Newfoundland’s all-sister group ‘Ashelin’ returns to Maine

Ashelin will play in several Maine venues in August.

CARTHAGE - New England Celtic Arts will present Ashelin, Newfoundland's highly acclaimed Celtic-Pop band at Phillips Area Community Hall on Tuesday Aug. 7; at Skye Theatre in South Carthage on Wednesday Aug. 8; and at UCCPA in Unity on Thursday Aug. 9. Curtain at Phillips and Skye is 7:00 pm and at UCCPA is 7:30 pm. A pre-show jam session will start one hour prior to curtain at each location.

ASHELIN is a band of five sisters - Cassy, Joesie, Kaliyan, Shaelin, and Thea Plamer– from Newfoundland Canada. The sisters began singing and dancing to Newfoundland and Irish music as far back as they can remember while learning to play a stunning variety of instruments. Although they never expected this childhood passion for all things musical to be anything but family focused, they were soon embarking on a musical journey that is winning them attention and fans around the world.

Known for their sparkling vocals and intricate harmonies, ASHELIN’s brand of folk roots and pop shines through their original songwriting and novel interpretations of traditional tunes. Since their first public performance in 1997, they have entertained thousands at such high profile events as the World Podium Influential Leaders series with guest speaker Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, and a visit to Qatar for an audience with Queen Sheikah Mozah. ASHELIN have showcased for Contact East, the JUNOs, and the ECMAs, and received numerous standing ovations at folk festivals across the Maritimes including the Stan Rogers Folk Festival.

ASHELIN was chosen to showcase Newfoundland culture through the eyes of an artist in a recent documentary film of Newfoundland and Nova Scotia. The film, by Compass Films of Germany, centers around the expedition of world famous explorer Arved Fuchs’ North Atlantic Tour 2010, on the path of the Vikings. It was broadcast in Germany and France to an audience of over 12 million people. Most recently they have been touring in Ireland and an extended stay at Dollywood in the spring of 2012

The band’s original song “Song for Mariana” was a winner from over 600 contenders for David Suzuki’s “Playlist for the Planet,” a soon-to-be-released CD which brings them together with some of Canada’s finest songwriters and performers. Other winners for this prestigious release include Gordon Lightfoot, Bruce Cockburn, Broken Social Scene, k-os, Randy Bachman (with Sarah McLachlan and Nikki Yanofsky), Joel Plaskett, Great Big Sea, Johnny Reid, and RUSH.SHELIN’s 2010 release “The Road Not Taken” was produced by Grammy Award winning producer/engineer George Massenburg and ECMA award winning producer/engineer Al Strickland, and features performances by the crème de la crème of East Coast talent including bassist Jamie Gatti, multi-instrumentalist J.P. Cormier, and blues man John Campbell John among others.

The Phillips Community Center is on 21 Depot Street in Phillips. Skye Theater is located 3 miles West of East Dixfield village at 2 Highland Drive off Winter Hill Rd and US RT. 2 in South Carthage. UCCPA is at 42 Depot Street in Unity. Ticket price is $15 at the door. For reservations call Skye Theatre at (207) 562-4445 or UCCPA at (207) 948-7469, and in Phillips at (207) 639-3717 . Reservations are strongly suggested at all venues.