Lee Cremo (30 December 1938 – 10 October 1999) was a

Mi'kmaq The Mi'kmaq (also ''Mi'gmaq'', ''Lnu'', ''Miꞌkmaw'' or ''Miꞌgmaw''; ; ) are a First Nations people of the Northeastern Woodlands, indigenous to the areas of Canada's Atlantic Provinces and the Gaspé Peninsula of Quebec as well as the nort ...

fiddler from Cape Breton Island, Canada.

Early life

He was born on 30 December 1938 in

Barra Head Barra Head, also known as Berneray ( gd, Beàrnaraigh; sco, Barra Heid), is the southernmost island of the Outer Hebrides in Scotland. Within the Outer Hebrides, it forms part of the Barra Isles archipelago. Originally, Barra Head only r ...

, Richmond County, Cape Breton Island. His family moved to Eskasoni, Cape Breton when he was four. Cremo had a lengthy career as a fiddler performing and recording around Canada.

Career

He primarily worked through the Cape Breton style of fiddle playing, performing many traditional pieces, but he also composed his own works including: 'Shubenacadie Reserve Reel,' 'Cactus Polka,' 'Irish Fiddler,' and 'Constitution Breakdown.' His music was recording as part of several

Smithsonian Folkways Smithsonian Folkways is the nonprofit record label of the Smithsonian Institution. It is a part of the Smithsonian's Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, located at Capital Gallery in downtown Washington, D.C. The label was fo ...

recordings, including: Indigenous North American music, Creation's Journey (Smithsonian/Folkways SF 40410, 1994) and Wood That Sings: Indian Fiddle Music of the Americas (Smithsonian/Folkways 40472 1998). Cremo was also an active representative of the Cape Breton Mi'kmaq community. The Porcupine Awards for folk music offer the Lee Cremo Award for Native Artists. His tunes have been recorded by numerous contemporary fiddlers, including

Sierra Noble Sierra Dawn Sky Noble (born February 20, 1990) is a non-binary Canadian singer-songwriter, and fiddle player. Their first album was instrumental, they played a traditional fiddle and followed up with a vocal album in 2008. They have won numero ...

and Ashley MacIsaac. Cremo died on 10 October 1999.

Awards

Cremo won numerous awards during his career. He won the Maritime Old Time Fiddling Championship six times, "Best Bow Arm in the World" at the World Fiddling Championships in Nashville, Tennessee, and "Canadian Champion" at the Alberta Tar Sands Competition. In 1996 he won an

East Coast Music Award The East Coast Music Association is a non-profit association that hosts an annual awards ceremony based in Atlantic Canada for music appreciation on the East Coast of Canada. Its mission is to develop, advance and celebrate East Coast Canadian mus ...

for best First Nations recording."Lee Cremo, a gentle talented man"
''Winnipeg Free Press'', November 07, 1999 - Page 27

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cremo, Lee 1938 births 1999 deaths 20th-century First Nations people 20th-century Canadian violinists and fiddlers Cape Breton fiddlers First Nations musicians Mi'kmaq people 20th-century Canadian male musicians Musicians from Nova Scotia Canadian male violinists and fiddlers