Fiddler Mitchel Fleming Entertains Crowd At Art Safari

Mitchel Fleming is an ordinary kid. He attends school, takes tae-kwon-do classes, and loves to play hockey. He also loves making music. His choice of instruments is interesting – and perhaps could be considered unique for a teenager.

The handsome young man was perched upon a stool in the corner of the Escape Café when I walked in Saturday evening. I was there to cover the Gallery to Grinds Safari event; he was at the café to entertain visitors who stopped in.  At the time, Mitchel was performing an easy–listening tune on his violin, which fit perfectly with the laid-back atmosphere of the night.

The Café was co-hosting an art appreciation night, an evening of relaxed enjoyment, beginning with a visit to the Advantage Frame and Gallery located on Hwy 2, and ending with a stop at the Escape Café located in the new dental building on the Fall River Rd. Various pieces of art created by local artists was on display for customers to view as they sipped a fancy coffee such as an after-eight, a caramel apple cider, or had a piece of delectable cheesecake. My timing was perfect.

I had been attempting to contact Mitchel to request an interview. The first time I heard him play was at the Adelaide Respite Inn during the Gold Rush Days celebrations. That had been over one year ago, and I had heard through my comings and goings that he was continuing to be a growing young talent.  “Very inspiring” to other teenage musicians, I heard.

Walking over to the corner where he was performing, I threw him my pitch as soon as he finished his number. “Can I speak with you for a moment?” I asked. He looked surprised, but nodded his head. I quickly took a seat at the table next to him, beside his buddy who had come along for company. Between tunes I asked him questions about his hobby.

“Tell me how it is you are here, playing at the Café this evening,” I asked Mitchel. “Begin at the beginning. When did you start to play the violin?”

He smiled and spoke modestly. “I was six or seven years old when I began to play the violin, and I’ve also been fiddling for two years,” he said. “I’ve had lessons from Peter Dunn who is classical, and Kim Holmes, who teaches fiddle.” He paused for a moment. “I play the saxophone too, and I really want to learn to play the mandolin.”

Mitchel flipped through the pages of his book of music. “I play mostly by reading,” he said, when asked what he preferred. “But I like to play by ear so I can play at any given time.” He then launched into a lively rendition from the Red Headed Girl set.

The young musician seems to have inherited his grandfather’s passion for playing the fiddle. His grandpa once played with Natalie MacMaster’s grandfather, in the Cape Breton Fiddlers.

Most recently, Mitchel participated in the Celtic Colours concert in Cape Breton. “My family and I went there,” he said. “It’s a great opportunity for kids. We play for 20 minutes each, to show what we can do and to get some great pointers from the adjudicators presiding over the whole thing. There was a guy from B.C., a guy from California, Sandy MacIntyre, and Ashley MacIssac. It was really awesome to have Ashley there as part of it with us; to have him tell us what we can do to better ourselves,” he hesitated before adding, “having them all there to give us pointers and stuff was great.”

Although Mitchel is an enthusiastic violinist, he is clearly well-grounded. “Like, I really want to learn the mandolin too, but I know it’s expensive. My parents really encourage me, but they said I should buy the mandolin out of my own money.” He looked serious. “I like to play at events like this. It gives me a chance to make a little money for things.”  He smiled. “I think being a musician is one of the hardest occupations there is, it takes a lot. I want to play music and be in it for the enjoyment.  I know I’ll need a real job someday, but I’m always going to play music, and one day I’d like to make a CD.”

In the meantime, the young man plays his violin at events such as the Waverley Gold Rush Days –at the Adelaide Inn, the Grand Opening of the new Rec Centre in Fall River, and at the Art Safari.  Mitchel’s next words tell me he plans to pursue his violin and fiddle playing for a while yet. “An adjudicator from B.C. told me if I’m ever in B.C. to contact him,” he said, his eyes had a twinkle in them as he spoke.  “That was pretty nice. I hope I get to do it!”