Natalie MacMaster

Natalie MacMaster CM ONS (born June 13, 1972) is a Canadian fiddler from Troy, Inverness County, Nova Scotia, who plays Cape Breton fiddle music. She has toured with the Chieftains, Faith Hill, Carlos Santana and Alison Krauss, and has recorded with Yo-Yo Ma. She has appeared at the Celtic Colours festival in Cape Breton, Celtic Connections in Scotland and MerleFest in the United States. MacMaster is the daughter of Alex and Minnie (née Beaton) MacMaster and the sister of Kevin and David MacMaster. She is the niece of the late renowned Cape Breton fiddler Buddy MacMaster and the cousin of two other fiddlers, Ashley MacIsaac and Andrea Beaton. She is also distantly related to Jack White, whose paternal grandparents were from Antigonish and Sydney Mines, Nova Scotia. In 2002, she married fiddler Donnell Leahy of the Leahy family band, and moved to Lakefield, Ontario. They have seven children, and have performed and recorded together as a duo, and occasionally include their children, who also play fiddle, in their performances. MacMaster began playing the fiddle at the age of nine, and made her performing debut the same year at a square dance in Glencoe Mills, Nova Scotia. When she was 16, she released her first album, Four on the Floor, and a second album, Road to the Isle, followed in 1991. Her first album was self-produced, while her second was co-produced by John Morris Rankin (The Rankin Family) and Tom O'Keefe. Both albums were initially released only on cassette, but Rounder Records omitted a few tracks and re-released them as A Compilation in 1998. In 1999, she performed at the Juno Awards show in Hamilton. In recent years she has expanded her musical repertoire, mixing her Cape Breton roots with music from Scotland and Ireland, as well as American bluegrass. In 2004, MacMaster appeared on Sharon, Lois & Bram's 25th Anniversary Concert special titled 25 Years of Skinnamarink that was broadcast on CBC on January 1, 2004, at 7:00pm. She performed two songs with the trio, "C-H-I-C-K-E-N" and "Grandpa's Farm". MacMaster has received a number of Canadian music awards, including several "Artist of the Year" awards from the East Coast Music Association, two Juno Awards for best instrumental album, and "Fiddler of the Year" from the Canadian Country Music Association. She was also awarded an honorary doctorate from Niagara University in New York in 2006. In 2006, she was made a member of the Order of Canada and, in 2020, she was made a member of the Order of Nova Scotia. In 2023, she was inducted into the Canadian Fiddle Hall of Honour at the 2023 Canadian Grand Masters event in Truro, Nova Scotia. Traditional Music From Cape Breton Island, Nimbus NI5383, 1993 (two tracks) Celtic Colours – The Road Home, 1997 (one track) Celtic Colours – The Second Wave, 1998 (one track) Celtic Colours – Forgotten Roots, 1999 (one track) Roots Music: An American Journey, Rounder 0501, 2001 (one track) Songs for the Savoy, 2001 (one track) Celtic Colours — The Colours of Cape Breton, 2002 (one track) Celtic Colours — Volume VII, 2003 (one track) The Rough Guide to the Music of Canada, 2005 (one track) Yo-Yo Ma & Friends: Songs of Joy and Peace; Songs:A Christmas Jig/Mouth of the Tobique Reel; 2008 (Sony BMG) Thomas Dolby: Amerikana EP, Songs:Toad Lickers and 17 Hills, 2010 (Lost Toy People, Inc) "White Stripes Gear up for Canada, Find Family Along the Way". SoulShine. June 19, 2007. Archived from the original on March 28, 2016. Retrieved August 13, 2023. "Distant relative confirms Jack White's N.S. roots". Entertainment. CBC Arts. May 9, 2007. Retrieved February 3, 2026. Iwasaki, Scott (February 15, 2019). "MacMaster and Leahy have combined their love of music with their love of family". Park Record. Retrieved August 13, 2023. - Sisneros, Johnna (March 6, 2019). "REVIEW: Step-dancing violinists earn standing ovation in A Celtic Celebration at Lied Center". The Daily Nebraskan. Retrieved March 14, 2019. Gillard, Cheryl (2013). "Natalie MacMaster". Canadian Encyclopedia. Nathanson, Ian (November 30, 2024). "Family tradition: MacMaster, Leahy bring latest Christmas tour to Maritimes". Cape Breton Post. Saltwire Network. p. 1. Retrieved April 27, 2026. According to original cassette jacket McCann, Mike. "Live Reviews: The 1999 Juno Awards March 7, 1999 Copps Coliseum, Hamilton, ON". Chart Attack. Archived from the original on February 3, 2000. "A Celtic Celebration with Natalie MacMaster" (Press release). National Arts Centre, Ottawa. March 8, 2012. "Governor General to invest 41 recipients into the Order of Canada" (Press release). The Governor General of Canada. May 2, 2007. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved August 13, 2023. - "Order of Nova Scotia recipients-2020". Government of Nova Scotia. Retrieved December 7, 2020. "Canadian Grand Masters - 2023". Canadiangrandmasters.ca. Official website Natalie MacMaster at TED "Cape Breton fiddling in reel time" (TED2002) "Fiddling in reel time" (TED2003)