Music of Canada

As part of celebrating five years of walking with you along the music road, I am building a series of resource pages about the primary subjects you’ll find here, to help you find your way around and learn more. Main areas you’ll find here at music road have to do with singers and songwriters, Americana music, the music of Ireland, Scotland, and Canada, and creative practice and inspiration


The Maritimes, the Laurentians, the Shield, the prairies, the far north, the rockies, the pacific coast: Canada is a country of great geographic diversity and its people are diverse as well.


a quick introduction to the diversity of Canadian music
holiday gift list: music of Canada
this was first written as a holiday gift guide, and has proved to be an article visitors often seek out

the artists

Ian Tyson cowboy poet of Alberta and the rocky mountain west
Ian Tyson: Yellowhead to Yellowstone

in the folk revival era, Tyson was also part of the duo Ian and Sylvia
Matt & Shannon & Ian & Sylvia


from Alberta, the Canadian Celtic band
The McDades

celebrating Canada from the Maritimes to the plains
Stan Rogers: songwriter of work, change, & sea

legendary storyteller in song Gordon Lightfoot

master Cape Breton fiddler
Natalie MacMaster
Cape Breton, in Nova Scotia in the Maritimes, has a strong heritage from Scotland, a heritage that is informed and touched by land, water, location, and interaction with other musics.

rising Cape Breton fiddler Rachel Davis
Scotland & Cape Breton: tradition and innovation


Cape Breton music from a new generation: The Cottars

The Barra MacNeils are a family group from Cape Breton whose harmonies on traditional songs and original songwriting about their home land have gained them fans for more than two decades
The Barra MacNeils: Album

Leahy, also a family based group whose high energy ensemble work showcases the music of their native Ontario. They’ve toured with another Ontario native, Shania Twain

Leahy: Live in Gatineau
Shania Twain: Why Not?

Eileen McGann, whose music includes traditional music from her Irish Canadian roots and original songs of Canada, inlcuding several on her holiday album
Trilogy: 2000 Years of Christmas

the land

songs of place: Canada
Cape Breton Radio Live take 02
The Celtic Colours Festival


These are just a few of the articles about Canadian music you will find here along the music road, and there will be more to come. If you should not see your favorite Canadian artist here, there’s a search box to the right...your suggestions are welcome, too

Also, many musicians from Scotland and Ireland include music from Canadian artists and the traditions of Canada in their work. Alasdair Fraser and Natalie Haas, The Unusual Suspects, and Manus McGuire are a few of those you’ll find along the music road.

-->Your support for Music Road is welcome and needed. If you are able to chip in, here is a way to do that, through PayPal. Note that you do not have to have a PayPal account to do this. Thank you.

Looking forward, looking back: happy new year

happy new year!
what’s ahead along the music road
a series on artists of the decade: thinking about how to do this I decided their work was work more than a just a listing

further adventures as the Great American Road Trip travels in the American west

deeper reflections on music and creative practice
continuing with occasional photo focused posts

and of course, continued insights into Irish, Scottish. Americana. and folk music from many different neighbourhoods, and sometimes, from behind the scenes

looking back at a few favorites

I considered several reflections on music and creative practice from the past year on New Year's Eve

over at A Traveler’s Library, Vera Marie Badertscher, the instigator of The Great American Road Trip, takes a look at what states you liked best in books and references a post I did a bit ago on what parts of the trip you were enjoying most through music. Michigan, Indiana, and Alabama ranked high, and there are two more to add: road trip music New York City: Irish Musicians and road trip music: American west.


reviews of recordings by a top fiddler and composer, an Irish songwriter, and a rising star from Scotland, and a selection of the best releases of 2010:
Hanneke Cassel: For Reasons Unseen
Dreams in America: Luka Bloom
Musical imagination: Matheu Watson
Best Music, 2010

two stories, one about the bodhran and another about kickstarting an Irish music recording.


at Perceptive Travel an evening in Belfast
Song Journeys
and at Wandering Educators
Scottish musician Sarah-Jane Summers shares the best of the Highlands

thanks for reading, and being part of things here, and thanks especially to all musicians who shared their music and their ideas. here’s to a bright new year for us all.

-->Your support for Music Road is welcome and needed. If you are able to chip in, here is a way to do that, through PayPal. Note that you do not have to have a PayPal account to do this. Thank you.

Resources & Links

artists, venues, media, sites about Ireland, and other pages you might like to visit this area isunder revision just now... but come take a seat by the fire and read awhile, anyway. you're most welcome, and there's much to explore kerry dexter the link will take you to a bit more about my work, along with links to writing and photography published elsewhere check out our songwriter CD recommendations at Amazon.

media

folk/roots/world music magazine Dirty Linen: the next chapter Strings Journal of Music Wandering Educators Irish Fireside Perceptive Travel Irish music internet radio Arts Journal

artists

Cathie Ryan Carrie Newcomer Hanneke Cassel Gretchen Peters Kathy Mattea Caroline Herring Rani Arbo & daisy mayhem Jeff Talmadge Andrea Zonn Emily Smith Christine Albert and Chris Gage Terri Allard Terri Hendrix Mary Black Matt & Shannon Heaton Sara Milonovich & Greg Anderson John Doyle Crooked Still Tish Hinojosa Fribo Altan Julie Fowlis Emmylou Harris Patrick Lawlor more to come...

festivals & venues

Boston Celtic Music Festival Club Passim Sunspot Center for the Arts in Natick Celtic Colours, Cape Breton Celtic Connections, Glasgow Bluebird Cafe The Country Music Hall of Fame MusicLee: Dublin area concerts Peadar O'Donnell's Cobblestone

ireland

Irish traditional music archive Traditonal Irish Music link directory a new site about the Troubles background to the peace process in Northern Ireland conflict and hope In NI, from CNN conflict and politics in Northern Ireland, 1968 to present, archive visit the hills of Donegal Donegal News Donegal tourism Derry City 33rd County:undocumented Irish in the US blog Irish Culture and Customs

other sites of interest

Swan Songs

Craig Barker, music attorney

Irish Music Center, Boston College

Durango Songwriters Expo

Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra

Orchestra Nashville

The University of Texas, Austin

Florida State University

Upper Room, good place for intercessory prayer information and requests

Berklee College of Music, Boston

resource for all things bodhran

Calgary Irish Society

Everyday Wine from Gretchen Roberts

The OWL at Purdue: writing resource

Celtic Harp Music by Anne Roos

Sheila Walsh: site from Scotland born inspiriational singer, speaker, and writer

A Traveler's Library: books and film to inspire travel

Visit liveIreland

my website: music writing & photography

also part of myspace music

and Linkedin

Writing, editing, photography, research, consulting and other services available, please enquire through sites noted just above

-->Your support for Music Road is welcome and needed. If you are able to chip in, here is a way to do that, through PayPal. Note that you do not have to have a PayPal account to do this. Thank you.

Kerry Dexter

Kerry Dexter is an independent writer, editor, and photographer in the US, Scotland, and Ireland. She is an expert on folk and world music (especially the Celtic and Americana sort), holds degrees in history and visual arts, and writes about these subjects, as wells as travel (especially in Ireland, Scotland, and North America) and creative practice.

Her work has appeared in print, online, and in broadcast media at National Geographic Traveler, USA Today, Strings, Ireland and the Americas, CMT, Symphony, Princeton Review handbooks, The Music Hound Guides, Wandering Educators, Songwriter’s Market, Perceptive Travel, and The Dictionary of American History, among other publications, and her background includes being folk music editor at VH1.com and Barnes and Noble Music Online, and long time contributing writer to the now out of print folk and world music print magazine Dirty Linen, which is archived at the Linrary of Congress.

She writes about music and creative practice at Music Road. She is also the Music Editor at Wandering Educators, where she writes a monthly column. She is an editor at Journey to Scotland and an Ireland Expert at Irish Travel KIt, and is a regular contributor to Perceptive Travel. Irish Fireside, and A Traveler's Library. She has also written artist biographies for several record labels and independent artists.

Her work is informed as much by walking the hills of Donegal, the Sangre de Cristo mountains of New Mexico, the highlands of Scotland, the sea coasts of Atlantic Canada and the piney wood hills of north Florida as it is by academic background in history, visual arts, and the humanities. In addition to writing about music and musicians, she writes about travel, architecture, education, spiritual and creative practice, and history.

Dexter is also a photographer (her work has been published in Symphony, The Providence Journal, Perceptive Travel, Ireland Travel Kit and other places) and an experienced producer and project co ordinator in broadcasting and the arts. She offers workshops, consulting, and one on one coaching on preparing and evaluating press materials, creative practice and vocation in the arts, and other subjects. More on these to come, but at present, your enquiries are most welcome.

To learn more, please write to Kerry at riosur [at] aol [dot] com

recent news: Perceptive Travel, to which Kerry is one of five regular contributors (her subjects are most often music, the arts, and history) has won a Lowell Thomas Award -- a Gold one, the highest level -- for quality of writing and photography, breadth and depth of coverage, and audience engagement. The awards are given by The Society of American Travel Writers Foundation.


*selected articles and photo essays

from Music Road

Róisín re-imagined from Muireann Nic Amhloaibh and the Irish Chamber Orchestra
Five songs for reflection at the turning of the year
Scotland's Music: Breabach: Frenzy of the Meeting
Ireland, Scotland, Story, and Connection: Allt from Julie Fowlis, Eamon Doorley, Zoe Conway, and John McIntyre
Scotland's Music: Karen Matheson: Family, Gaelic, and Story
Music for the Heart of Winter with Cathie Ryan
Classical violinist (and Scotswoman) Nicola Benedetti on her career, music, and education
Gaelic singer Julie Fowlis:Gach Sgeul/Every Story
India to Indiana: Everything Is Everywhere from Carrie Newcomer
Another Fine Winter's Night: Matt & Shannon Heaton
Cathie Ryan: Irish and American
Work of autumn: music
Gretchen Peters: Northern Lights
Ceol Chairlinn: sharing music in winter
intersections: words, music, and Robert Burns
Irish music, Irish landscape


at Perceptive Travel

Murals of Glasgow
Scotland's Coasts and Waters: a magic celebration re-imagined
Glasgow in Six Statues
Six Places to See the Future in the past: Exploring Historic Preservation
Exploring Cape Breton Island through Celtic Colours
Northern Ireland: History, Landscape, Legend, and Music Meet on Rathlin Island
Ireland: Following Saint Patrick
Denmark’s Harbour of Music
Mysterious Scotland: Calanais
The Wall, China Beach, and Memories
Finding Peace Along the Falls Road
Teaching Northumberland: Kathryn Tickell
Ian Tyson: songs of the Rocky Mountain West
Song Journeys
Meeting the Past in Northern Ireland
more Stories at Perceptive Travel

at Wandering Educators

Music and Horizons: Stories of Hope
Music for a Winter's Day
Song of the Banjo: Alison Brown
Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way: Voices of Donegal and Derry
Songs & Tunes of Cape Breton
Celtic Connections: Twenty Years of Extraordinary Music
book review: Modern Spice:Inspired Indian Flavors
Milwaukee Irish Fest
Five great places to eat in Glasgow, Scotland
Scottish musician Sarah-Jane Summers shares the best of the Highlands



at Journey to Scotland
Exploring the History of the Antonine Wall at Glasgow's Hunterian Museum
Scotland’s North Star: Music from Shetland’s Aly Bain
Glasgow Food Finds: Cafe Source

a selection of guest posts
guest post at A Traveler's Library music of the Ohio Valley: Wilderness Plots
guest post at A Traveler's Library on Scottish music for the traveler
guest post at Irish Fireside on three Celtic CDs to know
guest post at Perceptive Travel on pubs in Ireland: listening to music
guest post at The Brookyln Nomad on 5 top autumn Celtic festivals
guest post at Irish Fireside on the 2011 Gradam Ceoil awards honoring Ireland's traditional musicians
travel articles at Trazzler
including Veggie Planet in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the Falls Road in Belfast, the Festival of Lights in Tallahassee, Saint Andrew's in the Square in Glasgow, and The Bluebird Cafe in Nashville

photography photography -- music and light


what others say:
“Kerry has a way of lifting her subjects from the printed page and bringing them into your living room for a thoughtful conversation. Through music, photographs, and intimate interviews she shares stories that celebrate the human spirit.”
Lisa Gensheimer. President, Main Street Media

"Kerry is an ideal Music Editor on our site - sharing incredible stories of musicians from around the world. Her ability to dig deep into the musical story is what sets her apart from the crowd. I look forward each month to her column at WanderingEducators.com, and highly recommend her for both her writing ability and her in-depth knowledge of world music."
Dr. Jessica Voigts, editor and publisher, Wandering Educators




of note:
Music Road has four times been named one of the top five music blogs on the internet at the Weblog Awards, the only folk and Celtic music blog to be so recognized. Music Road is also a four time nominee for best music and arts blog at the Irish Blog Awards, and in 2008 the post Irish Music, Irish landscape was recognized as a top ten best post of the year by those awards. further, an article at Music Road and one at Perceptive Travel were named to the list of top Irish interest articles on the web in 2010 by the editors of Irish Fireside and in 2011, an article about Irish music at Wandering Educators was also chosen for that list. thanks to all who participated in these recognitions.

 in addition to editorial writing, Kerry can also help you with
writing liner notes, editing, presenting workshops, speaking, and consulting in the arts

professional biography writing services are also available.

for more information on any of these, please write to Kerry at riosur[at]aol [dot]com
thanks!

-->Your support for Music Road is welcome and needed. If you are able to chip in, here is a way to do that, through PayPal. Note that you do not have to have a PayPal account to do this. Thank you.

If you enjoy what you’ve been reading here, another way to support more of it:

professional biography writing

A well written professional biography helps you showcase your skills and can open doors for you. For musicians, artists, producers, writers, and other creative professionals, a well presented bio is often a far more useful career tool that a conventional resume. A brief professional biography is a tool to help you stand out, whatever your field.

To create yours, I will ask you several questions and we will have a conversation or two through e mail or by telephone. With more than two decades of experience as a professional writer and editor, I'll find your best professional stories, and distill them in ways which help you achieve your goals, creating a short (200 -300 word) biography for you.

Rates vary, depending on the project. I'm happy to discuss this with you.

Band, duo, and group enquiries, and enquiries concerning longer projects, are also welcome.

Evaluation of existing bio materials is also available.

Do you need liner notes for your CD or dvd, or perhaps a history of your event, building, or venue? I can help with those stories, too. Please enquire.

I work with artists based around the world, as well as in every part of the United States.


what others say:
about bio writing:
"Even though I'm a professional writer, I struggled to write my own artist profile. After hours of painful writing stretched over many days and weeks, I engaged Kerry Dexter to write one for me. With years of experience of working with artists of all kinds, she understands how to elegantly distill an artist's background, work and experiences into a skillfully crafted biography. The result? A profile that intrigues potential art buyers and gallery owners and shows a peek of my personality. If you need a professional artist profile or biography, contact Kerry. You'll be as thrilled as I am with the result."

Melanie McMinn
Fibre Artisan and Writer, New Zealand
feltedkiwi.com and www.frugalkiwi.co.nz

about editorial writing
“When it came to music journalists, Kerry was always one of my favorites: responsive and honest, and with an uncanny ability to illuminate the subject at hand. She approached each piece with open ears and a willingness to listen both to the music and to the artists' thoughts...first rate!” Brad San Martin former Director of Publicity, Compass Records

"Kerry really made me feel as though I were sitting in that sun warmed kitchen with the artist."
Susan Hartman, editor, folk music magazine Dirty Linen


For more information or to schedule a consultation about your project, please write to me at riosur at aol dot com, with ‘biography query’ in the subject line. I look forward to hearing from you.
Kerry Dexter


Kerry Dexter is an experienced writer, photographer, and producer. Her work has appeared in National Geographic Traveler, Strings, Symphony, Ireland and the Americas, and other print and broadcast media. She's the music editor at Wandering Educators and former folk music editor at Barnes and Noble Online and VH1.

more about Kerry Dexter