January 14, 2010
We are pleased to announce the addition of Gadelle's newest member Anastasia DesRoches. Anastasia replaces Samantha Gallant who has decided to devote herself full time to the pursuit of her nursing career. We all wish Samantha well and thank her for her contribution to the extended life of the Gadelle project.

Anastasia brings a wealth of talent and stage experience to the group. In fact it was Anastasia who was the original teacher and mentor for Gadelle's former members Samantha and Paige Gallant. Born on Prince Edward Island she began to play the fiddle and step dance at an early age with the Lady Slipper Dancers led by (Senator) Libbe Hubley. At the age of 15 she then spent two years touring as the fiddler for the House Party Band. After a stint as the step dance instructor for the Piping College for the Traditional Celtic Performing Arts in Summerside, she began to focus her energies on her Acadian roots and began teaching and performing in the Evangeline Region of PEI. It was here that she began working with the local youth and founded the youth traditional group Clack a Zing with whom she performed and directed for 8 years. When these young musicians graduated from high school the remaining members of Clack a Zing teamed up with Helene and Louise to form Les Girls. As these young women have begun to go off to college and begin making life decisions, Les Girls has distilled itself into Gadelle. So Anastasia's participation in the Gadelle project now represents a coming full circle of sorts as life often does.

The members of Gadelle have all worked with her over the years individually on many musical projects and are now delighted to embark with her on the future adventures of Gadelle. She will be assuming Samantha's post complemented by not only her skill as a fiddler, but also a step dancer, bassist and octave mandolin player. With the exception of newly created pieces yet to come, Gadelle's repertoire will remain unchanged thanks to her versatility. Welcome Anna!

January 14, 2010
Apart from a trip to Dallas to the North Texas Irish Festival in March, band manager Grady Poe is busy preparing an active performance schedule for Gadelle. Fans of the band can look for a tour of New England in June culminating in a trip to the Old Songs Festival in Albany, New York. Gadelle members have played this festival several times over the years with Barachois and later Les Girls, but this will mark the first appearance for Gadelle. A trip to British Columbia is then in the offing with performances at the Vancouver Folk Festival among others. The Lunenburg Folk Festival has also been booked so those past attendees who remember Les Girls will be treated to more of the Acadian musical experience. Look for shows in Vermont, New York and Pennsylvania in October. Complete details of these and other tours to come will be made available on this website as plans are finalized.