Cape Breton saddened by loss of fiddling icon Jerry Holland
John Gillis

Jerry Holland playing at The Red Shoe in Mabou (photo by Cheryl Smith)

Though he’d been courageously battling cancer for more than two years, Holland had tried his best to continue playing as much as possible through it all. With family and friends nearby he passed away peacefully at the Northside General Hospital in North Sydney.

Holland, called “a fiddler’s fiddler’ and “a musician’s musician” by fellow musicians such as Dennis Ryan and Howie McDonald, was world renowned for his playing, his composing and his flawless tone. He was also considered by many to be a great friend; someone who brought tremendous joy to those who knew him and his music.

Born in 1955 in Brockton, Massachusetts to Canadian parents (his father was from New Brunswick), Jerry was immersed in Celtic music from a very early age through his father’s friendships with legendary Cape Breton fiddlers such as Winston Fitzgerald, Angus Chisholm, Bill Lamey and others. As a youth, Jerry also developed a love of Irish music and the traditional Scottish tunes that he carried with him throughout his life.

Allister MacGillivray has said that from the beginning Jerry was something of a musical prodigy. Holland got his start in music as a step-dancer, but he quickly took up the fiddle and was already performing publically by the age of six. Jerry was possibly the first of many performers to come who combined step-dancing with playing fiddle, and it wasn’t long before he learned to play guitar, piano and to compose his own tunes.

Holland also appeared at an early age in numerous television and radio appearances, including The Don Messer Show, Up Home Tonight and The John Allan Cameron Show. It was on John Allan’s show that Jerry, still a teenager, became an integral part of The Cape Breton Symphony with his musical hero Winston Fitzgerald, and fellow fiddlers Angus Chisholm, Wilfred Gillis, Joe Cormier and John Donald Cameron. It was also on that show that Holland was first introduced to many in Cape Breton.

In the mid-1970s Jerry moved to Cape Breton and quickly established himself as an influential talent who inspired a younger generation of players. He went on to embark on an impressive recording, composing and publishing career that began with his first Rounder Records release in 1976.

In an interview with publisher Paul Cranford, Jerry estimated he had to learn more than one thousand fiddle tunes during the years the John Allan Cameron Show ran in the 1970s. He said he was thrilled and grateful to be taken “under the wing” of such notable performers.

During a workshop sponsored by Féis Mhàbu during the Celtic Colours International Festival last fall, Holland was asked if he had any advice for the younger generation of musicians coming up. In typical humility he shared his experiences and credited his father with cultivating an appreciation of the music and introducing him to so many different players and styles of music at such an early age.

“My father encouraged me to learn something from each player, despite their talent or natural ability,” Jerry said, though he admitted that he sometimes found that a challenge in his early years.

“Jerry set the bar pretty high for the younger players with his respect for other performers, and he had that same respect in return,” said friend Marianne Jewell, noting it’s a valuable lesson today due to the competitive environment that can sometimes mark the music community. Jewell, a noted fiddler, piano player, music teacher and resident of Scotsville, said she may not have even heard of Cape Breton had it not been for the music of Jerry Holland.

“He’s the reason I’m here in Cape Breton today. I heard his music for the first time in Port Townsend, Washington about thirty years ago. It changed my life and the music that I wanted to play,” Jewell added.

Jerry often advised younger players that they needed to have a love of the music because it isn’t always very financially rewarding to be a musician, and the sacrifices can be huge. It was something he knew first hand, for he had often supplemented his artistry through employment as a carpenter, instrument repairer and other necessary skills.

Mabou musicians Derrick and Melody Cameron recalled fond memories of Jerry helping young players in the musical ceilidhs and sessions they held in their home as part of the Féis Mhàbu youth musical mentorship program.

“Jerry was very generous with his time and very approachable. He’d not only play for them, but he’d really listen to them play. He’d offer advice on playing and composing and he was quick to encourage. He’d often share a humourous story with them too because he enjoyed a good laugh,” Derrick Cameron recalled.

Melody (Warner) Cameron recalled one of her earliest memories of Jerry when he played for the Warner Sisters while they step-danced for a BBC recording session.

Scott Macmillan, well-known Nova Scotian musician and composer said he’d first heard of Jerry Holland through his friendship with fellow musician Dave MacIsaac.

“It was through working on a project involving Jerry’s compositions in the mid-1980s that I became aware of the significance of Jerry’s music. I was going through the notation of many of his tunes, playing some of them for the first time and I was struck by how great and unique they were. It was as if each was composed by a different person. He was a great influence, and I was very fortunate to work with him on many occasions since that time,” said Macmillan.

Macmillan also recalled being at a pub in Edinburgh, Scotland in the mid-1990s playing a session with eight or nine musicians who happened to be there.

“Someone broke into Brenda Stubbert’s Reel, one of Jerry’s compositions and everyone knew it!,” said Macmillan.

Macmillan once again was an instructor at Jerry’s Ceilidh Trail School of Celtic Music in Inverness this summer. Jerry had taken over the operation of the school in recent years in his efforts to keep the musical traditions going.

“Jerry played the first of the master concerts held this year at the Inverness County Centre for the Arts, but he was too ill to play the second one last Monday. We held the final school recital last Friday just after hearing that he died, and it was a very emotional time for everyone there,” Macmillan concluded.

Many tribute concerts have been held in Jerry’s honour in recent months, one of which was held just prior to last Christmas at The Celtic Music Interpretive Centre in Judique.

Included among the highlights of that night was the introduction by Andrea Beaton of a DVD tribute documentary to Jerry Holland which she co-produced along with Diane Gillis. Jerry wasn’t feeling well enough to play that night, but he was very moved by the kindness and generosity shown to him by fellow musicians and the audience. There and elsewhere, Holland was sincerely recognized for his contribution to Cape Breton and Celtic culture, and it was clear he appreciated and was humbled by that thanks.

Celtic Colours International Festival Director Joella Foulds confirmed this week that their scheduled tribute to Jerry will go ahead this fall as a celebration of his life and music.

Jerry is survived by his son, Jerry Holland Jr., Georges River, Nova Scotia and his sisters, Ann (Frank Hall) Holland of Brockton, Massachusetts, and Pierrette Godbout Corbiel, Montreal, Quebec.

There was no visitation (by request) and following cremation a Funeral Mass for Jerry was celebrated Tuesday afternoon at St. Joseph Church, Bras d’Or. Memorial donations may be made to Hospice Palliative Care of Cape Breton and online condolences may be sent to info@wjdooley.com.

Jerry Holland shared his musical gifts with the world and was a great ambassador who saw that Cape Breton music was received and more greatly appreciated throughout the world. He will be long and fondly remembered.