion for traditional Cape Breton music. At age five, she showed a keen interest in traditional music. Through school music class, private lessons, participation in community ceilidhs and great family encouragement, Taya has learned to put her hand to the fiddle, piano, guitar, mandolin and accordion. 

 

Joe MacMaster has swiftly established himself as a rising star in the Cape Breton music scene. Equipped with his exceptional talent in playing the pipes, fiddle, and piano, Joe has become a regular performer at local dances and ceilidhs in and around Cape Breton. He has toured across the United States alongside Natalie MacMaster, graced Ontario with his music on multiple occasions, and even appeared at the Edmonton Folk Festival. As a Troy native, Joe is one of the younger members of the renowned MacMaster fiddling dynasty. 

 

Boyd MacNeil and Ryan MacNeil are members of the family group of Cape Breton musicians The Barra MacNeils from Sydney Mines. Boyd first received his first violin lesson at the age of four, and 4 short years later made his performing debut. In his mid-teens, Boyd and his brother Ryan were special guests in the odd concert with the already established quartet, The Barra MacNeils, officially joining the group in 2005. Both were also members of the Celtic Fusion group Slainte Mhath from Cape Breton Island and are active musicians. 

 

Lucy MacNeil is a singer, multi instrumentalist and step dancer from Cape Breton Island. She plays Fiddle, Celtic Harp, and Bodhran. Lucy has been performing with the Barra MacNeils for nearly four decades. They come from a long tradition of Cape Breton music and dance that has been the foundation of their creative pursuits over their musical career.

 

Emily MacDonald is an experienced Gaelic educator and speaker from Ainslie Glen, Cape Breton Island. She is a graduate of St. Francis Xavier University where she completed her Bachelor of Arts in Celtic Studies and Bachelor of Education Degree. 

 

Rodney MacDonald is an accomplished recording artist, composer, and step dancer and comes from a family of musicians who are known for their traditional “Mabou Coal Mines” fiddle style, drive, compositions, and timing. A former Premier of Nova Scotia, Rodney is a passionate advocate for Gaelic language and culture creating such organizations as the Nova Scotia Office of Gaelic Affairs and Cape Breton’s Kitchenfest! festival. He is the current President of Colaisde na Gaidhlig / The Gaelic College and its satellite campus, Beinn Mhàbu. 

 

Vincent McDonald is a fiddler, Gaelic speaker and step dancer from Halifax, Nova Scotia and has family roots in Cape Breton. He later discovered the doors Cape Breton Island opened in his life including connections with music, the Gaelic and culture. Vincent can be seen across Nova Scotia fiddling, at square dances and speaking Gaelic. He is a previous student at Beinn Mhàbu’s Gaelic Foundations Living Culture Program program in partnership with Cape Breton University. 

 

Minnie MacMaster was born in Mabou, Cape Breton Island and is the mother of fiddler and step dancer Natalie MacMaster. She is an accomplished step dancer and grew up steeped in the region's musical traditions surrounding dance, Gaelic song and fiddle tunes. 

 

Mac Morin is a step dancer and piano player from Troy, Cape Breton. He has gone on to tour around the world with Natalie MacMaster and Beòlach while continuing to travel widely to teach Cape Breton step dancing,and has appeared on numerous artists’ recordings including Beòlach, Natalie MacMaster, Yo Yo Ma, The Rankins, and Buddy MacMaster.

 

Bradley Murphy is a Gaelic singer, fiddler, and multi-instrumental musician born in rural Unama’ki. He has been breathing new life into traditional Gaelic songs showcasing their relevance and beauty and his most recent release, “beul” is a collection of songs collected at home and also from Scotland. 

 

Màiri Rankin is part of the influential Rankin Family, legends on the Canadian music scene. She is a fiddle player and step-dancer from Mabou, NS and has developed her own unique style by being immersed in such a rich musical culture. She has toured nationally and internationally as a solo artist, a sideman with several groups. 

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Adam Young is a pianist from French Road, Cape Breton. His solo album, Yearbook, won the 2022 East Coast Music Award for Roots/Traditional Recording of the Year. He has a Canadian Folk Music Award nomination under his belt, as well as several Music Nova Scotia nominations. He has released a tunebook featuring 189 of the 365 compositions created as a part of his Yearbook project, and can be found playing concerts, ceilidhs, square dances and sessions throughout Cape Breton, and has showcased his talents across the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States, and Australia.around the world with Natalie MacMaster and Beòlach while continuing to travel widely to teach Cape Breton step dancing,and has appeared on numerous artists’ recordings including Beòlach, Natalie MacMaster, Yo Yo Ma, The Rankins, and Buddy MacMaster.