If you are a fan of Celtic music, then The Broken Bridges is the trio for you! Composed of sisters Fern (20) and Willow (16) Marwood and Graham Lindsey, they play fiddles, banjo and guitar and sometimes they even sing. Their music is infectious and Willow has even composed a few tunes. Fern started to play the fiddle (or violin) at the tender age of 3 and Willow followed suit around age 7 or 8. Fern also plays the banjo.
Graham Lindsey, a multi-instrumentalist from Ottawa, Ontario, has been playing Celtic music since 2007 and has played with various artists over the years. He is gifted in media arts and helps musicians create videos and websites. He released his second solo album, The Next Best Thing, in December 2022 that features 15 guest artists all produced remotely across three countries, five time zones and every province in Canada. He won the 2021 Songs From the Heart Instrumental Award at Folk Music Ontario. When he met Fern and Willow at a joint birthday party and “session” that was held in February for both of the girls, he was impressed with their musicality and he joined their duo, making it now a trio.
They formed their trio right before the pandemic happened and recorded their first album together remotely. Proceeds from “The Porch Series” go directly to the girls to help them in their future endeavors. Fern is planning on attending Algonquin College’s Performing Arts Program in the fall, while Willow is still in grade 10 at Notre Dame High school in Ottawa. She hopes to have a career in the music industry, perhaps in the production side. Well, she is in very good hands because Graham is also a record producer. Both girls have played in the Blue Skies Orchestra for four years and have been playing various gigs in the last year.
We are very pleased that they will be closing out the Ottawa Grassroots Festival on Sunday, April 23, 2023 at Irene’s Pub on Bank Street. To get your tickets for The Ottawa Grassroots Festival, visit their website at www.ottawagrassrootsfestival.com.
Laurie Bowen is a freelance music journalist, author and scriptwriter. She can be reached at laurielynnbowen@yahoo.ca.
