Zeph Caissie started dancing at the age of four in Vancouver, competing and performing locally and internationally until he was 21. After placing 2nd in the Great Britain and All Ireland Championships and 4th in the World Championships, he signed on with Riverdance The Show, and went toured with the company for 8 years. Upon leaving the show, Zeph choreographed and performed solo pieces with Ballet de Printmeps and Lunasa. He moved to Halifax, Nova Scotia and started his own dance school, Diaga Irish Dance, in 2010. The school has 35 full time dancers from ages 4 to 25.
Tag Archives | Nova Scotian artists
Darren McMullen
Darren McMullen is a highly sought after multi-instrumentalist based out of Halifax, Nova Scotia. His list of instruments includes mandolin, bouzouki, tenor banjo, whistles, guitar and bass. He has released three solo albums and been busy touring and performing with a wide range of bands including the Rankins, J.P. Cormier, Dave Gunning, Matt Andersen, Bruce Guthro, Matt Minglewood, David Francey, Gillian Boucher, Troy MacGillivray, Andrea Beaton, Rachel Davis, Anna Ludlow, and Chrissy Crowley. Darren also plays in Sprag Session with Colin Grant, Jason Roach, Donnie Calabrese and Colin Clarke, and fronts his own Darren McMullen Band.
Darren McMullen Band
Darren McMullen is a highly sought after multi-instrumentalist based out of Halifax, Nova Scotia. His list of on-stage weapons includes mandolin, bouzouki, tenor banjo, whistles, guitar and bass. Darren started young on piano and then guitar and played his way through the popular pub band scene until he landed a gig with J.P. Cormier in 2004 which took him throughout Canada, the U.S. and the U.K. Since then he has released two solo albums and been busy touring and performing with a wide range of bands including the Colin Grant Band, Pogey, Dave Gunning, Matt Andersen, Bruce Guthro, Matt Minglewood, David Francey, Gillian Boucher, Troy MacGillivray, Andrea Beaton, Rachel Davis, Anna Ludlow, and Chrissy Crowley.
Dave MacIsaac
Internationally recognized as a master of stringed instruments, Dave MacIsaac is a musician’s musician. He plays traditional fiddle tunes with fiery passion, and his stunning guitar playing, whether solo or as accompaniment, is industry legend. Always interested in expanding his knowledge of Celtic music, Dave has thousands of recordings of Cape Breton traditional music. He also possesses an archival knowledge of tunes, and is often called upon to name that tune for recordings, as well as being in high demand for session work. John Allan Cameron often stated that, “If a cod fish had strings… Dave MacIsaac could play it!”
John Ferguson
Since the early seventies, John Ferguson has performed traditional and contemporary Celtic music for fans everywhere. Beginning as a founding member of Miller’s Jug in 1972, John has carved a long and respected career in the Maritime music industry. Since 1977, he has been a member of the Maritime group McGinty. From 1990 to 2004 John teamed up with singer/songwriter Buddy MacDonald to form a popular duo. In 2004 he joined forces with St. Peter’s musician Roger Stone to form the duo Glens and Roses, who have been singing and playing for folks around eastern Canada.
Lewis MacKinnon
Singing in English, Scottish Gaelic and Irish, Lewis MacKinnon has performed in coffee shops, pubs and concert halls throughout Eastern Canada. MacKinnon has played in every Atlantic Canadian Province, Ontario, Scotland and Ireland. In 2007 he was a featured performer at the Féile Ámhranaíochta (The Irish Song Festival) in Belfast, where his Gaelic song “Ailean Duinn” was selected to be included in the Festival’s 2007 compilation CD. In 2006 he released an all Gaelic recording titled, A’ Seo (“Here”) which earned him an ECMA nomination in the Roots/Traditional category.
Marion Dewar
Marion is from Antigonish, Nova Scotia. She has been playing piano for a number of years. Her most recent accompanying assignment has been with Jerry Holland, traveling extensively throughout North America and Europe. Marion comes from a musical background. Her mother Jean Fraser, an accompanist for many years, was a mainstay in Eastern Nova Scotia and developed a reputation for reliable timing. Her son Allan plays piano, touring and recording with a variety of fiddlers while her daughter Joan was a member of the youth fiddlers who performed for the Pope in 1984. Marion has recorded on Dougie MacDonald’s A Minor CD.
Papilio
Papilio is a neo-traditional band from Nova Scotia that captures the organic spirit and drive of traditional Celtic, Folk, Nordic, and World music while giving it a new, contemporary, creative twist that is all their own. More than a ceili band, they are a progressive neo-traditional trio inviting the listener on an auditory journey through Ireland, Scotland, the Maritimes, Brittany (the Celtic region of France), Galicia/Asturia (Celtic regions of Spain), Scandinavia, Eastern Europe, and beyond, adding a sprinkle of folk ballads and their own “in-the-tradition” original compositions. They reflect the connections that Nova Scotians feel to both their deep-rooted history and to the multi-cultural, multi-faceted realities of modern society.
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