Nestled along the southeastern shore of the Bras d’Or Lake lies Big Pond, a community with a rich legacy of traditional tunes, celebrated songwriters, and lively dances. This evening’s concert reflects that legacy promising driving tunes, beautiful songs, and intricate guitar work from Cape Breton and Ireland. Shelly Campbell, Andrea Beaton, and Allan Dewar are all popular players for dances. Shelly’s fiddle playing is powerful, lively, and graceful, deeply rooted in the Cape Breton traditions she grew up with. Known for her powerful bow and driving style, Andrea Beaton comes from a long line of musicians, composers, and dancers. And Allan provides the rhythmic backbone with his intuitive and expressive piano playing, adding nuance and colour to each tune. Irish singer and flute player Teresa Horgan and guitarist Donogh Hennessey are no strangers to Celtic Colours, both having played the festival many times in the past—Teresa as part of the group Outside Track and Donogh with Sharon Shannon and Lúnasa. Father-son duo Maxim and Gervais Cormier, from Chéticamp, round out the evening with their virtuosic guitar work. Merging classical training with Celtic roots, their music is both technically dazzling and full of emotion. Music is such an integral part of this community’s identity that the local Volunteer Fire Hall doubles as a Community Centre and was built with acoustics in mind.