Champion Ottawa Valley fiddler and stepdancer, April Verch, performs Saturday, March 6, in Bakersfield. Photo courtesy of www.aprilverch.com

By Jill Egland, Director of Special Projects, Arts Council of Kern

Ottawa Valley fiddler, stepdancer, and singer April Verch wowed us last month in the opening ceremonies of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver. Now she is coming to Bakersfield to perform at 7 p.m. Saturday, March 6, at River Valley Community Church, 5131 Office Park Drive. The concert is the last in a series of three concerts hosted by the church and the Arts Council of Kern.

The segment of the opening ceremonies in which April participated was titled “Fiddle Nation: Rhythms of the Fall.” Her fiddling and stepdancing styles were shaped by the diverse roots of the immigrants drawn to the lumber camps in Ontario’s Ottawa Valley in the mid-1800s.

The dynamic 31-year-old weaves music and dance into a performance that moves between Old Timey, Bluegrass, and the traditional tunes of her own Ottawa Valley faster than you can say je ne sait quoi. She knew by 10 that this was what she wanted to do, and by the time she’d left high school, she had two albums under her belt.

Early in her career, Verch simultaneously captured two fiddling championships – Canadian Grand Masters Fiddle Champion and Canadian Open Fiddle Champion. April has emerged as one of the top female artists in the roots music genre. A graduate of the Berklee College of Music in Boston, she has gone on to win countless competitions, author two books devoted to fiddle technique, and record four more albums.

When you see April Verch perform, the first thing that strikes you is the pure energy that infuses her fiddle playing and stepdancing. When you listen to her, though, what draws you in are more subtle – her pure voice, the finely detailed elegance of her fiddle phrasing and the depth of a repertoire that ranges through material from bluegrass to Brazilian to Celtic, from a jaunty Canadian folk song to a poignant contemporary ballad.

In addition to Verch’s talents, the April Verch Band features world-class musicians Marc Bru (her husband) on percussion, Lincoln Meyers on guitar, and Cody Walters on upright-electric bass. The band tours tirelessly across Canada, the United States, the U.K. and Europe. They have established a reputation as consummate performers, winning over audiences not only with sheer virtuosity on their respective instruments, but also with charm, humor and boundless energy on stage.

Don’t miss a great opportunity to see Verch and her band in a really great-sounding, yet intimate, concert venue.

The April Verch Band

When: 7 p.m. Saturday, March 6

Where: River Valley Community Church, 5131 Office Park Drive

Tickets: $15 general, $10 students and seniors. Available at the Arts Council of Kern, 2000 K St., Suite 110 or at the door.

Details: 324-9000 or www.kernarts.org