Canadian fiddle

It is an integral extension of the Anglo-Celtic and Québécois French[1] folk music tradition but has distinct features found only in the Western hemisphere.

[2] Cape Breton fiddling is a regional violin style which falls within the Celtic music idiom.

[3] Cape Breton Island's fiddle music was brought to North America by Scottish immigrants during the Highland Clearances.

The style is closely associated with prominent fiddler Don Messer and the provinces of Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick.

Thus, cross tunings, drone notes and complex rhythms evolved to fill the gaps left in unaccompanied playing and this resulted in a highly developed style.

As with the French-speaking Cajun fiddle style, German button accordion created a fad which temporarily influenced the form, as did the eventual introduction of piano in the urban center Montreal.

Some players, such as Sierra Noble, also plays fiddle in a modernized or blended Métis style which incorporates Celtic or country-pop influences.

She has been known to play Celtic rock fusion, as in the Sierra Noble Trio with Ariel Posen on guitar and Bruce Jacobs on bass.

"A Note on Métis Music", Whidden emphasizes the French chanson and "Indian" derivation of the style and that they overlap and are indistinct.