Andrea Beaton May 11, 2008

One of Cape Bretons most promising young fiddlers, Andrea Beaton comes by her music honestly. Listen to her play, the power of her bow, the drive and swing of her timing, the crispness of her attack. Shes making a name for herself in dance halls, concerts, ceilidhs, and festivals. Like the compelling tradition she represents, her reputation is growing, spreading beyond the island. Andrea Beaton seems destined for great things. Shes the youngest of generations of Beaton musicians. Her father, Kinnon, is one of todays most influential Cape Breton fiddlers, and you can hear some of his timing in Andreas playing. Her mother, Betty Beaton, is one of the great piano accompanists of her generation, contributing to that remarkable Beaton timing. Her uncle, Buddy MacMaster, is the most revered fiddler on Cape Breton island. Her cousin, Natalie MacMaster, is an enormously popular entertainer. And so it goes, back and across the generations. Cape Breton is an extraordinarily musical place, and Andrea is increasingly in the forefront of her generation. Her music is at once her own and deeply rooted in the tradition associated with the Mabou Coal Mines. And, like her father and grandfather, she is a composer in the tradition, adding fine new music to the islands repertoire. Born in 1979, Andrea grew up surrounded by music and dance. She was playing a little at ten; at thirteen she took lessons from Stephanie Wills, a very fine traditional player. But it was some years later, when, missing home while doing a two-year course on Prince Edward Island, that she began playing in earnest. And it seems she never looked back. A friend of mine told me that shed once listened to an Aretha Franklin greatest hits CD, followed by a tape of Andrea playing for a local dance. "Andrea", my friend told me, "has all the power and drive that she heard on Arethas recording. Theres something indefinable about musics power to make people move. Its nearly impossible to talk about it. But you know it when you hear it. And Andrea Beaton has it. - Burt Feintuch, University of New Hampshire

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