Fans of the fiddle and step dancing will won't want to miss the Everything Fitz. The Stars for Saskatchewan 2013-14 season wraps up with this group in Yorkton on May 6.
The group consists of the Fitzgerald family, with Julie, Kerry and Tom each on fiddle and parents Paddy and Pam doing additional instruments. Three members of the band also do precision step dancing. Pam Fitzgerald says
It's a varied show, and the goal is to mix new sounds that the kids like to play with standards that audiences always enjoy, Fitzgerald says.
"We try to have enough variety that there's something there somebody will like. We do a little bit of bluegrass, a little bit of jazz, a bit of vocal, some Celtic."
One of the big highlights of every performance is the step dancing, and Fitzgerald says that while there are many fiddle groups, they try to set themselves apart by making dancing a large part of every performance. She says that it's fast, unique and carefully choreographed, which makes for an energetic and special performance for audiences.
Family bands are something of a tradition in fiddle music, and Fitzgerald says that it might be because fiddle events are often family affairs, with everyone in a family picking up the instrument and playing. She notes they're inspired by the Leahy family band, and they found inspiration in their music before becoming a group on their own.
Forming a band has made the family closer, Fitzgerald says, and it has allowed them to experience things they might not have otherwise been able to as they tour around the world. She also says that from their perspective, they are seeing the kids taking a leading role in the show, and growing as artists and performers.
"It's a way that we've gotten to travel together as a family... We've seen a lot of country we wouldn't have otherwise seen as a family. As parents, it can be hard when your kids are growing up and moving away, but this keeps them coming home and keeps us together. Also, as siblings they are their best friends. You have to be able to get along in order to be able to do this, so it's kept everybody together."
Saskatchewan is one of the favorite places of the group, says Fitzgerald, and it's also where the family got its start as a band, as the guest artists at the Golden Saskatchewan Fiddle Contest. It was also the province where they had one of their first big tours, and a place where the band loves to return year after year.
"Saskatchewan is one of our favorite places to tour... We find that the hospitality is incredible, the audiences really seem to enjoy fiddle music."
Everything Fitz will be in Yorkton on May 6 as part of the Stars for Saskatchewan series. Tickets are available at yorktonarts.ca or by calling 306-783-8722.
