Rarely does a Métis gathering occur that doesn’t involve fiddle music. From kitchen parties to large community gatherings to huge events like Métis Fest in Alberta or Back to Batoche Days in Saskatchewan, fiddling is never far from the festivities. Many fiddlers learn at a very young age, like the students at Prince Charles School in Edmonton, who are featured in the book The True Canadians.
In this episode, host David Wylynko talks with two highly sought-after Métis fiddlers in Alberta. Alex Kusturok not only plays regularly at venues throughout Alberta and elsewhere but has just come off co-composing the first-ever Metis opera, Li Keur: Riel’s Heart of the North. And he just released his album Wedged in Tradition. Growing up listening to family members play the fiddle, Brianna Lizotte took up the instrument at a very young age and has cultivated a unique approach to her music that fuses jazz, bluegrass, country, and Métis traditions. Alex and Brianna are such highly regarded musicians that they were chosen to join Canada’s Métis delegation to the Vatican in 2022 and perform before Pope Francis, a remarkable experience they each describe in this episode.
Mentioned in this episode
Brianna and Alex playing in Vatican City
Brianna performing at the 2019 Canada Winter Games
Intro and outro music by Métis musician Alex Kusturok
Opening quote from an address by Métis leader Jim Sinclair during the 1987 Canadian constitutional talks