The Coast String Fiddlers proudly announce the return of Alasdair Fraser and Natalie Haas for a 2 p.m. concert on March 21 at St. Bart's Church in Gibsons.
The musical partnership between Fraser, Scotland's premier fiddle ambassador, and the young, sizzlingly-talented California cellist Haas may not seem an obvious one. Fraser has a concert and recording career spanning 30 years, with a long list of awards, accolades, television credits and feature performances on top movie soundtracks (Last of the Mohicans, Titanic). The 23-year-old Haas, a recent graduate of the prestigious Juilliard School of Music, wasn't even born when Alasdair was winning national fiddle competitions on the other side of the Atlantic.
But this seemingly unlikely pairing is the fulfillment of a long-standing musical dream for Fraser, who is renowned for both his profound understanding of Scottish tradition and cutting-edge musical explorations featuring his original compositions. For years, he sought a cellist who could help him return the cello to its historical role at the rhythmic heart of Scottish dance music.
"Going back to the 1700s, and as late as the early 20th century, fiddle and cello made up the dance band of choice in Scotland, with the cellist bowing bass lines and driving the rhythm," said Fraser. "Pianos and accordions elbowed out the cello, relegating it to an orchestral setting. I've been pushing to get the cello back into the traditional music scene for years, always on the lookout for a cellist with whom I could have a strong musical conversation, one that incorporated not just the cello's gorgeous melodic tones, but also the gristly bits - the rhythmic, percussive energy that makes the wee hairs on the back of the neck stand up."
He found that in Haas, who was just 11 when she first attended Fraser's Valley of the Moon Scot-tish Fiddling School in California. Haas rose to Fraser's challenge to find and release her cello's rhythmic soul. Four years later, Fraser and Haas played their first gig together. Now regularly touring with Fraser, and a teacher at Fraser's popular fiddle courses in California and Scotland, she is in the vanguard of young cellists who are redefining the role of the cello in traditional music.
The duo has performed in Spain, France, Scotland and across the U.S. and Canada. They have been featured on NPR's Performance Today, the Thistle & Shamrock and Mountain Stage, and represented Scotland at the Smithsonian Museum's Folklife Festival.
Tickets are available at Hallmark in Gibsons and Medichair in Sechelt.
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