Rodney MacDonald

​Honourable Rodney J. MacDonald, E.C.N.S., is an accomplished Cape Breton musician and dancer who has performed throughout Atlantic Canada, Eastern USA, Central Canada, and Scotland. Rodney is the grandson of the great fiddler and composer, the late Donald Angus Beaton and comes from a family of musicians. He began step dancing at home at a young age and started playing the fiddle at the age of 12 as a result of lessons from his uncle, Kinnon Beaton. In 1995, Rodney recorded his first album, "Dancer’s Delight". "Traditionally Rockin’", recorded with his cousin Glenn Graham, followed in 1997 and received two nominations for East Coast Music Awards. He can also be heard on the 2004 Smithsonian release, "The Beaton Family of Mabou: Cape Breton Fiddle and Piano Music". MacDonald is a former Premier of Nova Scotia and Cabinet Minister. He is presently the CEO of Colaisde na Gaidhlig / The Gaelic College and resides in Mabou.