If you’ve got a yen to hear some some good old-fashioned country fiddle playing, you won’t want to miss April Verch. Verch, along with bandmates Cody Walters (banjo and electric bass) and Alex Rubin (guitar and mandolin) will be stomping, singing, fiddling and strumming their way into Whitehorse Friday, March 4th.
A self-described “Ottawa-Valley Girl,” Verch originally hails from Pembroke, Ontario, where she was “born and raised” on this style of music. She was three when she began step dancing and six when she began playing the fiddle, she says.
With song titles such as “Big-eared Mule,” “Reels Tadoussac et Lindbergh” and “Cruel Willie,” Verch describes her style as “traditional, much more than contemporary,” with Franco-Celtic and bluegrass influences.
“It’s hard to say why I am so drawn to the traditional style… when you fall for something, there’s always this element of the unknown,” she says. “I have a strong affinity for the way life used to be, growing up in a small rural community where everyone helps each other out and you work with your hands. The music just goes with it.”
Verch is a fiddle player of some renown, with numerous awards. In 2010 she played before the entire country as part of the opening ceremony at the Vancouver Olympics. She released her first album, Springtime Fiddle, in 1992 and has since gone on to release 10 more.Her most recent album, The New Part, debuted in April of 2015.
Verch tours widely, playing Europe, the United Kingdom, Canada, China, Australia and the United States. While this is her first time in the Yukon, Verch says it’s a place she’s always wanted to visit.
“We’ve been to some pretty cool places in the North, in Alaska and Nunavut… there’s something about sharing music in small communities that have kept their traditions alive, which is just so amazing.”
Verch will be at playing at the Yukon Arts Centre on March 4th. The show starts at 8 p.m., tickets are available at www.YukonArtsCentre.com.
