FOLK MUSIC AND FOLKLORE SHOWS ... book a show!!
I love performing .. especially in House Concerts
I also really enjoy creating an acoustic vibe at gallery event. Markets are fun too (if there's shade!), but there's nothing as great as a festival stage. I'll adapt my sets to your situation, but if you have an interest in Canadian history in story and song then my folklore show FORGOTTEN MEMORIES OF THE OTTAWA VALLEY is for you!. SCROLL DOWN and check the reviews and the list of presenters.
I often play solo, but in 2022 I founded the folk music group NORTH RENFREW, performing often as a father-son duo act. With accordion/melodion, Irish whistle, fiddle and sometimes mandolin, we have a charming strain of folk music.
Contact me for more information. You won't regret it!
Forgotten Memories of the Ottawa Valley (specialty folklore show)
a unique folk music shOW … stories and songs about canadian history and culture
FORGOTTEN MEMORIES is a collection of songs about the history and heritage of the Ottawa Valley. The collection has been arranged to provide a musical tour of the Ottawa Valley, with introductory narratives (story telling) providing informative insights to the days and the ways of the past. The songs reflect the early years of river travels, immigration, settlement, logging, farming, rural/frontier life, and more recent developments. These topics are relevant to areas beyond the Ottawa Valley because the early peoples everywhere in what became Canada would have experienced similar challenges with settlement, travel, and life. Effort has been put into researching the topics of the songs and the repertoire continues to grow as new stories are put to song. This “folklore” style of entertainment is appealing for people with an interest in history and heritage. Every story is true.
The show is the creation of Ottawa Valley singer/songwriter Marc Audet. Marc’s writings of historic events and past ways of life were inspired by visiting and exploring the crumbling remains of logging camps, depot farms and wagon roads located throughout the Valley. For Marc, these ruins project inspiration and they would soon be lost to the forests, if it weren’t for Marc’s effort to put these stories to song. Here's a promotional video that includes a radio interview. Book this show for your HOUSE CONCERT or FESTIVAL SIDE STAGE ACT.
Here's a list of the presenters of this unique show. Check the reviews as well: people love to hear stories and songs about Canadian history.
Ontario Parks: Algonquin Park Visitor Centre (Whitney), Algonquin Achray Theatre, Bonnechere Provincial Park
Deep River Public Library (Deep River, ON)
Bonnechere Union Public Library (Eganville, ON)
Ross Museum (Foresters Falls, ON)
Upper Ottawa Valley Heritage Centre (Pembroke, ON)
Goulbourn Township Historical Society (Richmond, ON)
Bromley Historical Society (Cobden, ON)
Little Red Wagon Winery (Shawville, PQ)
Academia Stella Maris School (Limoge, ON)
Stonecliffe Community Hall (Stonecliffe, ON)
Rapides des Joachims Town Hall (Rapides des Joachims, PQ)
Pedersen Residence (house concert)
Cold Bear Brewing Co. (Arnprior, ON)
Bonnechere Manor (Renfrew, ON)
Haleys Bay Music Hall (Bonnechere Valley)
Reviews
“On a lovely Friday August 1 st morning, a large audience assembled in the Bonnechere Manor’s Rotary Hall. That audience entered a portal, a journey back in time conducted by singer and song writer Marc Audet. For the next hour the people of an Ottawa Valley so long ago, lived and breathed again through Marc’s song writing, vocals and guitar work. Marc was accompanied by his son Bradley, who beautifully enhanced his father’s songs, with his remarkable talents on whistles and mellotron. With a changing backdrop of old photographs in glorious black and white, the journey unfolds and we become acquainted with characters from our colourful past; and we are reminded that even an old tree has a story of its own to tell. Gazing at the faces in the audience as they re-emerge from the portal, tells one that Marc Audet’s show “Forgotten Memories of the Ottawa Valley”, is an enriching experience that they won’t soon forget.” - Steve Jackson, Troubadour Radio Show Host, CHIP 101.7FM
— Email submission, 2025 August 14
“I want to thank you for a magical evening last night. Listening to you play and hearing the words you have penned in recording our tremendous history here in this Great Ottawa Valley of ours was very raw to the soul. Your gift to putting the stories to song are so rare in today's world. I am sure somewhere up there Mac Beattie has a Grateful smile on his face today. Your encyclopedic repertoire of John Prine classics became a series of Magical moments for my sweetheart Janie.” - Michael M.
— E-mail (thank you note)
“Marc plays music which calls back to the bygone history of Eastern Ontario with tales of the Voyageurs and Coureur De Bois of the Ottawa Valley. His music is as calming as the flowing Ottawa River. His presence is serene and introspective, much like the territory he sings about. While listening to him, you may find yourself in a different place and time. Join him for an evening of history, folk legends, and authentic entertainments.”
— Nigel E.
“I've known Marc for quite some time. I've seen his music grow over the years and I've been impressed with every step he's taken along the way. His own music is steeped in love of both the history he's researched and for the good in humanity. The spin he puts on the music of others is always something to look forward to also.I hosted a concert in the GTA at which he played. I can assure you that when we are able to present live music again, you should look him up. He provides a great evening of entertainment.I always look forward to his Thursday Evening Livestreams from his home with his family gathered (and sometimes participating) and his charming smile”
— Ian M.
“Marc is a wonderful musician. Living in the music, he tells his stories, stories that have inspired him, reliving emotions and moments. Marcs choice of cover songs always make me smile and often have me laughing. Not to mention widens my musical horizons. Marc is easy to work with and always willing to help in any way he can. I would recommend Marc Audet to anyone looking for a musician to uplift or liven any space or crowd!”
“For entertainment that warms the soul and lifts the spirit, Marc Audet Singer/Songwriter is it! We first enjoyed his one man show at the Happy Goat Coffee Company coffee house almost 3 years ago. We were hooked! His performance style is so relaxed and he really connects with his audience through story. It contains interesting history, family anecdotes and memories and a nice injection of humour and humility. His writing is clever and beautiful. Marc was Then a perfect inclusion in our wedding vow renewal at a cabin by a lake in 2018. We love his work, his style, his showmanship and, most of all, his beautiful personality. Keep on with your great songwriting, my friend! RIGHT NOW,!!!!! you can enjoy Marc currently performing live every Thursday evening from his Covid hide away in rural Ontario!”
— Jennifer H.
“I love being in any space Marc is playing. He is one of those performers that automatically makes the experience enjoyable because he is in fact enjoying himself. No venue is “too fancy” or “not fancy enough” for a guy like him. He gives his talents selflessly for causes that make a difference in people lives. He will cover a song and give his own twist to it making the song a new original. His own songs let the listener have a little peak into his values as a person.”
— Chris H.
“I have been following Marc Audet’s music career for a few years now. Marc brings a unique perspective to his songwriting, taking the history of the Upper Ottawa Valley and telling the stories of the people who lived the lives that shaped the region. His imagination brings you into the moment and the music is distinctly that of a man who has lived his life in the Valley. When he combines his talents with those of his son, Bradley who plays flute, tin flute and melodica, there is a fullness that allows you to close your eyes and drift away. I recommend Marc Audet’s music to anybody who enjoys musical story-telling and Canadian history”
— Laurence L.
“Marc Audet is a singer/songwriter who can keep an audience's attention with his writing, music and unassuming stage presence.”
— Terry M.
“I have been listening to the true chords of Canadian Marc Audet in his cottage barn, at the Off the Grid, in Kathy Haycock’s Gallery, and Summer park concerts in Eganville, and it is always a pleasure. Hearing the experience of feet on the ground, a soaring soul, performed with heart is a beautiful experience.. truth in music.”
— Susan H.
“I felt the Valley in my heart and so much of your music reminded of things I can't put a finger on. It really put a smile on my face.”
— Janice E.
“Marc Audet is a highly talented singer, musician, and song writer. Highly recommended. You can catch him on his live stream on Thursdays at 8 PM and, once we are again able to, I recommend that you catch him live at venues in the area”
— Gerry R.
“Marc Audet is an excellent musician and entertainer, whether performing his own songs or covering others'. His sensitive interpretation, top-notch musicianship and warm personality are well suited to both individual performance and background creation of musical ambiance at non-music-centred events.”
— Judy M.