concert La Route Chante: A Tribute for Lhasa De Sela

This recent tribute for Lhasa De Sela at The Rialto Theatre was a lovingly produced event that not only served to remind us of her unique personality but also of the depth of her songwriting talents.

Organized by the quartet of Lhasa's former production manager David Etienne-Savoie, brother Mischa, harpist Sarah Page and the head of Pop Montreal Dan Seligman, the show comes just two years after her death from cancer at the age of 37.

She was a tri-lingual singer and songwriter who earned comparisons with the likes of Edith Piaf, Tom Waits and Nick Cave. Her smokey contralto voice added a soulful resonance to her performances. She was intense and passionate but always playful.

Lhasa's personal story is fascinating. She was one of 10 children to parents of mixed Mexican, American and Lebanese ancestry. It was a bohemian and somewhat peripatetic upbringing.

She once explained that her parents bought a school bus and took the kids on the road. They were serious and unconventional and they taught their kids to value deep reflection and to yearn for truth. Lhasa spent her formative years on the roads between the Mexican border and the North Eastern United States becoming one of the earliest recipients what we now call 'home-schooling' .

The musicians who loved and collaborated with Lhasa de Sela gathered together for La Route Chante (The Singing Road), a tribute to the singer and songwriter at the Rialto Theatre. Lhasa's music and the pieces that inspired her were on the menu this night and featured Plants and Animals, Katie Moore, Sarah Pagé and Eden De Sela,Thomas Hellman, Freddy Koella, Patrick Watson and The Wooden Arms, Jérôme Minière, The Barr Brothers, Yves Desrosiers, Alejandra Ribera, So-Called, Joe Grass, and Bïa.