John Arcand has spent his lifetime promoting and preserving the traditions of Métis music and dance. He is a prolific composer, having written over 300 original tunes, many of which are considered traditional and are played throughout the world. To ensure that this unique style of Métis fiddle music is preserved he has recorded eight full length cd's and is in the process of releasing his 9th .

John's contributions have been recognized throughout the world including:

• In 1999, he was chosen as one of 27 people worldwide to represent Western Canada at Fiddles of the World in Halifax .
• In 2001, he was chosen as a delegate in an Irish/Métis Cultural Exchange, spending seven days in Dublin and playing for the president of Ireland .
• In 2003 he received the National Aboriginal Achievement Award for Arts and Culture.
• The Canadian Grand Masters presented him with a Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution to old time fiddling in August of 2003.
• In October 2003 he was presented with the Blue Lantern Award for Arts, Culture and Heritage.

John is a co-founder and instructor at Emma Lake Fiddle Camp, an organization that has operated for over 17 years. Through his mentorship and guidance, hundreds of students have had the pleasure of learning his traditional style of Métis fiddling, helping to ensure that younger generations can carry this traditional music into future generations.

White working as a project coordinator at the Gabriel Dumont Technical Institute in Saskatoon , John planned and facilitated a collaboration of well-known and respected fiddle players from across Westerns Canada to gather and preserve their traditional tunes. This led to the CD and book called Drops of Brandy and other Traditional Métis Tunes .

John's important contribution to the preservation of Métis music and dance has led to the creation of a 50 minute video documentary titled John Arcand and His Métis Fiddle . It is about John's life and music in addition to being a history of Métis fiddling and dancing. The video documents the true meaning of Métis style fiddling and shows how to dance the signature dance of the Métis, the Red River Jig.

His contribution to the music world encompasses his promotion of the Métis Traditions in Music and Dance, working with youth at fiddle camps and through private instruction, and his efforts to offer a venue where all of this can be seen, appreciated and shared- the Annual John Arcand Fiddle Fest.

John's foresight has created the conception of the John Arcand Fiddle Fest, one of Western Canada 's largest outdoor music festivals. This tree day music festival takes place on his acreage just outside of Saskatoon on the second weekend in August each year. The highlights of the weekend include a seven category fiddle contest (featuring a Traditional Métis category), the Canadian Red River Jigging Championships, workshops on Fiddling and Jigging and a host of concerts and special entertainment. A whole weekend of affordable family fun, it has been growing steadily over the years and has turned into one of the biggest outdoor music festivals in Western Canada , with attendance of more than 2300 people in 2003.

To see John Arcand perform is to see a man serious about his music and in harmony with all that is good. From playing for the Lieutenant Governor-General to jamming with regular folk, John is happiest and most at home with a fiddle in his hand.