Bathurst native fiddler Louise Vautour is set to release Traces, her first solo album composed entirely of original material. The album, which has a very Celtic sound to it, takes us on a voyage beyond the various borders of music. It is altogether laid-back and rhythmical, reminding us of good old memories; tunes that bring us across the oceans or sometimes, bring us back home.
The public are invited to the CD release party on Tuesday March 17th 2009 at 5pm, at Dooly’s in Caraquet, NB.
“When I discover new places, new cultures and meet new people, my sense of inspiration is awakened,” says the artist whose album contains original compositions that were written in either Spain, France and the Magdalen Islands, to name a few. “I have a hard time leaving my fiddle behind when I travel, even when it’s for pleasure.”
The album contains many compositions that are also very personal to the artist, like “Grandpa’s Waltz”, which is the first tune she wrote at age 15 to honor her maternal grandfather’s memory. “Lament for the Boys in Red” was co-written by Louise and her father, Daniel Vautour, in memory of the seven basketball players from Bathurst High School who lost their lives as a result of a terrible highway accident in January of 2008. Louise also co-wrote the tune “Pas perdu” with her fiancé, singer-songwriter Christian Kit Goguen, who also wrote “Cowboy Tune.”
It’s a family thing…
Louise Vautour comes from a very musical family; she picked up the fiddle at age 13 under the careful teachings of her father, who is also a musician. She rapidly developed a passion for Celtic music which led her all the way to Dublin, Ireland where she studied traditional Irish music for a year. After returning home, she opened her own fiddle school in her hometown of Bathurst, NB, where she taught numerous students of all ages for a period of two years.
Throughout her young career as a fiddler, Louise Vautour has played with many groups including Vilajoie which hosted a series of musical dinner theatre shows at the Historical Acadian Village in Caraquet. She also played with the Adelaide Ensemble, la Belle Amanchure, Bourasque, and la Famille Basque, to name a few. In 2004, she joined Ode a l’Acadie, a show which pays tribute to Acadian songwriters. With Ode, Louise has played on many stages across the Maritimes, Quebec, Ontario, the United States, Europe and even in Africa. In the show Carte Blanche aux artistes d’Ode, she revealed some of her original compositions as well as her singing voice, which was hailed by the media as sweet and melodic.
Traces captures the emotions of numerous travelling adventures. “During the creative process of the album, we really wanted to keep in mind the essence of a voyage,” says Louise.
The album was recorded in four different locations — in Rogersville at Studio 126 by Denis Roy, and in Barachois and Maisonnette, NB, as well as the Magdalen Islands, QC, by Francois Emond.
Louise surrounded herself with musicians of great talent on the album: Christian Kit Goguen and Remi Arsenault on guitars, bass and cajon; Pastelle LeBlanc on the accordion; Patricia Richard on the bodhran; Luc Roy on percussions and Nicolas Basque on guitar. The graphic art on the album booklet was done by Julie Arseneault and the photography by Karine Wade. Traces is co-produced by Christian Kit Goguen, Remi Arsenault and Louise Vautour. The mixing was done by Francois Emond and Christian Kit Goguen and the mastering by Mike Bourgeois.
The medley “Gibraltar” (Gibraltar Jig/Queen Ysabel Reel) is the first single off the album to be released on radio. “Gibraltar” was written by Louise Vautour upon her return from a trip to Spain.
Traces is distributed in various store locations by Distributions Plages. For more info, visit www.plages.net.
