INSTRUCTORS AND GUESTS
Meet Our Instructors
Amelia Rose Slobogean
Amelia Rose has been playing violin and fiddle for over 25 years, and has been teaching for the last 10 years. She is infatuated with music and is thrilled to play whenever she can and teach others the joys of fiddling.
Classically trained at a young age, her love for the instrument was evident from the start. Since her initial studies in Vancouver, she has branched off to learn and perform many different styles, mostly fiddle focused (although she still maintains her classical practice). She has travelled the world in search of different styles of music and has played and recorded with countless bands in the Yukon and the West Coast of BC, including genres such as Gypsy jazz, Celtic, Balkan/Eastern European, Bluegrass, and Western Swing. Currently, she can be heard around Whitehorse playing with her duo, Stockstill & Rose (Northern gypsy Bluegrass /banjo-fiddle music), and occasionally Western Swing band, “The Swinging Pines”. She is also an avid composer.
Her fiddle teaching style is one that demands good technique, and proper posture, but always emphasizes having fun. She does not use a specific method but relies on her many years of playing and teaching to instinctively come up with ideas and strategies. Amelia has taught extensively one-on- one, but also has led many group classes with kids and adults, from ages 5 to 80. She loves learning how each individual works best, and tries to personalize the lessons according to ability, personality, and learning traits. She thoroughly enjoys teaching absolute beginners how to get started, as well as helping folks who have been playing a while how to jam, improvise, and improve their skill level. She is constantly sourcing out new tunes and writing her own to share….
She has a large roster of private students in Whitehorse, and also teaches in the communities of Mayo and Dawson.
Amelia takes great pride in helping people of all ages learn the fiddle, and is always eager to talk about it with interested folks. She is truly grateful to have had such a great teacher and parents to support her music throughout her early years, and feels a sincere responsibility and desire to pass along what she knows.
Amelia Rose Slobogean
Steve Slade
1958-2024
Steve Slade was responsible for helping set up the Society back in 2008. In order to release our album "Learn by Heart Songs from the North Klondyke Highway Schools", we needed a Society to establish copyright. We had no idea we'd be collaborating on music every year. We definitely had plans for the next few years.
Steve was very important to us and it's hard to quantify his postive impact. He'll be greatly missed and in our hearts as we carry on the journey of music education and presentation in rural Yukon.
Peter Menzies, OY
President
July 15, 2024
Daniel Gervais
www. danielgervais.ca
2016 and 2011 Canadian Grand Master Fiddle Champion
Daniel has been playing the violin since the age of five. He plays a variety of fiddle styles and classical violin. Daniel completed a Master of Music degree in classical violin at the University of Alberta studying with Dr. Guillaume Tardif. During his studies, Daniel was awarded a prestigious research grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC).
Daniel had the opportunity to perform at the 2012 London Olympics as a cultural ambassador of Alberta. In the spring, he performed for a reception at the prestigious Carnegie Hall in New York City. Daniel has toured with Zéphyr, a French-Canadian dance group, performing at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington, D.C., Mondial des cultures in Drummondville, PQ, the Folkmoot USA Festival in North Carolina, and Festival Interfolk in France. Daniel has also had several television and radio appearances. In 2010, he was a guest artist with The Lost Fingers, performing at the Glenn Gould Studio in Toronto, ON.
Daniel is the first and only Albertan to win the Canadian Grand Master Fiddle Competition. Daniel first competed in the Canadian Grand Masters in 2003 and returned to this competition in 2004 and again in 2008, finishing in the top eleven both times.
In 2014, Daniel received the Eugène-C. Trottier award from the French-Canadian Association of Alberta (ACFA) for community involvement. Daniel was also awarded the Prix Sylvie Van Brabant-Excellence en création artistique (2010) by the Regroupement artistique francophone de l'Alberta and the City of Edmonton Arts and Culture Award (2007).
Daniel currently teaches as sessional faculty at MacEwan University in the jazz and popular music program. Daniel has had experience teaching a variety of students of different ages and abilities in collaboration with other music organizations such as the National Arts Centre MusicAlive! program, Calvin Vollrath Fiddle Camp and the North Eastern Music Association in St. Paul, AB, the John Arcand Fiddle Fest, Kenosee Lake Kitchen Party and the Pelletier Guitar and Music Camp in Saskatchewan, The Hills are Alive Music and Dance Cultural Fest in Elkwater, AB, Frontier Fiddlers in Manitoba, and the Suzuki Strings and Fiddleheads in Whitehorse, YT. In 2010, Trad'badour in collaboration with Canadian Parents for French completed a school show tour of over 90 presentations in Western Canada.
Daniel has six albums to his credit, including three solo albums, Flying Fiddle (2003) and Endless Possibilities (2005) and Old Red Barn (2013). In 2006, he was nominated for “Young Performer of the Year” at the Canadian Folk Music Awards. Daniel is a founding member of Trad’badour, a French-Canadian duo, with Roger Dallaire and Hot Club Edmonton with guitarist Clinton Pelletier. Hot Club Edmonton was awarded "Instrumental Album of the Year" at the Western Canadian Music Awards in 2010.
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Daniel Gervais, le gagnant du Canadian Grand Master Fiddle Championship 2016 et 2011, joue le violon depuis l’âge de cinq ans. Daniel mène une carrière active avec spectacles, enseignement et projets d’enregistrement. Il a complété ces études dans le programme de maîtrise en musique à l’Université de l’Alberta.
Daniel a eu l’opportunité de jouer aux Jeux olympiques à Londres comme ambassadeur de la culture albertaine. Au mois de mai 2012, il est allé à New York pour une réception au prestigieux Carnegie Hall. Il a su des tournées avec la troupe de danse franco-albertaine Zéphyr aux Smithsonian Folklike Festival à Washington, D.C., Mondial des cultures à Drummondville, PQ, Folkmoot USA Festival en Caroline du Nord et au Festival Interfolk en France.
Daniel est le premier Albertain à remporter le prix de Canadian Grand Master Fiddle Champion. Il a reçu le Prix Sylvie Van Brabant pour excellence en création artistique (2010) donné par le Regroupement artistique francophone de l’Alberta et le City of Edmonton Arts and Culture Award (2007).
Daniel est membre du duo Trad’badour avec Roger Dallaire ainsi que l’ensemble de jazz manouche Hot Club Edmonton avec Clinton Pelletier. Hot Club a gagné le prix de Instrumental Album of the Year au 2010 Western Canadian Music Awards.