Indigenous musical icon Vince Fontaine honoured at celebration of life in Winnipeg

Family, friends and fans of the late Vince Fontaine braved the Winnipeg cold to celebrate the life and honour the memory of the multi-award-winning Indigenous musician on Sunday.

Fontaine, a musician, producer, and festival curator from the Sagkeeng First Nation, died Tuesday from a heart attack. He was 62.

READ: ‘Great loss’: Musicians honour late Indigenous composer, Canadian icon Vince Fontaine

Several gathered at the Oodena Celebration Circle at The Forks in Winnipeg to pay their respects to the Canadian icon. There were musical performances in his honour.

Credit: CityNews/Breanna Marcelo

“He was a mentor to our family; he will be remembered as the nucleus of our Fontaine family. No wonder what was going on in our family, he always made time for every single one of us every single day. He always brought us together and we’re a very close family, but he was a huge part in maintaining that closeness, particularly after his sisters, our mothers died. For us, he will be greatly, greatly missed. ” explained Nahanni Fontaine, Niece and MLA for St. John’s

Fontaine first gained success in the music industry in 1995 as a guitarist of the roots-rock group Eagle & Hawk. He co-founded the band with former Canadian Football League all-star Troy Westwood.

“He was a pioneer in respect of Indigenous music and Indigenous craft and Indigenous artistry, and his music was used as a tool to bridge the gap between non-Indigenous people and Indigenous people and you know he was committed to reconciliation and for him, his part in that path was through his music,” added Fontaine.

Throughout his career, Fontaine received many accolades.

Among them are his band Eagle & Hawk’s 75 nominations and more than 30 wins at award ceremonies across North America, including a Juno Award, two Western Canadian Music Awards, nine Canadian Aboriginal Music Awards and 10 Aboriginal Peoples’ Choice Awards (now the Indigenous Music Awards).

Eagle & Hawk’s performances included two Canada Day shows on Parliament Hill, two appearances at the New Orleans Jazz Fest and one at the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. The band toured Europe a dozen times.

Fontaine was also a sought-out festival curator, producing live events for the Assembly of First Nations across Canada, along with being the festival manager for the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra’s Indigenous Festival.

–With files from Mark Neufeld and The Canadian Press

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