ABOUT
From foot-stomping reels to soaring airs, The Bookends bring their audiences along for a truly musical adventure. Drawing on their diverse musical backgrounds to craft a compelling repertoire with distinct arrangements and original compositions, these multi-instrumentalists explore a library of traditional gems and contemporary favourites from the world of Celtic music.
After serendipitously discovering a shared love of music in 2016, The Bookends began to forge their distinctive sound through countless live shows before releasing a debut album Chapter One in the spring of 2020. Their second album, A Celtic Celebration, released in 2023, was recorded live with the Stratford Symphony Orchestra, and garnered a nomination for the 2024 Canadian Folk Music Awards 'Traditional Album of the Year’. In August of that same year, The Bookends had the honour of joining internationally acclaimed Canadian artist Loreena McKennitt in a series of performances at select folk festivals in Ontario. Some of these shows were captured for McKennitt’s latest live album The Road Back Home, released in the spring of 2024.
The Bookends have appeared at numerous Celtic and Folks festivals including the IRL Festival, Stratford Summer Music and Streetside LIVE! festivals and were headlined at the Goderich Celtic Roots Festival.
Currently, the band is working on completing their second studio record, Chapter Two, which will be released in early 2026.
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Errol Fischer
Fiddle • Banjo
Errol was born and raised in Calgary, Alberta, Canada and started playing the violin at age 4. Although he started studying classical music initially, Errol was first exposed to traditional fiddle music as a member of the Calgary Fiddlers and travelled on his first international tour to Scotland with the group at the age of 12. Errol then went on to be a founding member of the fiddle super-group Barrage and toured extensively for the better part of a decade playing for audiences around the world and recording on a number of studio albums and live performance broadcasts. He has appeared on numerous national television programs including the CBC, BBC (Blue Peter), RTL, and PBS and has performed live for dignitaries including His Majesty King Charles III, the Governor General of Canada, the House of Saud, and the Prime Minister of Canada. Errol has also shared the stage with many other great artists such as Loreena McKennitt, Ashley MacIssac, Great Big Sea, and Mark O’Connor amongst others, and has performed on stages in more than 30 countries. Errol is also an accomplished Stone Mason and has since relocated to Stratford, Ontario with his family, where he continues to pursue his love of trad music with The Bookends.
Miriam Fischer
Piano • Accordion
Born into a musical family in Germany and transplanted to Canada as a child, Miriam began playing piano at a young age, studying classical music with the Royal Conservatory program. Early on in her musical journey, she discovered her voice in the freedom of improvisation, spending hours exploring melodies and chord progressions on the keyboard. A seasoned performer, Miriam has collaborated with a diverse array of musicians and vocalists, showcasing her versatility and intuitive musicality on stage.
Miriam was first introduced to Celtic music through a vibrant community of traditional musicians in Calgary, Alberta, where many happy jams and spirited sessions led to a love of the music and a deep appreciation for how this traditional music shapes culture and fosters a sense of belonging. Her non-traditional background has allowed her to develop a unique and melodic approach to accompaniment and Miriam is among a growing wave of young, talented pianists in the genre. She has appeared at numerous music festivals and stages across Canada and since moving to Stratford, Ontario with her family, Miriam has also taken up the piano accordion and continues to explore the Celtic music tradition with The Bookends.
Cait Watson
Whistles • Flute
Cait began her musical journey with classical piano before exploring diverse instruments and genres from big band to African drumming. After studying music and linguistics at Carleton and York Universities she felt drawn to return to her hometown of Stratford where she and Pete reside with their children. Cait’s family connection to Ireland and musical influences from childhood lead her to explore and fall in love with traditional Celtic music. Now playing whistle and flute with The Bookends, Cait revels in the band’s distinctive harmony of heritage and originality. In 2023, she composed and performed the music for Judith Thompson’s Queen Maeve with Here for Now Theatre. Cait’s original composition Greystones is featured on Loreena McKennitt’s 2024 release, The Road Back Home, a live album recorded with The Bookends.
Pete Watson
Guitars
Pete has had a lifelong love of playing and performing, but feels it is his Irish roots that ignited his passion for Celtic music. In 2015, as Cait started to explore the Irish whistle, Pete immersed himself in traditional music and Irish guitar styles. He has performed with Loreena McKennitt (with The Bookends), appearing on her last two records (Under A Winter’s Moon and The Road Back Home). He also edited and mixed the first two records for The Bookends, including their 2024 Canadian Folk Music Award nominated album A Celtic Celebration with the SSO; for which he was also nominated as Producer of the Year by the Forest City London Music Awards. In addition to playing guitar, Pete has an extensive background working within the music industry for Universal Music and elsewhere.
Romano Di Nillo
Bodhrán
Native Newfoundlander, Romano Di Nillo studied music at Memorial University of Newfoundland and received a masters in music From McGill. For a decade Romano was in Toronto freelancing with the Canadian Opera Company, several Symphony Orchestras, studio drumming, gamelan, writing and performing for dance and theatre. He was the musical director of The Ballad of Stompin' Tom at Blythe, Drayton, Thousand Islands and Charlottetown Festival and has been nominated for a Dora Mavoor Moore award for his work in Darren O'Donnell's BOXHEAD. In 2009 joined the new company of Wicked Munchkinland tour as their drummer for the next 8 years... 2600 shows later Romano left the road to be the percussionist with the original company of Come From Away on Broadway.
Presently Romano is living in Stratford, Ontario playing with The Bookends, Loreena McKennitt, while also composing for short film, teaching lessons and masterclasses in person and around the world through zoom. The 2024/2025 summers found Romano and his wife Christa in the pit of Come From Away in Gander, NL.