Jeremy Dutcher brings his rare talent to King’s Theatre
Since winning the prestigious Polaris Prize last year, Jeremy Dutcher has been playing sold-out halls all over the world. He went on to win the Indigenous Artist Juno and is in constant demand.
On Dec. 8 he’ll perform at King’s Theatre in Annapolis Royal at 7:30 p.m.
“Jeremy is an incredible performer and his music is not like anything you’ve heard before,” said King’s Theatre manager Janet Larkman. “He sings with a depth and passion that is absolutely goosebump-inducing. He’s so hot right now, I’m not sure when we’ll be able to bring him to Annapolis Royal again, so people are encouraged to catch this show while they can.”
A member of Tobique First Nation in New Brunswick, he sings entirely in the Wolastoqey language, fusing his classical music background with Indigenous traditions to create an entirely new sound. A pianist and classically-trained tenor, he will be performing with a trio that includes grand piano, cello and drums.
Dutcher is hard to categorize. He’s a performer, composer, activist and musicologist. These roles are all infused into his art and way of life. His music, too, transcends boundaries: unapologetically playful in its incorporation of classical influences, full of reverence for the traditional songs of his home and teeming with the urgency of modern-day struggles of resistance.
Dutcher first did music studies at Dalhousie before working in the archives at the Canadian Museum of History, painstakingly transcribing Wolastoq songs from 1907 wax cylinders.
“Many of the songs I’d never heard before because our musical tradition on the East Coast was suppressed by the Canadian Government’s Indian Act,” he said.
He heard ancestral voices singing forgotten songs and stories that had been taken from the Wolastoqiyik generations ago.
“He is breathing new life into these songs,” said Larkman, “and the impact is moving, beautiful and profound.”
To buy tickets for the show, contact King’s Theatre at 902-532-7704 or visit www.kingstheatre.ca.