ST. PAUL – It has been over two years since people heard the live music of Calvin Vollrath – a man who is also known as Canada’s fiddling sensation and happens to call St. Paul home.
As Vollrath returned to the stage with his fiddle on his arms, he shed some tears as he watched people’s faces – smiling and even crying.
In music, Vollrath says everybody can play a note. But, it’s how you play that note that evokes emotion. “You can make people cry, you can make people laugh, and you can make people smile and tap their feet,” he explains.
Vollrath has been touring across Canada, including stops in Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, and Alberta for his 2022 Calvin Vollrath Tour, which featured Jeremy Rusu who co-performed with Vollrath.
For the fiddler, among the goals of the tour was conveying happiness and joy with his music. Because there are many older people at his shows, he also hopes to evoke “memories of their younger days” and allow them to “hear the music they grew up with.”
“It's been so very special, and I've missed that,” said Vollrath, explaining that while he plays music for a living, his true payment is found in entertaining people and seeing their reaction from the music.
On Oct. 1, Vollrath found his way to the St. Paul Senior Citizens Centre for one of his last shows of his tour, much to the excitement of many members of the community. Vollrath said while he played in many places in Canada and across the world, he doesn’t get the chance to play in St. Paul often, despite it being his hometown.
“I was just absolutely thrilled to play in my hometown and see the hall full of local people,” he said. “And a lot of those people have never had a chance to see me play.”
Dennis Giggs, St. Paul Senior Citizens Club President, said the night was amazing and there was a standing ovation concluding the show. Approximately 140 people attended the event and, “they enjoyed it very much.”
Vollrath and Rusu are amazing musicians and “they put on a show that was second to none,” said Giggs. The show was primarily a fiddling concert, but the keyboard and accordion Rusu played “added to the show.”
According to Vollrath, Rusu has been blind since birth. When asked about his experience playing with Rusu, Vollrath said it was magical.
“Absolutely magical,” expressed Vollrath. “[Rusu] is a genius who plays every instrument we know, masterfully.”
The tour concluded on Oct. 5 in Edmonton with great success. Vollrath said the tour has been an unbelievable experience and it’s nice for him to be able to play music again, and to have another musician play with him on stage.
Vollrath plans to return to St. Paul soon to unwind.
