With live music on pause because of the Coronavirus, we at the Folklife Center have been mining our archive of concert footage to share some standout musical moments with you. Today, enjoy Les Poules à Colin's electrifying take on traditional Québec music. The band played our Live! Folklife Concert series back in May of 2017.
Taking their name from a popular traditional song, Les Poules à Colin are a dynamic and creative group that turn heads wherever they go. Exposed to Québécois and other folk music from the moment they were hatched, these offspring of trad musicians were immersed in music and have grown up with and learned their craft firsthand from some of Québec’s finest–whether backstage at international festivals or at lively kitchen jams in Lanaudière, arguably Québec’s most musical region. Their repertoire is a mix of original and traditional pieces, primarily in French but with some English compositions, and it reveals gorgeous vocal, instrumental and rhythmic prowess. Their adaptations of traditional songs speak eloquently to their generation while retaining the timeless beauty of their musical heritage. Fiddle, guitar, bouzouki, banjo, mandolin, piano, bass and foot percussion form a rich and varied backdrop for inventive arrangements. For 6 years they’ve graced the stages at major venues in Canada and the US, and their latest album, Ste-Waves, has charted in Québec and was nominated at l’ADISQ 2015 for Traditional Album of the Year.
Free, live concert recorded Thursday, May 18, 2017 by Kevin Rogan and Todd DeGarmo. Edited by Kevin Rogan.
Concert hosted and produced by Todd DeGarmo, founding director of the Folklife Center at Crandall Public Library and funded in part by the Friends of Crandall Public Library and the New York State Council on the Arts - Folk Arts Program with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the NYS Legislature.