Wilson Lazarus, 13, carried a keyboard on his shoulder while his sister Lucie, 12, brought their two violins into the Our Lady of Perpetual Help church in Waltham on Sunday afternoon, in preparation for a show they were about to put on as a fundraiser for the church.
The Chapeau fiddle duo has been playing together since they picked up instruments as young children and have since performed all over Canada and even internationally. In their travels, they’ve found a love for bluegrass music.
Sunday afternoon, with accompaniment from Kyle McKey on guitar, the duo played a series of fiddle tunes and jigs for a crowd of about 50.
Ron Bartman, a longtime supporter of the Fiddleaires, is a member of the Our Lady of Perpetual Help church. His daughter placed a bid on a performance from the Fiddleaires at a Pembroke auction earlier this year, and when she won, she gifted it to her father who, in turn, passed it on to the church.
Lucie said that she enjoys performing because she gets to interact with the audience.
“When the audience is interactive and all that, it’s good, like they’re enjoying it,” she said.
McKey met them at a St. Patrick’s Day event and was blown away by their talent. He said he appreciated seeing young people invested in older styles of music, and feels that playing with the duo is like giving back.
“It’s kind of a full circle thing for me because when I was a kid, I was playing with older people and learning from them,” McKey said. “So it’s like I’m paying it forward now.”
Philip Perry, a member of the church’s finance committee, explained this event was put on to raise some of the money needed for renovating the church’s roof. He said fundraising efforts for a new roof began last year, and that the congregation hopes to collect the full amount needed for the repairs to do the work in 2026. So far, about 40 per cent of the total needed has been raised.
But Perry said Sunday’s event was also an opportunity to give the young musicians an opportunity to play for their community.
“We want to raise awareness for this young talent because the Fiddleaires are actually local,” Perry said.
“And also raise awareness that churches just like any other organization are in need of funds from time to time.”
