Strong across all strings : Stanley Triggs

by Mary Ducharme  (August 2013)

In Stedman’s store are copies of a CD Road to Paradise, a collection of dance tunes from the Kootenays which were written and played on the mandolin by Stanley Triggs. These vintage ‘bush’ tunes were in the cusp of a folk music revival in the 1950’s and ‘60’s. Stanley traveled across Canada singing and playing to audiences in major cities, sometimes for $4.00 a night and working until four in the morning. He also played in New York City in a concert organized by Sam Gesser which showcased Canadian talent. This era was nearly forgotten in the mainstream but enjoys increasing recognition both by mu- sic historians and folk music fans as authentic Canadiana. Another collection of Stanley’s music, Bunkhouse and Forecastle Songs of the Northwest is preserved in the Smithstonian’s Folkways collection.

Stanley’s music evokes a wilderness world that he loved deeply: the earthy lives of hardscabble people who lived in logging camps and remote cabins – places where water roared down mountain ravines and sternwheelers plied the icy lakes. The mandolin was purchased by Stanley’s father in 1917 when he worked on a British Columbian paddle wheel steamer. It is only this mandolin Stanley will play, he explains, because it has exceptional tone and is strong across all strings.

The description is apt for Stanley himself. He was born in 1928 and grew up in the Kootenays where passion for music shared the stage with equal passions for photography and history. In the Touchstones Nelson Museum of Art and History in British Columbia is an extensive collection of his original photographs, plate glass negatives, and texts documenting the people, places and oral history of B.C.

In 1965, Stanley was hired by the Notman Archives. During his 28 years at Notman, he wrote or co-wrote several publica- tions on the subject of Canadian photograph pioneer William Notman. Stanley is often credited for playing a leading role in bringing international attention to Notman’s iconic photographs, now among the most valued of our Canadian legacies.

It was in Montreal that he met his wife Louise and together they raised five children and settled in the tiny and obscure border town that we know as Hemmingford. In his old farm-house he lives among books, musical instruments, and photographs that speak of eight decades fully lived and strong across all strings.