April Verch

While her music is rooted in natural Canadian traditions — specifically the Ottawa Valley fiddle style — effervescent singer/fiddler April Verch is no stranger to blues, Latin music, Eastern European music, jazz, and Americana. Besides working all these genres into her own music, Verch also embraces the world of dance, and began taking stepdancing lessons at the age of three. The Pembroke, Ontario, native knew by the age of ten that fiddle playing and stepdancing were things she wanted to do professionally. Two self-released albums — 1992's Springtime Fiddle and 1995's Fiddle Talk — appeared before she finished high school. College meant Boston's Berklee School of Music and mastering more styles of fiddle playing. Within a year, the money had run out and Verch would move back to Canada, landing in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, and country singer Tommy Hunter's band.

A solo gig in 2000 was attended by Rounder Records' Ken Irwin, and a year later Verchuosity became her debut for the label. Rave reviews and comparisons to Alison Krauss and Béla Fleck followed, along with a JUNO award (the "Canadian Grammy") for Best Roots/Traditional Solo Album. Before she would return in 2003 with From Where I Stand, April appeared on her father's debut solo album, Ralph Verch's rootsy No Other Would Do. Her 2006 release, Take Me Back, found Appalachian music expert Dirk Powell in the producer's chair and contributing his fretless banjo playing to a couple tracks.