Hadley J. Castille (March 3, 1933October 25, 2012) Yule 2009, p. 49. was a prominent

Cajun The Cajuns (; French: ''les Cadjins'' or ''les Cadiens'' ), also known as Louisiana ''Acadians'' (French: ''les Acadiens''), are a Louisiana French ethnicity mainly found in the U.S. state of Louisiana. While Cajuns are usually described as ...

fiddler A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, the ...

Early life

Castille was born to a

Cajun French Louisiana French ( frc, français de la Louisiane; lou, françé la lwizyàn) is an umbrella term for the dialects and varieties of the French language spoken traditionally by French Louisianians in colonial Lower Louisiana. As of today Louis ...

speaking family. His father was named François Castille. He learned to play the fiddle from his Uncle Cyprien Castille at around the age of 9. After moving around for a while, he ended up in Pecaniere – a small community near Leonville, LA. Here, he first heard "Jole Blon" by

Harry Choates Harry Henry Choates (December 26, 1922 – July 17, 1951) was an American Cajun music fiddler known as the "Fiddle King of Cajun Swing" and the "Godfather of Cajun music." The scholar Barry Jean Ancelet called Choates "undoubtedly the most popul ...

during a trip to the Silver Slipper, a grocery store and bar. Brasseaux 2009, p.157. The song inspired him to take up a new style of playing. Yule 2009, p. 50. In the early 1950s, he started playing at Roy's Bar in Port Barre, LA and local house parties. Yule 2009, p. 51. Also, they played on the KSLO "Amateur Hour" segments on Saturday mornings. After graduating, Castille moved to New Orleans to play in a country band. However, after four to five months he moved back to Leonville, and eventually enlisted in the

US Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

. The

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

ended soon after arriving in

Fort Hood, Texas Fort Hood is a United States Army post located near Killeen, Texas. Named after Confederate General John Bell Hood, it is located halfway between Austin and Waco, about from each, within the U.S. state of Texas. The post is the headquarter ...

. He spent his entire service in Killeen, Texas, where he played in an on base band. After service, he backed off from music to focus on family and his plumbing business. Yule 2009, p. 52.

Festival du Voyageur

In the early 1980s, Castille was invited to perform at Le Festival du Voyageur, Western Canada's largest winter festival. This experience caused him to relearn old Cajun tunes and focus on sharpening his skills. He returned to the festival for the next 18 years. He started recording music and playing many festivals during this time.

Later life

In his later life, Castille continued to perform with his sharecropper band, and also lead many workshops at festivals.

Legacy

Castille's played Cajun music most his life. This earned Castille many awards over the years. He has been inducted into the Louisiana Hall of Fame. Also, he has received the Acadiana Folk Heritage Award from the Acadiana Arts Council. He has been inducted into the Northwestern University Hall of Master Folk Artists. His work with "200 Lines: I Must Not Speak French" has earned him a Cajun French Music Association Heritage Award. He received an honorable discharge from the United States Army having served during the Korean War. Also, his music has been heard in films, such as

A Perfect World ''A Perfect World'' is a 1993 American crime drama film directed by Clint Eastwood. It stars Kevin Costner as an escaped convict who takes a young boy ( T. J. Lowther) hostage and attempts to escape on the road with the child. Eastwood co-stars ...

with Clint Eastwood. His granddaughter Sarah Jayde Williams is also a violinist.

Discography

*200 Lines: I Must Not Speak French

Swallow The swallows, martins, and saw-wings, or Hirundinidae, are a family of passerine songbirds found around the world on all continents, including occasionally in Antarctica. Highly adapted to aerial feeding, they have a distinctive appearance. The ...

6088 (1991) *Cajun Swamp Fiddler

6112 (1993) *Musique de Castille

6123 (1995) *Along the Bayou Teche

6078 (1997) *Cajun Christmas Delta Records (1997) *Quarante Acres et Deux Mulés (40 Acres and 2 Mules) MTE 5070-2 (2000) *Refrait

6191 (2005) *Hadley's Dream (Le Reve' a Hadley) Acadiana Sounds

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Castille, Hadley 1933 births Cajun fiddlers Musicians from Louisiana People from St. Landry Parish, Louisiana 2012 deaths 20th-century American violinists