Marc Boudreau

Boudreau’s new CD rapidly becoming a favourite with dancers

DAN MACDONALD
The Cape Breton Post

Last week I mentioned that I had gotten my hands on a copy of Marc Boudreau’s new CD, “Steppin’ It Up,” which was officially released in Cheticamp last weekend. Marc has been around the music scene for about a dozen years but has really come to the fore in the past few years. He is serious about his music, spending a great deal of time practicing and learning new material when he isn’t working as an emergency medical technician.
Boudreau is a powerful player with a lively sound and great lift. As a result, he is rapidly becoming a favourite with the dancers. “Steppin’ It Up” is a wonderful collection of some of his best work with over 50 minutes of music spread over a dozen cuts. OK, so it’s only 11 official cuts. The last is a throw-in of Boudreau trying out J.P. Cormier’s guitar, something that he sounds very good doing.
He appears to be able to absorb music from many sources. Some cuts on the CD have a traditional Cheticamp texture. Other cuts sound very close to the playing of Buddy MacMaster or Jerry Holland, both in style and tune selection. Neither would be considered a poor choice to emulate.
Boudreau swings through groups of tunes with ease — several nice sets of jigs and powerful collections of strathspeys and reels, with a few marches dropped in for variety. Whatever he plays, Boudreau is clearly well practiced and comfortable, with never a note out of place. Much of the music is traditional, or from the works of the Scottish composers, but there are tunes from local musicians like Brenda Stubbert, Fr. Angus Morris, Sandy MacIntyre, John Morris Rankin, Mike MacDougall and Marcel Doucet.
“Steppin’ It Up” was recorded at Cormier Sound in Cap Lemoine and features solid backup from Joel Chiasson on piano and Dave MacIsaac on guitar, with J.P. Cormier making a guest appearance with his mandolin on one cut. The artwork is very good, simple but effective, with everything visible and easy to read.
All in all, “Steppin’ It Up” is an excellent CD and something for Boudreau to be proud of. If you’re a fiddle fan, this is one for the collection.
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Speaking of Boudreau, on Saturday night he will be joining Glenn Graham and Joel Chiasson for a dance at the Westmount Legion.

Dan MacDonald (BA Celtic Studies, Cert. Heritage Studies) is a former Inverness County resident who now resides in the Sydney area. Involved in the Cape Breton music scene for more than 20 years, he operates his own company, Creignish Hills Entertainment. Contact him at creignish_hills@hotmail.com. - Dan MacDonald / Cape Breton Post