Jerry Holland (February 23, 1955 – July 16, 2009) was a musician and
fiddler who lived on
Cape Breton Island in
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland".
Most of the population are native Eng ...
, Canada.
He was born in
Brockton, Massachusetts, United States to Canadian parents – his father was from
New Brunswick
New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...
and his mother was from
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
. During his childhood, Holland was exposed to the
music of the large Cape Breton expatriate community in Boston. He began to play the fiddle and
step-dance at the age of five, and played at his first
square dance at the age of six. He made his television debut in 1962 on the Canadian program ''
Don Messer's Jubilee
''Don Messer's Jubilee'' was a folk musical TV variety show produced at station CBHT in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. It was broadcast by CBC Television nationwide from 1957 until 1969, after almost two decades in various formats on CBC radio.
T ...
''. By the time he was ten years old, he was playing regularly at dances in the Boston area. Holland's family made annual summer trips to Cape Breton, and he moved there permanently in 1975.
In his early 20s, Holland performed with the
Cape Breton Symphony, a group of fiddlers that included
Winston "Scotty" Fitzgerald
Winston "Scotty" Fitzgerald (1914–1987) was a Cape Breton fiddler. He was a pioneer in recorded performances of the music, and has heavily influenced the style and repertoire of later generations of players.
Fitzgerald was born on February 16 ...
,
Angus Chisholm,
Joe Cormier,
Wilfred Gillis and
John Donald Cameron
John Donald Cameron (September 18, 1858 – March 26, 1923) was a lawyer, judge and political figure in Manitoba. He represented Winnipeg South (provincial electoral district), Winnipeg South from 1892 to 1899 in the Legislative Assembly of Ma ...
. The group appeared regularly on
CBC television on ''The John Allan Cameron Show'' and other programs. From playing with these much older and more experienced musicians, Holland gained an appreciation for the traditional style of
Cape Breton fiddle music, as well as a repertoire of over a thousand fiddle tunes.
Holland released his first, self-titled album in 1976. It was his second album, ''Master Cape Breton Fiddler'' (1982, re-released on CD in 2001), that made his reputation as a ground-breaking musician. Accompanied by
Dave MacIsaac on guitar and
Hilda Chiasson on piano, Holland pioneered a new, more modern sound for Cape Breton music on this album, while still remaining firmly within the Cape Breton tradition. ''Master Cape Breton Fiddler'' was a major influence on younger Cape Breton fiddlers such as
Howie MacDonald
Howie MacDonald (born March 9, 1965) is a Canadian fiddler and entertainer from Westmount, Cape Breton Island. His lively Cape Breton style of fiddling has entertained audiences all over the world while travelling with The Rankin Family. He has ...
.
Holland released thirteen albums and appeared as a guest musician on over 25 more. He published two collections of fiddle tunes: ''Jerry Holland's Collection of Fiddle Tunes'' and ''Jerry Holland's Second Collection of Fiddle Tunes'', both edited by
Paul Cranford
Paul may refer to:
*Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name)
*Paul (surname), a list of people
People
Christianity
* Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...
. He was also noted as a composer of fiddle tunes, most famously "Brenda Stubbert's Reel" (named for his friend and fellow Cape Breton fiddler
Brenda Stubbert
Brenda Stubbert (born 1959) is a Cape Breton fiddler and composer from Point Aconi, Nova Scotia, Canada. She comes from a musical family, as her father, Robert, and uncle, Lauchie, were both well-known fiddlers. Brenda began step dancing and pla ...
) and "My Cape Breton Home".
Holland died on July 16, 2009 from cancer.
Cbc.ca
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Discography
* ''Jerry Holland'' (1976)
* ''Master Cape Breton Fiddler'' (1982)
* ''Lively Steps'' (1987)
* ''Jerry Holland Solo'' (1988)
* ''The New Fiddle'' (1990)
* ''A Session With Jerry Holland'' (1990)
* ''Fathers and Sons'' (1992)
* ''The Fiddlesticks Collection'' (1995)
* ''Fiddler's Choice'' (1998)
* ''Crystal Clear'' (2000)
* ''Parlor Music'' (2005)
* ''Helping Hands'' (2009)
* ''Jerry Holland and Friends'' (2010)
References
External links
Jerry Holland official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holland, Jerry
1955 births
2009 deaths
American emigrants to Canada
American people of Canadian descent
Musicians from Nova Scotia
Musicians from Boston
People from Cape Breton Island
Cape Breton fiddlers
Canadian male violinists and fiddlers
20th-century Canadian violinists and fiddlers
20th-century Canadian male musicians
20th-century American male musicians
20th-century American violinists