More than a few families are well acquainted with the day-to-day challenges presented when both parents work outside the home.
Juggling schedules is an art form that calls upon the dexterity of a seasoned circus performer while simply being there for the kids is a task in itself.
When Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy married in 2002, each brought a busy and successful musical career to the union. Over the years that followed, they also brought seven children to the mix — all while touring and recording as Canada’s reigning power couple of fiddle-infused Celtic music, often with their very musical children in tow.
While the couple has no doubt sacrificed, passing on gigs and other professional obligations with the family front of mind, such will not be the case on Saturday, July 1st when MacMaster and Leahy open the 36th season of Peterborough Musicfest at Del Crary Park.
As has been the case since the late Moe Koffman headlined on Canada Day in 1987, admission to the 8 p.m. concert is free. The concert will run until around 9:30 p.m., with the City of Peterborough providing a Canada Day fireworks display over Little Lake following the concert.
MacMaster and Leahy arrive in Peterborough just a few months removed from the release of their third album together. Canvas is aptly titled, with its addition of rock, pop, Latin and classical influences to their trademark Celtic sound.
VIDEO: “The Chase” – Natalie MacMaster & Donnell Leahy
The duo’s latest studio collaboration comes eight years after the release of their million-selling debut album One, which was followed by 2016’s A Celtic Family Christmas.
Nova Scotia born, MacMaster picked up a fiddle at age nine and never put it down, no doubt influenced at the time by her uncle Buddy MacMaster, a Cape Breton fiddler of considerable renown.
“I never intended to make a career out of it (music), mostly because I didn’t think it was possible,” says MacMaster in an interview provided by their management.
“Even the most adored fiddlers in Cape Breton had day jobs. And yet, here I am. I’m continually amazed by what the fiddle has brought to my life It has carried me through my childhood, through my teens, my young adult life, my married life and now motherhood. And I still love it as much as ever. Same with Donnell. It’s unexpected and awesome.”
Leahy, meanwhile, cut his musical chops as a fiddler with the much-loved Lakefield family band of the same name.
“The fiddle was definitely common ground for us when we first got together,” recalls MacMaster.
“I was so in awe of Donnell’s family; of 11 siblings who could play and had a family band. And here I am now doing almost exactly the same thing. Well, kind of.”
Early on, the couple realized being on the road without their kids was more difficult than touring with them by their side. The fact that they were already being homeschooled by MacMaster, who has a teaching degree, made that decision all the more palatable.
VIDEO: A Celtic Family Christmas with Natalie MacMaster & Donnell Leahy
“Initially, we were reluctant to let the kids perform; we worried the expectations might be too much,” adds Leahy.
“But then one night, we put Mary Frances on stage. Soon after that, Michael wanted to play. And you must reward practice.”
And practice brings rewards, as both parents well know.
MacMaster’s resumé is peppered with a number of Canadian music awards, including several Artist of the Year nods from the East Coast Music Association and two Juno Awards for Best Instrumental Album. Fourteen years after she made a member of the Order of Canada, her home province named her a member of the Order of Nova Scotia in 2020.
Meanwhile, Leahy shared in the family’s musical success of the late 1990s — a period which saw three Juno Awards come their way as Canadians fell in love with the siblings’ step-dancing ways and fiddle-heavy musicianship.
As central to the family’s dynamic as the stage is the 120-acre farm that dates back through generations of Leahys. It too has played a key role in their children’s development and education.
“Running the farm is a great counterpoint to life on the road,” says Leahy, adding “We believe in work and the farm is a wonderful place for the kids to learn through their chores.”
VIDEO: “Colour Theory” – Natalie MacMaster & Donnell Leahy featuring Brian Finnegan
With their Musicfest appearance marking the start of a busy summer ahead, the family continues to do what it has done so very well to date — be together, whether that’s at the farm or on the road or any point in between.
“This whole thing — first playing music by myself, then playing music with Donnell, then touring with Donnell and the children and all of us playing music together — has evolved in a very natural way,” says MacMaster. “We feel incredibly lucky to be together as a family and to be letting our children develop their musical talent.”
“The only downside is that we can’t do all we’re asked to do and might like to do in other circumstances because we are parents first,” adds Leahy. “You think about touring Australia and Ireland and The Netherland. But then you remember the kids’ math homework has to get done.”
Peterborough Musicfest is presenting 15 free-admission concerts during its 36th season, each staged on Wednesday and Saturday nights until August 19th, and supported by more than 100 sponsors, kawarthaNOW among them.
Overseen by general manager Tracey Randall and staff, a board of directors, and numerous volunteers, Peterborough Musicfest’s stated mission remains “to provide diverse, affordable live music to enrich cultural and economic prosperity in our community.”
For more information on this concert or the entire 2023 season, visit www.ptbomusicfest.ca or phone the Peterborough Musicfest office at 705-755-1111.
VIDEO: “Fiddler’s Despair” – Natalie MacMaster & Donnell Leahy
kawarthaNOW is proud to be a headline sponsor of Peterborough Musicfest’s 2023 season.
