Her parents’ example of faith in action included preparing meals for people in need on special occasions, such as Christmas and Easter. “They were naturally giving of themselves, at any time of day, for anyone.” “My parents had charitable hearts,” says Natalie, who was raised in a Catholic home. While music was central to family life for both Natalie and Donnell, the only thing that was even more important was their Christian faith. Before Donnell realized it, fiddling had become a career. In the early 1980s, the children formed a band, aptly called The Leahy Family, and started touring across Canada and internationally. “Over time, we got to be a bigger part of what Mom and Dad did,” Donnell says, “to the point where they stopped coming with us.” I suppose I just wanted to be like them.”Īs Donnell and his siblings learned to fiddle, they started playing at their parents’ gigs. “Mom and Dad had a band, so they would work all week on the farm, and on weekends, they’d play at weddings and dances. “That’s what got me started and it just took off from there,” says Natalie, who released her first album, Four on the Floor, when she was 16.ĭonnell had a similar experience growing up in Lakefield. Her first violin was a gift from a relative. “Most of these tapes were from house parties, recorded on the spot with a home recorder, and then the tapes would circulate Cape Breton.
“It’s not just two fiddlers going it’s arranged so that you hear the separate personalities” (Photos: Rebekah Littlejohn)“We went to many local events that featured the traditional music, such as square dances and concerts, and my mother was always playing records and cassette tapes,” Natalie says. Natalie and Donnell often write and arrange their own music. If you follow your dreams too much, you might miss out on what the Lord has planned for you.”īorn and raised on Cape Breton Island, N.S., Natalie’s love of fiddle music began with her parents, Alex and Minnie, who introduced her to the island’s signature Celtic style. “I never set out to become a fiddler,” says Natalie, “but I think you have to be flexible. Not bad for a small-town girl who originally planned to become a teacher. Today, they are Celtic music’s power couple with dozens of awards, top-selling albums and accolades between them-including an Order of Canada membership for Natalie. Natalie learned to step dance at five and started fiddle lessons at nine, while her husband, Donnell Leahy, was fiddling at just three years old. Music touches every part of her family’s life, and it always has. “The kids were practising their music just a moment ago.” “I think Donnell’s let the lions out of their cages,” she says with a laugh. When world-renowned fiddler Natalie MacMaster picks up the phone at her home in Lakefield, Ont., there’s a gentle roar in the background-the sounds of a busy family having a typical Monday morning on the farm. Building Blocks of Spiritual Leadership.Modern Slavery & Human Trafficking Response.
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