Natalie Macmaster makes time for creativity
Famous fiddler back in studio working on new album
SYDNEY, N.S. - Taking a few moments from making playdough for her four-year old, fiddling superstar Natalie Macmaster says 2019 will see her return to the studio to make her first solo recording in seven years.
Of course, finding the time to do it is another matter.
“I’ve been getting up at 6:30 every morning to practice music because it’s about the only time I can do it,” she said, laughing, during a phone interview earlier this week from her home in Douro, Ont.
And little wonder. The busy mother of seven has just finished Christmas tours throughout the United States and Canada with her husband, fiddler Donnell Leahy, as well as their children, who perform as part of the family group. They will go back on tour in the spring for several months of concerts in the U.S. She has released two albums over the past few years as part of a duet with her husband.
But she promises her fans she will release a solo album this year.
“My husband and I are doing solo recordings this year, separate from each other — it’s just time for us to do that this year,” she said. “We’re still playing together and all that, and next year we’ll do a recording together.
“I haven’t put out my own solo CD in like seven years because we’ve done so much stuff together, and Donnell hasn’t done one of his own in like 20 years.”
Macmaster isn’t sure of an exact release date, but she expects to go into the studio sometime in the early spring.
“Not sure when, don’t have a deadline,” Macmaster says. “By the time it gets out, it could be a little while, we’ll see how long it takes to turn around.”