NATALIE MacMASTER
NATALIE MACMASTER: CAREER HIGHLIGHTS AT-A-GLANCE…
One of Cape Breton, Nova Scotia’s most important exports and a superstar in the Celtic music world (though she’s far too humble to admit it), fiddler and step-dancer Natalie MacMaster has built a sterling, multi-decade career on electrifying playing and must-see live performances. Her extensive discography showcases MacMaster as both soloist and marquee collaborator, notably with husband and fellow
fiddler Donnell Leahy. An Order of Canada is among many accolades the Ontario-based mother of seven she has received in recognition of her peerless artistic status.
DISCOGRAPHY
Solo: Four On The Floor (1989); Road To The Isle (1991); Fit As A Fiddle (1993); A Compilation (1996); No Boundaries (1997); In My Hands feat. Alison Krauss (1999); My Roots Are Showing (2000); Live (2002); Blueprint (2003); Yours Truly feat. Michael McDonald (2006); Cape Breton Girl (2011).
Collaborations: Songs of Joy & Peace w/ Yo-Yo Ma (2008); A Christmas Gift to You w/ Johnny Reid (2013); One w/ Donnell Leahy (2015); A Celtic Family Christmas w/ Donnell Leahy (2016).
2019 saw Natalie back in the studio again to record her 12th solo LP.
AWARDS & ACCOLDADES
Solo: GRAMMY AWARD NOMINATION; for Best Traditional Folk album, My Roots Are Showing,
2000JUNO Awards (seven nominations, win for Best Instrumental Album, In My Hands, 2000);
19 EastCoast Music Awards; 5 Canadian Country Music Association Awards (as Fiddler of the Year from 1997 to 2001);
multiple gold albums with overall sales exceeding 300,000;
Member of Order of Canada (2006);
GEMINI Award (Best Performance or Host in a Variety Program or Series, 1999); Honorary Doctorates at School of Theology, Halifax, NS, Trent University, Peterborough and Niagara University in New York;
Casino Nova Scotia Music Hall of Fame Induction (2016).
Collaborations: Featured on Yo-Yo Ma’s Songs of Joy & Peace which won a GRAMMY AWARD for Best Classical Crossover Album); Canadian Folk Music Award (Instrumental Group of the Year 2015 w/Donnell Leahy); East Coast Music Awards (Fan’s Choice Entertainer of the Year and Instrumental Recording of the Year 2016 w/ Donnell Leahy); recipient of the Canadian Independent Music
Association’s Road Gold Award (2018) recognizing artistry through public performances (w/ Donnell Leahy).
NOTABLE EPHEMERA
Co-founded the annual Greenbridge Celtic Music Fest which she also curates and headlines.
Performed at myriad prestigious festivals including (but not limited to) MerleFest in Wilkesboro, North Carolina, and at Dublin Irish Festival in Dublin, Ohio in 2017, and Milwaukee Irish Fest in 2018.
Has performed with Béla Fleck, Faith Hill, Carlos Santana, The Chieftains, Don Henley, Sharon, Lois & Bram, Buddy MacMaster and Jesse Cook; has a teaching degree and home-schools her children; is a published author (Natalie MacMaster’s Cape Breton Aire, 2010); is an excellent cook who shares recipes on her official
website.
Co-starred along with her husband, Donnell Leahy, and her children in marblemedia’s 2018 A Celtic Family Christmas, a one hour music special picked up for broadcast by BYUtv in the United States and Canadian broadcasters YESTV, NTV, CHEK DT and Vision TV.