Leahy — a hipper singing family

Move over, Von Trapp family. Here comes Leahy (pronounced Lay-he) — the Canadian family singing/dancing/ fiddling group that's a wee bit hipper, newer and, well, more Celtic.

It all started with Mom and Dad, Maria Leahy said by phone from her Ontario home. "They were both very musical themselves and actually had a band of their own that they played in on the side.

"It's the music that was all around us as we were growing up. So it was very natural for us to be listening to music, and then start playing music, and then start playing together. We would go out and play at local events, and one thing just keep leading to another thing, until, eventually, we were able to do it as a full-time career."

The eight-member band is actually a reduction in size from the original 11 siblings who sang, played and danced together. Leahy said that the oldest three sisters had to stop touring due to family considerations.

The kids grew up on a farm in Lakefield, Ontario. "It's our way of life," she said of the farm. "How we express our music and how we are creative totally stems from that way of life that existed on the farm."

The family farm is still in operation, Leahy said. "It is, I guess, a large farm for this area. It is still functional and the boys still work on the farm when we're home. When we're away touring and traveling, people come in and do the necessary work that needs to be done."

There's also musical work to be done at home. Leahy the band has its own studio in Lakefield, and it's called The Farm, where the group's most recent CD, "In All Things," was recorded. "It just contains, I guess, music, instrumental dance songs that we have been working on for the last (two years). It's a reflection of where we are at musically," said Maria Leahy.

The album contains quite a bit of variety. "One thing we know about ourselves is that we don't play one style of music. I guess people are accustomed to categorizing certain albums or certain groups, but we don't necessarily fit. I guess that's the way we see ourselves — we don't fit into one category. This album, I guess, is an example of that."

Leahy said that her mother is Scottish and her father is Irish, so they have been heavily influenced by both backgrounds — as well as the French style of music in Quebec. "And all of us love all kinds of music, and we can't help but hear some of those influences come through the music when we play it — everything from rock to classical to folk to you name it. So there will be some presence of the different styles of music."

Most of what they play is original. "Everybody puts in their creative two-cents' worth, you might say.

"As far as writing the music, it might start with one or two people, an idea, and then it will just — other people will just join in on the creative process."

When the band comes to Park City, it will be drawing from the latest album, "In All Things." The last time Leahy was here, it opened for Shania Twain. "I think that would have been the first and maybe only time that we have played there," said Maria Leahy, adding that she's looking forward to coming back.

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If you go . . .

What: Leahy

Where: Eccles Center for Performing Arts, Park City

When: Saturday, 7:30 p.m.

How much: $15-$50

Phone: 435-655-3114

Web: www.ecclescenter.org

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E-mail: rcline@desnews.com