Music born from the Tantramar region
Music is a staple of Sackville, from those who have studied at Mt.A, to those who live in the Tantramar community. There is music all around! There is the art and music festival Sappyfest, which was started in 2006 by Julie Doiron, Paul Henderson, and Jon Claytor and has hosted artists such as Arcade Fire and Joel Plaskett Emergency. There is also the Sackville Festival of Early Music which celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2024. Let’s pull out some records, and talk about the musicians that have called Tantramar home.
Steve Haley is a folk musician originally from Placentia, Nfld., who currently calls the marshes of Sackville home. Haley describes himself as a “story songer” on his Bandcamp page and has been making music for almost two decades. Haley’s first project titled Two Steps in the Dark was released in 2008, and his newest project is an album Secret Knock, released in October of last year. Haley’s voice can be compared to artist Neil Young, while his lyrics are often poetic and a deep reflection on himself. He is also a part of the band, Banded Stilts, who are based in Toronto.
Electronic musician Beverly Glenn-Copeland, best known for his 1986 album Electronic Fantasies, previously resided in Tantramar with his wife. Electronic Fantasies originally had a limited release on cassette tapes, however it later became a beloved album to the electronic music community. It gained fame in 2015 due to Japanese audiophile Ryota Masuko, who sold cassettes he received from Glenn-Copeland. This led to the album’s re-release in 2017 by Invisible City Editions, a reissuing label in Toronto. A reimagined version of the album was released by Transgressive Records in 2021, featuring remixes by Bon Iver, Kelsey Lu, Julia Holter, and Blood Orange.
Another person close to Sackville is Jon McKiel. Currently residing in Baie Verte, a village close to Sackville, McKiel has been releasing music since 2008. McKiel has played at the Calgary Folk Music Festival in 2025, and at Sappyfest in 2024. His most recent album, Hex, was highly praised by Canadian music publisher Exclaim!, being ranked #16 of the best albums ranking of the year. It also made the 2024 longlist for the Polaris Music Prize, an annual award that celebrates the best Canadian album of each year. His indie rock song “Mourning Dove” from his earlier album Bobby Joe Hope, has also received almost two million streams on Spotify alone.
Indie pop artist Feist is another local artist with roots in Amherst. Feist’s father, Harold Feist, taught fine arts at Mt.A during the late 70s. Feist has been nominated for multiple Grammy awards, and has won 11 Juno Awards. Feist has performed with countless global celebrities, from Cillian Murphy, James Blake, Colin Greenwood, and even the Muppets! Her 2007 album, The Reminder, was ranked third on Times’s list of “Best Albums of 2007,” and her 2012 album titled Metals won the Polaris Music Prize.
Shirley Eikhard, a country and pop artist singer-songwriter and a multitime Juno Award winner, is another musical gem who grew up in Sackville. Eikhard may not be as well known for her own albums, however, as a songwriter, many of her songs have become musical hits. “It Takes Time” by Anne Murray was written by Eikhard when she was 15, and charted on the Canadian RPM adult contemporary, country, and popcharts. Eikhard also wrote “Something to Talk About” by Bonnie Raitt, which reached #5 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song earned Raitt the Best Female Pop Performance at the Grammy’s in 1992, beating out superstars like Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston. The song was also nominated in the highly praised category of Record of the Year. “Something to Talk About” would eventually lead to Eikhard being inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2020.
Finally, there are many Mt.A. alumni who have gone on to make highly celebrated music. David Myles, also known as the MP representative for Fredericton-Oromoncto, has a political science degree from Mt.A. Myles has won two Junos awards, and has released over 15 albums. Myles is most well known for his feature on Canadian rapper Classified’s hit hip hop classic “Inner Ninja,” which reached #5 on the Canadian Billboard Hot 100 . Classical crossover musician Eleanor McCain has recorded six studio albums and has been nominated for multiple East Coast Music Association Award from her Christmas album Holiday to her Celtic Ballad album Green Hills of Home. Singer-songwriter Claire Siobhan, a recent graduate from Mt.A. released an EP titled Seek the Sun which earned her two nominations with the Music Nova Scotia Awards in 2024 for Folk/Roots Recording of the Year and for New Artist Recording of the Year.
Despite being a small town, Sackville has been called home by many musicians, and there are many more artists who have origins in the Tantramar region. The marshes of Sackville have been home to many great musicians and it is incredibly important to support artists from our community. So give these artists a listen, you might just find a new local celebrity!