BOOK A SHOW
LIVE PERFORMANCES
Anne Lederman and Ian Bell have been playing great old-time Canadian music for longer than they care to admit. In the late 70s they formed the group Muddy York, in order to bring the traditional songs and dance music of Canada to audiences that often didn’t even know they existed. For eight years the duo performed at folk festivals, museums, historic site and did a two week stint at Expo ’86 in Vancouver.
Since then they have performed both together and solo, and made many recordings including one devoted to Ontario music: Scatter The Ashes - Music of Old Ontario. This recording drew largely on the music found in manuscript tune books from the early 1800s and breathed new life into the old song, jigs, and reels with imaginative, energetic arrangements.
Since then Anne and Ian have performed across Canada, in the United States, the British Isles and even Estonia. They have played on radio, movie soundtracks and television programs including Road To Avonlea. They have also appeared numerous times on Stuart McLean’s Vinyl Cafe on CBC Radio. Both continue to make recordings of both traditional and original music. Anne sings and plays fiddle, piano, mandolin, bones, jawharp and feet. Ian sings and plays guitar, button accordion, smallpipes, and harmonica.
TWO CENTURIES OF THE OLD SONG & DANCE
Now, just in time for the bicentennial of the War of 1812, Muddy York will be re-issuing Scatter The Ashes in CD form and offering a number of newly-arranged concert presentations of this exciting Canadian music in a variety of forms, with orchestras, choirs and guest artists from a number of musical traditions.
Muddy York
This augmented group will allow Anne and Ian to recreate the music of Scatter The Ashes with some longtime musical collaborators including Pat O’Gorman (Rare Air) – pipes, flute , whistles, Julie Schryer Schryer triplets– piano, Jeff Bird (Tamarack, Cowboy Junkies) - string bass, and Rich Greenspoon (Rare Air, Oliver Schroer) – percussion.
Muddy York Mash-up
For 600 years Canada has been a land of musical mash-ups. This exiting show will combine the ensemble described above with musicians from some of Ontario’s more recently-arrived musical traditions – inviting them to join us in having a go at the old songs and tunes. Imagine fiddle with steel drums or bagpipes and tablas. This promises to be a magical way of connecting the old Ontario with the new.
Muddy York & Orchestra
Newly created orchestra arrangements of the music from the original MuddyYork CD , with Anne and Ian as special guests.
Muddy York & Choir
A room full of voices raised in song on some of the oldest Canadian music we have – lumbering songs, mouth music (wordless dance music for voices) , political satires and calls to action from from our country’s formative years.
FOR BOOKING INFORMATION E-MAIL:
