Above: Photo of Matt Masters submitted by the artist for promotional material
“Matt Masters is first up for this year’s Concert Series at Fensala Hall. You can still get season tickets for $125 for all five concerts. Or pick and choose which concert you want to come to. This is a fundraiser to help pay for the upkeep of our five historic sites and gives you a chance to support the Alberta talent that will bring great music to your community.” — from a Facebook post on Sept. 17, 2023.
September 23, 2023 — Setup is complete and sound checks are starting. Doors open at 7:00 pm tonight at Fensala Hall for MATT MASTERS. Concert starts at 7:30 pm. 24 Main Avenue, Markerville.
Photos by Byron Nilsson
The Matt Masters concert at Fensala Hall was a treat last night! Matt and his band, Jeremy Gigneaux on fiddle and Wayne Garrett on steel guitar were a delight to listen to. — Photos by John McKechnie
Born in North Battleford, Saskatchewan and raised in Alberta, Matt Masters has had an extensive career in the arts as well as in politics. He was program leader for Alberta Music Cities at The National Music Centre, coordinator for 125th Anniversary Programs at Lougheed House, and event coordinator for Toronto Blues Society, founded and developed Canadian festivals and events such as the Spaghetti Western Music Festival, The Barney Bentall Cariboo Express, as well as produced for The Maples Blues Awards and CBC Radio. Masters has emceed countless reputable events including YYC Music Awards, Alberta Spotlight, Beltline Bonspiel, Calgary Folk Festival, and Bow Valley Music Club. Not only impassioned by the arts, Masters’ words have always been backed by his actions and he ran head to head against Stephen Harper in the 2015 federal election as the NDP candidate in Calgary Heritage.
More recently, Matt Masters has founded the quickly expanding Canadian company Curbside Concerts that has employed many musicians through Covid-19, while safely delivering live music performances to communities across the country. In 2020, Matt added a couple of new nominations to his repertoire of Music Industry and Person of The Year at the YYC Awards, which at the time, he was also a presenter for.
After a hiatus of almost a decade from his last full-length album, Matt Masters has now leaned back on his first love of performing and recording Country Western music and turned his efforts inward to create a lasting piece of music history. The result of these recordings are an homage to some of the world’s most prestigious country greats titled Everybody Loves A Winner which honours Matt’s deep respect of the legacy that is Country and Western music. The album includes covers of the likes of Willie Nelson, Joe South, Ian Tyson, and Dimitri Tiomkin. Everybody Loves A Winner is produced by fellow Canadian Leeroy Stagger and features some of the country’s finest players, including guest spots by Jill Barber and Barney Bentall. Matt Masters’ new album checks another box off toward a growing list of his esteemed accomplishments.
Sponsored in part by Red Deer County and Alberta Foundation for the Arts!
