Heather Dale

A barn may seem like an unlikely place for a Celtic concert, especially on a very rainy evening, but Heather Dale, a Toronto bred singer-songwriter, quickly turned the Cornell family’s renovated barn into a warm and inviting environment last Tuesday evening (Aug. 12).
Every concert usually has a warm-up band—and the “concert in the barn” was no exception. With the rain rhythmically beating down on the roof, Kim Cornell and Pat Clysdale-Cornell welcomed everyone to the concert and then proceeded to introduce a local string group named “Ricochet.”
Katherine Williams, several of her students, a couple of friends, and a talented young fiddler from Grand Rapids, Mn. quickly got the audience clapping and tapping their toes to the lively music.
Their repertoire ranged from a classical number set to a modern beat to the traditional “The Devil Went Down to Georgia,” along with some selections from the well-known Canadian fiddle group “Barrage.”
The overflowing crowd of nearly 175 people clearly appreciated the young musicians’ efforts.
Wild applause followed each and every musical number, and when the talented group had finished their last piece, the entire audience gave the local musicians a standing ovation.
By the time Heather Dale and her musical partner, Ben Deschamps, took to the stage, the audience had forgotten totally about the dreary weather outside and were eager to hear more.
They certainly were not disappointed.
Dale’s concert was a joyful mixture of tradition Celtic music with an innovative blend of modern jazz, blues, and various musical styles from around the world. She credits her unique style to her upbringing in a multicultural environment.
“I grew up in an environment that not only had British, French, and native history, but it could also give me a first-hand appreciation of Asian, African, European, and South American cultures,” she noted.
The creative blending of her own Celtic background with the various types of world music is apparent in her amazing and powerful songwriting. She’s been compared, by newspapers from across the country, to Loreena McKennitt and Sarah McLachlan.
Whether it’s her own music she’s singing or something by another musician, Dale is a true story-teller. When she sings or speaks, it comes directly from the heart.
She has the unique ability to draw people into the story because they feel her emotional connection to the tale, in every single phrase and facial expression.
This was apparent as these modern minstrels performed a version of Jean de Brébeuf’s “Huron Carol” in English, French, and Wendot (the language of the Huron people). The audience seemed spell-bound as the final drum beat faded away, and there was a poignant moment of silence before they erupted with applause.
Dale discovered her love of story-telling while taking a literature course at university. Although she is a trained environmentalist, it was her love for Celtic mythology, European folk tales, and native American legends which led her eventually to medieval literature and the tales of King Arthur.
Deschamps, with several degrees in literature and the classics, also has a deep love and familiarity with many European folk traditions. Together, the duo has created a new type of Celtic music for the 21st century and revived an interest in the traditional medieval tales.
They have played in folk clubs and house concerts around the world, as well as in classrooms across Canada.
Dale plays a wide variety of instruments, including the piano, bodhran (Celtic drum), the dulcimer, the recorder, and tin whistles.
“Quite apart from being brilliant musicians/songwriters, Heather and Ben are very comfortable people to be with—a joy to listen to and a pleasure to remember. . . . One of the most fun-loving and innovative acts we’ve seen in years,” wrote the Stortfolk Folk Club in the United Kingdom.
That sentiment was echoed by many of the audience as they hung around the barn following the concert to talk to Dale and Deschamps, and to look over the CDs they had for sale.
The concert was so relaxed and intimate that near the end of the program, Dale invited “Ricochet” back on stage to play a tune with them. The young fiddlers were a little in shock as they took out their fiddles and joined the duo, but by the end of the song, they were relaxed and just enjoying the moment.
Dale then announced the next song would be their final for the evening. The audience, however, did not want the evening to end, gave them a standing ovation, and asked for just one more.
Many in the crowd, who are regulars to the Cornells’ concerts, said this was the best one they had ever attended.
The next concert in the barn at Cornell Farms is slated for Friday, Sept. 26th at 7:30 p.m. The featured musician will be T Nile (Tamara Nile), whose sound has been described as banjo-fuelled acoustic rock.
She recently was named “Best Contemporary Vocalist” at the Canadian Folk Music Awards.