Canadian duo to bring kitchen coziness to Putnam Fund concert

LACONIA — For fiddler Richard Wood and his musical partner, guitar player-vocalist Gordon Belsher, there’s no such thing as a typical venue.

The two seasoned Canadian musicians have performed before audiences that numbered as few as 20 and others in the thousands, from royal palaces to a military outpost at the North Pole. Wherever their music-making takes them, they like to think of their performances as a world-class kitchen party.

“The kitchen is the best place,” says Belsher. “It’s where the stove is and where the fridge is.”

They see their performances as cozy and refreshing.

Wood and Belsher will be bringing their style of Canadian Maritimes-inspired acoustic folk music to Laconia when they perform a Putnam Fund concert on Friday, March 8, at 7 p.m. in the Piper Auditorium at Laconia High School. The show is free.

Their musical roots also serve to broaden their repertoire.

“The audience will probably get to hear Celtic versions of Beatles tunes and maybe even Led Zeppelin,” Belsher said with a chuckle. “And The Who and the Bee Gees,” Wood added.

The program will also include some fiddle tunes from Quebec, Belsher said.

Wood has been playing the fiddle since his youth. His first fiddle was “a Chinese knockoff” he got when he was 11. The following year he started playing a fiddle made by French violin-maker Leon Bernardel.

“It’s been all over the world, and it’s been through the wringer,” he said.

Once, Wood recalled, he was loading concert equipment into a truck and accidentally backed over his violin case. “It’s had its bangs and nicks. I’ve played other violins, but I always come back to this one, because I just like the sound,” he said.

Belsher, 68, started off as a rock musician in western Canada, but moved over to acoustic folk music and then connected with Wood. Asked about the transition, Belsher replied, “A lot of Celtic bands are rockers, too.”

Including rock-inspired numbers in their repertoire helps  bring younger people to the shows, Belsher said.

Wood and Belsher spend the warm months at their home base of Prince Edward Island, which Wood describes as a melting pot of Canadian musical traditions.

At this time of the year, they traditionally perform along the East Coast. After their Laconia gig, their schedule will take them to a pair of stops in the Greater Boston area before heading to Florida for four performances, including one on St. Patrick’s Day. They will wind up the tour in Vermont.

Wood has performed for the Emperor of Japan and “just about every member” of British royal family.

“What happens is — it’s an honor and privilege — but the thing is, when you’re in the moment, you really don’t think what you doing. You’re on a rush,” Wood said of the experience of performing in front of world leaders or celebrities.

One type is audience that has a really special place in Wood’s heart is members of the military.

Wood, 40, whose father served in the Canadian Armed Forces, has performed for troops in Bosnia, Afghanistan, and the North Pole.

“It’s life-changing,” he said. “You’re sleeping in tents and you’re wearing flak jackets.”

It also tests a performer’s duty to perform no matter what comes.

When doing shows for troops in Khandahar, Afghanistan, in 2006, Canadian Capt. Nichola Goddard was killed in an ambush — the first female Canadian combat soldier to be killed in combat.

“How do you go on with the show after something like that?” Wood said.

Performing for military personnel is about more than just the music, he pointed out.

“Fifty percent is doing the show and 50 percent is talking with the troops,” he said, recalling times when they sat up with soldiers and talked well into the night about whatever it was they wanted to talk about — family, loneliness, or sports.

The duo’s East Coast tour comes on the heels of Wood’s latest album “Unbroken” which was co-produced by Belsher and mastered by Bob Ludwig. The album, which has been nominated for several music awards, features contributions by 17 P.E.I musicians, vocalists, and songwriters. It encapsulates the kind of acoustic folk music that keeps Woods and Belsher energized and creative.