ELEANOR MCCAIN Born and raised in Florenceville, New Brunswick, Eleanor McCain found her voice as a young girl, singing at church, schools and community events. With musical training resources scarce in her small Maritime hometown, her mother drove Eleanor to Fredericton – nearly 150 kilometres away– for voice lessons to cultivate her budding talent. After graduating from the music program at New Brunswick’s Mount Allison University, she moved to Toronto, Ontario to pursue her classical training. She concentrated on expanding her vocal style from pure classical to classical crossover with a fusion of pop and folk. Eleanor launched her debut album Intimate to critical and popular acclaim in June 2001. In Intimate, she found a unique and personal blend that crosses genres and has garnered the support of such notable musical artists as Natalie McMaster, Chantal Kreviazuk and John McDermott. A melting pot of different styles and influences – classic, Celtic, ballad, folk and country, Eleanor characterizes her singing and her selection of materials in a single and remarkable word: intimate. Her voice is an elegant and personal tool through which she connects with listeners. For the singer and audience alike, the experience is warm, poignant and filled with an emotion that is basic and wonderfully human. After the release of Intimate, the songstress found herself focused on the joys of motherhood, yet she longed to return to the studio to record. Ultimately, she flew to Nashville where she once again teamed with renowned producer Terry Sawchuk and put her own personal stamp on songs she often sang to her daughter, many she herself had loved as a child. Bundle of Joy, Eleanor’s second CD, is the result of these efforts and is a lullaby CD that celebrates the joys of motherhood. Eleanor received a 2009 East Coast Music Award nomination for Bundle of Joy for Children’s Recording of the Year. In July 2010, Eleanor completed her third CD, Green Hills of Home. The Celtic CD is a collection of traditional folk and Maritime songs that represent her East Coast roots. Eleanor teamed with Halifax native, Brigham Phillips, who arranged and produced the CD. Eleanor has had the opportunity to also perform with other notable artists such as David Foster when she sang for the Crescendo event in Halifax to raise money for the David Foster Foundation. Eleanor McCain’s musical evolution has been influenced by the freedoms of her youth, the wonderment of motherhood and maturity in understanding how music connects people and underscores life’s events. The musical and cultural rhythms and influences of the Maritimes permeate Eleanor’s singing and spirit, and the many musical styles to which her mother introduced her on those long drives to Fredericton are reemerging in Eleanor’s professional career. In addition to her busy recording career, Eleanor continues to focus on raising her daughter, Laura.