music, Women Music March 2026

WMM 2026 Day 8 — Basia Bulat

Posted by Lisa or Li on


Basia Bulat

I wanted to make a bit of a landscape for this time
I was in.  I wanted to celebrate what I have.
–Basia Bulat, regarding her album,
“Basia’s Palace,” in an interview at CKUA

per wikipedia:
Barbara Josephine Bulat, known professionally as Basia Bulat, is a Canadian folk singer-songwriter. She is known for performing with an autoharp.

She grew up in Etobicoke, Ontario, where her mother was a music teacher who taught piano and guitar. She is of Polish origin and a member of the Canadian Polonia, who are citizens of Canada with Polish ancestry, and Poles who immigrated to Canada from abroad. (At the 2016 Census, there were 1,106,585 Canadians who claimed full or partial Polish heritage.)

She has said the radio at home was permanently tuned to an oldies station. “I don’t think I realised the radio had more than one station until I was 11 or 12,” she says.

She attended the University of Western Ontario in the city of London, Ontario, where she received a degree in English;she also took some classes with Olenka Krakus of the band Olenka and the Autumn Lovers. While a student at the University of Western Ontario, Bulat had a radio program on Western’s community and campus radio station CHRW-FM titled “Happy Tuesday” with co-host Holly Coish. Bulat first appeared on stage after she was coaxed by friends into opening for Julie Doiron and soon gained a local following.  Bulat began an MA in English at Western in 2006 but moved to Montreal to record “an audible memory” of her time there which resulted in her debut album.

Although Bulat no longer lives in London, Ontario, she has recognized the importance of London in establishing her career: “London has always been so supportive of me. I feel like the city really adopted me,” she says. “It wasn’t part of a larger commercial music industry but a small, close-knit scene, which was kind of nice.”

Discography
studio albums = 7
EPs = 1
Singles = 2
Compilations = 2

In Popular Culture
The song “Little Waltz” was used in a 2007 Australian Volkswagen Eos advertisement.
The song “In the Night” was used on AMC’s Every Night at 8 promotion for February 2008.”
The song “Before I Knew” was used in a commercial for the 2010 Subaru Outback.
The song “Tall Tall Shadow” was used in the 2020 launch trailer for the Nintendo Switch version of the video game The Long Dark.

official website

17 Comments Add yours

  1. Violet Lentz's avatar Violet Lentz says:
    March 8, 2026 at 10:16 am

    Her musical style is so emotive! i love all three of these videos.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    1. Lisa or Li's avatar Lisa or Li says:
      March 8, 2026 at 2:28 pm

      V, in that last video, she sounds a little like Natalie Merchant to me. Glad you like her emotive style :)

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  2. pvcann's avatar pvcann says:
    March 8, 2026 at 10:47 am

    Thank you for this

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    1. Lisa or Li's avatar Lisa or Li says:
      March 8, 2026 at 2:33 pm

      My pleasure, Paul. She is a great find :)

      Like

      Reply
  3. randydafoe's avatar randydafoe says:
    March 8, 2026 at 1:29 pm

    Being from London, Ontario myself I can attest to the fact she was well regarded here. I would occasionally tune in to Western University radio and that’s when I first ran across her. I kept wanting to see her sing but just never got the chance. I bought her first two albums. Thanks for featuring her today! “Heart of My Own” is one of my favourites.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply
    1. Lisa or Li's avatar Lisa or Li says:
      March 8, 2026 at 2:43 pm

      Randy, where you live is a hub of great musicians. Happy you know her and like her music.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
      1. randydafoe's avatar randydafoe says:
        March 8, 2026 at 5:06 pm

        It really is. London is the only UNESCO designated Music City in Canada.

        Liked by 1 person

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        1. Lisa or Li's avatar Lisa or Li says:
          March 8, 2026 at 5:39 pm

          <3<3<3

          Liked by 1 person

          Reply
  4. memadtwo's avatar memadtwo says:
    March 8, 2026 at 6:43 pm

    I especially like the first song. Wonderful voice. (K)

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  5. Steve's avatar Steve says:
    March 8, 2026 at 6:58 pm

    I’ve hear a few songs by Bulat but as a fellow Canadian I’m a little ashamed to say I’ve never dug into her repertoire. You’ve made a wonderful selection of songs here. The opener to the Tiny Desk Concert, “The Shore,” is mesmerizing with her playing the autoharp and singing.

    I get a bit of Natalie Merchant in everything she sang here. A truly unique artist and a fabulous choice for your series, Lisa. Thanks.

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. Lisa or Li's avatar Lisa or Li says:
      March 8, 2026 at 7:28 pm

      Steve, happy you have heard her and like the selections. You are very welcome.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  6. seanatbogie's avatar seanatbogie says:
    March 8, 2026 at 10:19 pm

    Another great introduction. I haven’t seen the autoharp in action before. The use of hammer and bass sounds marvellous.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    1. Lisa or Li's avatar Lisa or Li says:
      March 9, 2026 at 12:05 am

      I agree, Sean.

      Like

      Reply
  7. Badfinger (Max)'s avatar Badfinger (Max) says:
    March 10, 2026 at 10:27 am

    I like this…roots music with a country tinge…I love the autoharp…they were used a lot in the early 60s with folk music.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
    1. Lisa or Li's avatar Lisa or Li says:
      March 10, 2026 at 1:22 pm

      Some relative of mine had one, I remember seeing it at my grandparents’ house. I don’t remember hearing it played though.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
      1. Badfinger (Max)'s avatar Badfinger (Max) says:
        March 10, 2026 at 3:04 pm

        I’ve seen a few before but never really tried to play it seriously. I have with banjo and mandolin…

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply
        1. Lisa or Li's avatar Lisa or Li says:
          March 10, 2026 at 9:18 pm

          Cool!

          Like

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