April Verch

April Verch has been writing fiddle tunes since she was 11 years-old. And, that’s after she started her performing career as a step dancer. On tour in support of her eighth CD, Verch and Cody Walters stopped by the Folk Alley studios for an interview with Jim Blum. Verch and Walters perform original tunes and discuss the differences in old-time fiddle styles in her native Canada and across North America. Verch was born to traditional music, in Canada’s hard-working, hard-dancing Ottawa Valley. She was a local star at four, step dancing with her sister and winning awards at contests. The fact that they were for “Youngest Competitor” didn’t dampen her child-eyed enthusiasm. She became the first woman in history to win both of Canada’s most prestigious fiddle championships, the Grand Masters and Canadian Open; and when Canada hosted the 2010 Winter Olympics, she was asked to represent her country’s music at the opening ceremonies. After time spent at the Berklee College of Music, Verch is now focusing full time on her music, adding singing and songwriting to her repertoire. Cody Walters grew up in rural northeastern Kansas, and started playing upright bass while attending college at the University of Kansas in 1999. He has since played in various bands, performing different styles of music, from bluegrass to old-time, jazz to Latin, folk and country and most spots in between. More recently he has added the claw hammer banjo to his roster of talents.