The Fumblin' Fingers
The Fumblin' Fingers have their roots in a community choir (Atlantic
Voices - The Newfoundland and Labrador Choir) which formed in Ottawa (Canada) in the summer of 2002.
The choir had need of musical guests for their concerts, and Hannie Fitzgerald, an alto, started learning to play the accordion in 2004.
She then recruited other musicians from the choir to entertain the choir for the annual picnic.
We enjoyed it so much that we decided to form a "house band" for the choir, and had our first performance in the Winter concert of 2005.
At that time there were only five of us with a limited repertoire, but lots of gusto! Two are still with the band; Tom and Wayne, and two others who have sinced moved on; Marcia Phillips, and Andy Baird. Unfotunately, the sound of the accordion has left the band, as our much-loved leader, Hannie Fitzgerald has passed away.
Today, the band has five members, and we have upgraded our instruments to include guitars, fiddles, mandolin, bass,
ektar (see Ektara on wikipedia)
bodhran, ugly stick (wikipedia has an entry, but no pictures, so see Celeste)
and various percussion instruments. We have boosted our repertoire to several binders-full, and have produced four CDs!
| Band Members: |
Tom
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Lynn
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Dave
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Wayne
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Celeste
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| Past Band Members: |
Hannie
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Celeste Bradbury-Marshall
Percussion (Ugly Stick, Guitar, Washboard, Ektar and various other percussion instruments, such as Shakers.), Vocals
Celeste was born in Grand Falls, Newfoundland, to Gerald and Eileen Bradbury. Her family was always in some way involved in music while she was growing up. Her mother has a lovely soprano voice and her father was well known around the area with his deep baritone voice and played in a band in his younger days before the war. Gerald's sisters were also very musical with nicknames like 'Moonlight' and 'Doom'. All were involved in the local Glee Club and dragging family members along for the ride. On Celeste's mother's side, her grandfather from England, Tom Gilder, was a well known banjo player and composer. At present, Celeste's 2 older brothers and younger sister are all accomplished musicians. Her oldest brother was once a band member of the Ravens and had his own band called Borealis in Newfoundland in the early 70's.
Celeste has sat back at many a family gathering and watched, as well as sung, at the parties and events over the years. So it is not surprising that she has sung in a few church choirs and now with the Atlantic Voices.
In 1990, she met her future husband and they have a daughter and a son who, of course, are both involved in music and dance. As the kids got older and started school fulltime, Celeste and her husband, Brien, decided to join the Atlantic Voices Choir as something for them to do as a couple. This was back in 2003 and many years later, they're still involved and enjoying the camaraderie and music the choir has to offer.
Along the way, with the help of Brien, Celeste made an ugly stick. This is not what it sounds like and is a type of percussion instrument made popular years ago in Newfoundland, probably a traditional instrument brought over by Irish settlers who landed on the 'Rock' as early as the 1600's. An ugly stick is made from a wooden floor mop which is turned upsidedown, planted in a rubber boot and has bottle caps nailed in the handle which jingle as one shakes it.
Recently, 'Tammy' (named as such because it has a Newfoundland tartan tam sewn to the mop head) has become a staple at the A.V. concerts, especially during the singalongs. Another was made for one of the silent auctions held at A.V. concerts and it fetched a hefty dollar for the fundraiser!
Dave Huddleston
Guitar, Bass and Spoons
Dave bought his first guitar while in university. Having tinkered with the guitar ever since then, he's gained much of his competence and experience 'on the job.' He has also picked up the Bass guitar, and lays down a mean walking bass line.
His love of Newfoundland music prompted him to purchase a set of spoons from Dory Dan in Corner Brook. With the help of many kitchen parties, he brought that extra little bit o' somethin' to the band. "It's dos spoons, b'y!". Dave has since then discovered the entertaining value of a jig doll that we call Dancing Dan (sometimes known as a Lumberjack Doll, in Quebec as les gigeaux). This is a small wooden mannequin that is bounced on a wooden diving board, causing him to dance (hopefully) in time with the music. The kids love this.
Dave was born and raised in Alberta. During his tenure with Parks Canada, he spent 10 glorious years in Gros Morne National Park on Newfoundland's west coast and fell in love with Newfoundland music and songs. He, his wife and four children live in Ottawa, Ontario. Dave joined the Fumblin' Fingers in 2005.
Hannie Fitzgerald [1944-2022]
Accordion
Hannie came from a musical background where singing was an integral part of her upbringing. She started piano lessons at the age of nine while in an English boarding school and was also taught the recorder. She taught herself guitar and took classical guitar lessons for one year at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Ottawa.
She has sung in one choir or another ever since childhood and has played piano and organ for a local seniors' home (where her father resided) for nine years. But her love of music climaxed when she formed the Fumblin' Fingers band in May of 2004, this only two months after starting accordion lessons! Her love of making and sharing music has surely followed her to the great session in the sky.
Lynn Petros
Fiddle
Lynn comes from a non-musical family, and just stumbled on the violin when she was five. Her mother found a school bulletin describing violin lessons buried in her school bag, and asked her if she was interested. Not having a clue what she getting into, she said yes. For many years she took private lessons, played with the South Shore String Orchestra and the Montreal Civic Youth Orchestra, and when she was nine, made a guest appearance with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra. She hasn't played much in the last fifteen years, till a few months ago, when she began dabbling with the fiddle.
During her hiatus from playing the violin, she sang with La Chorale de l'Ambassade du Canada in Paris, and the Maple Leaf Melodia, in Mexico City, a 6 person ensemble that raised funds for Doctors Without Borders, and for orphans.
Lynn joined the Fumblin' Fingers in the fall of 2005, and is just loving it!
Tom Murray
Fiddle and Guitar
Tom was born in St John's, Newfoundland and grew up in the small Irish fishing village of Long Harbour, Placentia Bay. As a result he was exposed to music, songs and dance at an early age. He started playing the violin when he was 13 having found an old instrument that his brother had bought and neglected many years before. However, there were no other violin players in the area so he had to teach himself. After many trials and errors he finally figured out how to play a few tunes. After becoming fairly proficient he found out that he had tuned the violin like a guitar and had to relearn how to play it all over again.
He continued to play the fiddle after he joined the Air Force. He also taught himself guitar and dabbled in playing the mandolin and banjo but the fiddle remained his favourite.
Since moving to Ottawa in 1974 Tom has become very active in the local music scene playing old time fiddle and guitar with a number of Country & Western, Blue Grass and Irish Groups. He re-established contact with a number of other musicians whom he had met in the Air Force and gets together with them for regular jam sessions. Tom is also active in the local fiddle clubs where he can be found most weekends playing lead or backup fiddle with a strong Irish flavour.
Tom joined the Fumblin' Fingers Band for their first concert performance, going back to his roots of Newfoundland music.
Wayne Mercer
Guitar, Mandolin and Bass
Wayne is from Gander Newfoundland, with roots in Trinity Bay and Conception Bay. He learned to play guitar in his teens, and joined with a group of friends to start a rock/pop band, which only lasted a couple of years. The guitar was put aside to pursue a career in Engineering, then to raise a family.
Wayne got back into music when he heard the call from Kristina Curran to start the Atlantic Voices choir. He and his wife Terry helped start up the choir, and were very active with it for many years. In addition to contributing a Bass voice, Wayne was the choir's music librarian for several years.
When the choir held it's 2nd annual barbecue, Hannie called up the instrument-capable members to help entertain the group. Wayne brought along his guitar, and was happy to join in the formation of the Fumblin' Fingers the following season.
In addition to playing the guitar, Wayne now plays the Mandolin and Bass guitar, sings along when he can, and is able to bumble along on percussion instruments (like the spoons).
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(Photo spread created using ibox)
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