Ian Tyson to receive honour at folk awards

Alberta musician Ian Tyson will be presented with the Resonance Award for his lifetime contribution to Canadian music at the Canadian Folk Music Awards in Winnipeg this Saturday.

The award, given by the Canadian Museum of Civilization in Gatineau, Que., celebrates individuals who perform and preserve songs from Canada's musical heritage.

Tyson, who had a folk career in the 1960s and 1970s with singer Sylvia Fricker, later recorded traditional and contemporary cowboy songs.

"Ian Tyson is a Canadian icon whose songs have inspired and influenced generations of music lovers and musicians of every stripe," Victor Rabinovitch, president and CEO of the Canadian Museum of Civilization, said in a statement announcing the honour.

It is only the second year the museum has presented the award.

Tyson, who recently published a plainspoken memoir, The Long Trail: My Life in the West, has lived on a ranch south of Calgary since 1979 and raises cutting horses and other livestock.

As a folk singer, he was known for hits like Four Strong Winds and Someday Soon.

His more recent work is Western music, both his own songs and traditional songs, recorded on albums such as Cowboyography and  From Yellowhead to Yellowstone and Other Love Stories.

"I consider myself a very lucky man to have been able to share my music with appreciative fans for more than 50 years," said Tyson, 77.

The Canadian Folk Music Awards gala at the Pantages Playhouse in Winnipeg is to be hosted by Shelagh Rogers of CBC Radio and Benoit Bourque of La Bottine Souriante.

Musical performances are by The Once, Don Ross, Heather Bishop, Stephen Fearing, Madagascar Slim, David Essig, Annabelle Chvostek and Shearwater Bluegrass Band.