CANORA - Charmed by the vocal and instrumental offerings of Diyet and the Love Soldiers, concertgoers at the Stars for Saskatchewan concert presented by the Canora Arts Council expressed their appreciation often throughout the evening concert on Oct. 26 at Canora Composite School.
Diyet shared about her long-time interest in music, “I was a really shy child but somehow this big voice just came out of me.”
In addition to her expressive, crystal-clear singing, Diyet also plays bass and the traditional hand drum. Other members of the trio are her husband and collaborator Robert van Lieshout (vocals, drums and acoustic guitar) and Juno-award winning producer Bob Hamilton (vocals, pedal steel, mandolin, electric guitar).
Even though total attendance was only 39, audience members were quite impressed with the performance: “Great entertainment,” “Enjoyable,” “Such an amazing variety of instruments,” “Diyet has a wonderful singing voice,” and “Excellent sound and storytelling.”
Diyet is an Indigenous singer/songwriter from a small southwest Yukon village of about 90 people, “pretty much just my family members.”
In addition to English, she sings in her native 麻豆传媒AVern Tutchone language, telling stories about her heritage.
The trio opened with a song called Ari, written by Diyet and her 94-year-old grandma, about “the land where I’m from. You won’t understand it, but hopefully you’ll feel what I’m feeling.”
Diyet’s passion for her homeland and its people came across loud and clear in this song and throughout the rest of the concert.
A song called Two Birds was written by Diyet and a friend from Greenland about growing up in the north, in the land of the midnight sun. Diyet recalled being told by her parents to go outside and play after being cooped up inside all winter, inspiring the lyrics “Just coming in from a long day of play. Better to live than to hide. We won’t forget to go outside.”
Diyet said when she turned 18, she and her cousin headed south to Vancouver, where she earned her music degree. The two of them were determined never to go back to the Yukon, but “as time goes on, you realize life at home is pretty good.”
One of Diyet’s most touching songs is Eighth Wonder, which she wrote after finding out that many in her community, including her mother, were forcibly taken away to residential schools when they were very young. She recalls experiencing two very different emotions. “I was very devastated that this could happen, especially to kids. On the other hand, I was filled with hope because they were strong enough to get through it.” Lyrics to the song include, “Everybody knew, no one said a word. To me, you’ll always be the eighth wonder. No more lost children on their own.”
“When I sang this song to her,” recalled Diyet, “Mom said to share it with as many people as possible to make sure this never happens again.”
One of the songs the trio performed was taught to Diyet recently by her grandma and her friend. It was discovered as part of a long-lost 1942 recording when their community’s elders were singing songs and telling stories. When Diyet expressed concern about getting permission to perform this song in concert, her grandma gave her a single-minded look and said, “I’m the oldest one here and you have permission.”
Diyet, her husband and their family live in the village where she grew up, which inspired her to write a song called Nature. Regarding their home, she said, “We have eight neighbours, all grizzly bears. There, you have to be on your toes, the bears might chase you. I love it, you have no idea what Mother Nature is going to throw at you each day.”
Diyet said her interest in music goes back pretty much as far as she can remember.
“I have always been fascinated with the human voice. Some of my earliest memories of listening to radio and hearing classical singers really blew my mind. I discovered that I can actually sing when I was about 10 years old. I’ve been singing ever since, songwriting came a bit later after I completed my music degree. I needed a job and almost discovered by chance that I had a knack for songwriting. So I did that for some years in Vancouver, writing tunes for other people.”
She describes her style as a “tapestry of all the music that I love. I find that some styles lend themselves better to writing the kind of songs that describe and put the listener into a place and time.”
She has a wide-ranging ethnic background that very much influences her music: 麻豆传媒AVern Tutchone, Tlingit, Japanese and Scottish.
“So it’s quite a bit of a mix! But I was raised in the traditions of my mother in the southern Tutchone way. In my community, I have been taught, and I am now also teaching songs in our traditional stories. I have been instructed by my elders that my role is to share and teach our songs in language. So some of these traditional songs and stories make their way into my show.”
Much of her songwriting takes place when she’s at home, inspired by the lands and the environment.
“My habit is to write from a personal perspective, but at the same time I try to keep things universal so that everyone can relate in some way or another.”
For the most part, Diyet and the Love Soldiers perform original compositions or traditional songs.
Diyet has recorded three albums, including the most recent release, Diyet and the Love Soldiers. “When we get home from tour, we will be in the process of recording our fourth studio album.”
She has performed in every Canadian province except Newfoundland, in addition to touring in Europe and England. Plans are in place in the near future for concert dates in the United States.
“I love many things about being a musician, but one of the things I treasure most is the privilege and ability to capture my thoughts, experiences and hopes, in words and music and to be able to share that with others. It’s truly humbling honour to hear that space with people,” said Diyet.
“Audiences love the diversity of our show. They love the connection and feeling like they are a part of the show rather than just a spectator. A big part of my tradition is storytelling, and I love to incorporate that part of my culture into the show as well.”
Concert tours have provided them with a wide range of experiences, from playing for large festival crows of around 10,000 all the way down to very small audiences of less than 50.
“Each show is unique, but what I love about playing a smaller room is that there is a very real personal connection that could be made,” she said, “I’ve always enjoyed having connection interaction with audience members during the show and after.”
Like most other performers, the COVID-19 shutdown was a challenging time for Diyet, but it also created opportunities.
“The pandemic forced me to evaluate my career. We lost many opportunities, but we gained just as many. Being forced to stay home allowed me a chance to reconnect with that creative part of myself that sometimes gets put on hold when you tour a lot, I was able to expand my practice into some new areas.”
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