Meet Natalie MacMaster: wife, mother of four and virtuoso Cape Breton fiddler. You know her more as the latter then as the former; an electrifying performer whose passionate proficiency on the beloved four-string amplifies the traditional East Coast sound for contemporary times.

It's a signature sound that has resonated with world audiences through 10 albums (her 11th album, Cape Breton Girl will be released on November 1st), multiple gold sales, numerous Juno and East Coast Music Awards, three honorary degrees; the Order Of Canada; and a reputation as one of Canada's most captivating performers.

MacMaster also has the respect and admiration of many top musicians: she was a guest performer on legendary cellist Yo-Yo Ma's 2008 holiday-themed album Songs Of Joy & Peace; and MacMaster has toured with a number of incredible musicians, including fiddling marvel Alison Krauss and spiritually electrifying superstar guitarist Carlos Santana.

Born June 13, 1972 to Alex and Minnie MacMaster in Troy, Inverness County, Nova Scotia, Natalie MacMaster's impressive musical lineage includes a cadre of amazing fiddlers, including her uncle, fiddle prodigy Buddy MacMaster (with whom Natalie recorded the 2005 gem Traditional Music From Cape Breton Island).

However, MacMaster forged her own sound, debuting her fiddling prowess at the age of nine-and-a-half years at a Glencoe Mills, N.S. square dance. She delivered her first album, Four On The Floor, at the age of 16 and has since turned the music of Cape Breton into an international phenomenon. MacMaster thrills audiences with her exciting fiddling and dynamic state presence.

"It's been quite a journey, traveling through many different paths," says MacMaster, who also holds a Bachelor of Education degree from Nova Scotia Teacher's College. "I remember the excitement of me just being able to take what was in your mind and put it out on an instrument, which, when you're learning, isn't so easy.

Today MacMaster's beloved family shapes and informs her musicianship as much as the jigs, reels, marches, and traditional folk that feed her spiritual soul."Not so much the sound as the delivery," states MacMaster, who married fiddle phenomenon Donnell Leahy of Leahy in 2002. "I am a Mom now. I am a wife. Those things are my priorities in life, and I think people get a sense of that through my show. But my music itself hasn't changed."

If anything, family has reinvigorated Natalie MacMaster's commitment to the stage and her audience.

"I like being on stage even more," she enthuses. "When I appear onstage, that's my departure from Momhood – and I transform into Natalie MacMaster: the entertainer, the fiddler, the performer. I relish that now more."

As do her audiences, who are left clapping, hollering and screaming for more as MacMaster and her band wow them with stylistic diversity as reflected in such top-selling CDs as the Grammy-nominated My Roots Are Showing, Blueprint and Yours Truly.

The strength and confidence that MacMaster developed as a young performer to overcome her incredible shyness has only continued manifest itself through the years. It has served Natalie MacMaster on stage, whether performing with The Chieftains, Paul Simon, Faith Hill, Luciano Pavarotti or in front of millions on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, the ABC 2002 New Year's Eve Special and Good Morning America. It has also thrilled audiences throughout Europe and North America, especially in her native Canada.

At a youthful 39, Natalie MacMaster's strength and confidence in performing the fiddle continues to drive her passion and hunger to explore her love of music even further. MacMaster is so thankful for her gifted talent.