Appropriately known as Canada’s Musical Coast, Inverness County has been lovingly described as “…a string of beautiful communities and majestic coastline vistas bound together by musical traditions. The music culture here is written into the story…the very fabric of the coastline. During harsh winters and trying times, music and dance were neither indulgence nor luxury, but rather survival. Music culture here is honest, authentic and shared directly from the heart—this is a coast shaped by music.” There will be no doubt that the folks on stage tonight have also been shaped by music. One of Cape Breton’s longest running trad bands, Beòlach came together after an impromptu late-night session at the Celtic Colours Festival Club. In the more than 20 years that followed, the lineup has changed slightly, but their onstage energy and natural wit and banter have remained firmly intact. The rocky coastal outports and strong musical heritage of Newfoundland have had a strong hand in shaping Con O’Brien, who has been performing throughout North America and beyond for more than 35 years. Hailee LeFort has been energizing audiences around Cape Breton Island for more than a decade. The native of Margaree returns to Celtic Colours with two artists at the centre of Prince Edward Island’s traditional music scene, Romy Munkres and Jesse Periard.