Achingly beautiful, rich in contested history and divers cultural traditions, known particularly for its Celtic music, Cape Breton Island off Canada’s east coast also faces serious social and economic challenges. Those involve the loss of dependable economic base, which in turn, leads to outmigration. Folklorist and musician Burt Feintuch interviewed a cross-section of Cape Bretoners, talking about life, music, art, struggle, and culture on the island.

He here presents the stories of Frank Macdonald, Richard MacKinnon, Ginette Chiasson, Alistair MacLeod, Rita Joe, Danny Moran, Buddy MacMaster, Jerry Holland, Paul Cranford, Margie and Jimmy MacInnis, Kay MacDonald, Mary Jane Lamond, Frances MacEachen, Evelyn Moraff Davis, Iris and Rhonda Crawford, Duncan Sutherland, Bob MacEachern, Gerry Deveau, Keith Brown, Rodney MacDonald, Joella Foulds, and Kimberly Fraser, coupled with the artful photographs of master photographer Gary Samson.

Folklorist Burt Feintuch was drawn to Canada's Cape Breton Island by the remarkably vibrant local traditional music culture. In fifteen years of fieldwork, he came to understand the complexity of a place both achingly beautiful and deeply challenged by economics. With traditional mining, farming, and fishing industries depressed, tourism, though significant, is a less-than-adequate replacement as economic engine, and the island has faced an ongoing decline in population.

Burt Feintuch's profile page

Gary Samson's profile page