Three of Canada’s most highly regarded fiddlers will regroup for a short tour across Canada and the United States this and next month.
And among their stops is Coquitlam’s Evergreen Cultural Centre next week.
Stephanie Cadman, Miranda Mulholland and Kendel Carson — jokingly referred to as the brunette, red head and blonde in Belle Starr — will bring their talent to the Tri-City stage Feb. 12.
Cadman said the trio will reunite after more than a year off the project. A world-renowned tap dancer and Dora-award winning actor, Cadman recently wrapped up the Mirvish Production of Once.
Mulholland is a member of the Great Lake Swimmers, The Rattlesnake Choir and the Roaring Girl Cabaret while Carson has been performing with Alan Doyle of Great Big Sea fame and The Paperboys — a world music band of which Mulholland also played with.
“For Belle Starr, it’s always been an issue of timing and waiting for our schedules to line up,” Cadman said. “Now that they have, we’re looking forward to the month together.”
On their run, the fiddlers plan to write as well as record a live album at one of their venues.
Belle Starr, which takes its name from the American outlaw, is the brainchild of Mulholland. She pitched the band concept to Country Music Television (CMT) for funding. “She thought it would be a great idea and, sure enough, we all got along and we enjoy making music together,” Cadman said.
In 2012, they released a five-track EP, The Burning of Atlanta; the next year, Belle Starr came out with a self-titled LP with 13 songs that touch on all genres: country, roots, folk, Celtic and pop, to name a few.
Cadman said listeners have welcomed the cross-over and Canadian country music fans have been especially warm. “I think different types of music in general go through waves,” she said. “When Ashley McIsaac and the Riverdance scene exploded, it was really wild but then it dips for a while before it gets popular again. I think that’s true with every genre of music because everybody wants to hear something new.”
Cadman said what makes Belle Starr unique is that it is its own touring string section. “It’s very rare for a band to have three string instruments. It’s three-part harmony vocally and on the fiddle… so we’ve carved out our own sound.”
• Tickets for Belle Starr on Feb. 12 are $35/$30/$15 through Evergreen Cultural Centre (1205 Pinetree Way, Coquitlam). Call 604-927-6555 or visit evergreenculturalcentre.ca.
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