Mary Frances Leahy describes her debut album, First Light, as “a salad — a mixture of many odd things which, put together, create something delicious.” That is an unusually self-aware way of framing what the record does: Cape Breton fiddle working its way through Cuban percussion, jazz piano playing against Celtic reels, nine original instrumentals that draw from enough traditions that they should not cohere as cleanly as they do. When Leahy describes the music as “energetic” and says it makes her want to dance, you begin to get some sense of what the live show might feel like.
About the Show
Leahy is the eldest of seven children born to Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy, two of the most celebrated figures in Canadian Celtic music. Working as a fiddler, pianist, dancer, and composer, she has been performing since she was five years old, and by the time she launched her solo career, more than 600 shows across Canada and the United States were already behind her. Her family has roots in the Broad Cove area of Nova Scotia, and the Cape Breton fiddle tradition runs through First Light (her 2024 debut) even as the record reaches far beyond it. The album features nine original instrumentals co-produced with Cuban guitarist Elmer Ferrer, with an ensemble that included percussionist Rosendo “Chendy” León, drummer Mark Kelso, and bassist/guitarist Remi Arsenault.
The influences Leahy draws from are almost implausibly wide. She cites Celtic fiddle legends, Western swing, jazz pianist Bill Evans, and Marc Anthony as touchstones, and you can find all of them somewhere in the record. “Return to Skye” tilts toward jazz. “Camino” sets her Cape Breton fiddle against Cuban rhythms — the fiddle, as Leahy’s press materials note, is an essential voice in both Cape Breton music and Cuban charanga and danzón, and in that track the two traditions find each other. A reviewer noted that the music holds its Celtic character right up until the Latin percussion enters, at which point it “veers into another realm entirely.” The title track won a 2024 Cape Breton Tourism music contest. Leahy has performed piano with Yo-Yo Ma on her parents’ CANVAS album and has worked alongside Bela Fleck and Jerry Douglas. She studies Latin piano through Berklee College of Music and orchestration at Humber College in Toronto. The First Light tour has included sold-out dates.
Venue & Logistics
The Brockville Arts Centre, in the North Country at 235 King Street West in Brockville, Ontario, hosts the show on Saturday, February 13, at 7:30 p.m. No support acts have been announced.
Tickets
No ticket price was available from sources at the time of publication. Buy tickets