Natalie MacMaster & Donnell Leahy to Perform at MPAC, 2/27

By: Jan. 28, 2015
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Fiddler Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy bring the entire family as they present an evening of singing, dancing and world class music-making at Mayo Performing Arts Center on Friday, February 27, 2015 at 8 pm. Tickets are $29-59.

A "Natalie & Donnell" performance is not soon forgotten. From the first note, audiences recognize the amazing talent being poured out before them. Riveting original pieces, traditional Cape Breton tunes, step-dancing, story-telling, and a joie-de-vive you have to see to believe, Natalie and Donnell have created a musical progeny that is in all ways unique and enticing and ensures that a strong Canadian fiddling tradition will exist for years to come.

Since marrying in 2002, two of Canada's brightest stars have been captivating audiences all over North America with their exceptional musical skills and obvious joy of playing together. Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy have received both industry-acclaim and a loyal following by combining their incredible individual talents, giving audiences a remarkable musical experience each and every night.

Both born into musical families, Natalie and Donnell entered into their musical careers naturally. Hailing from Cape Breton Island, Natalie received her first fiddle at the age of nine. Her first recording was released when she was only 16, launching a career that has lasted for over 30 years. With amazing dedication to her craft, Natalie has received numerous awards in the US and Canada, recognizing both her musical talent and importance to Cape Breton's fiddling tradition and international profile. Natalie's performances leave her audiences hollering for more as she and her band wow them with stylistic diversity without losing the traditional Cape Breton groove. Although her stage presence is reason enough to see one of her shows, it's the elegance with the bow, the intricate technique with the fiddle, and the embrace of the Cape Breton tradition that floors her admirers at countless shows every year.

Honing his remarkable talent since the age of three, Donnell has literally spent his entire life with a fiddle in his hand. His initial skills were learned at home from his parents - a fiddle-playing father from Ontario and a step-dancing mother from Cape Breton. With a well-trained ear it is no surprise that, as the musical leader & front-man of Leahy for over 15 years, his own style emerged; some even say he even created a new genre of music known simply as "Leahy." Combined with his mesmerizingly strident, exultant, and high-energy performances, this style has become Donnell Leahy's musical signature.

Now, after over 10 years of marriage and six children, Donnell and Natalie have turned their sights to combining their musical and home lives. By incorporating family into their performances and travel, they have found the perfect way to maintain a healthy work-life balance. Donnell & Natalie strive to bring up their children with the same home, faith, and musical heritage each of them received. Fiddling, step-dancing, and piano lessons find their place alongside hockey sticks, school books, and family events.

Mayo Performing Arts Center, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, presents a wide range of programs that entertain, enrich, and educate the diverse population of the region and enhance the economic vitality of Northern New Jersey. The 2014-2015 season is made possible, in part, by a grant the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, as well as support received from the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, F.M. Kirby Foundation and numerous corporations, foundations and individuals. The Mayo Performing Arts Center has been designated a Major Presenting Organization by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts.



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