Ed Poullard

Caretaker of the Creole Fiddle Tradition

Ed Poullard of Beaumont has brought his unique and captivating style of Creole fiddling across the world. He learned the music directly from his musical family, with accordion players on both sides. Ed learned French music from his father as a child and soon developed as a master fiddler. His first instrument was the accordion, which he still plays to this day on instruments that he builds himself. When he switched to playing his grandfather’s fiddle, Poullard rapidly emerged as a significant player of Creole music.

Poullard’s style and repertoire developed out of a long apprenticeship with legendary Creole fiddler Canray Fontenot. Poullard turned to fiddling and soon has been internationally recognized playing a unique variety of Creole music. Poullard has the unique stature of being both an apprentice with Canray Fontenot and then a master artist in Texas Folklife's statewide Apprenticeship Program. He has played with Jesse Legé, Lawrence Ardoin, Preston Frank, his late brother Danny Poullard, and many others. He has recorded numerous albums, including several put out by Arhoolie Records.

Today, Ed Poullard is regarded rightly as the most significant Creole fiddler and accordionist, and he has brought his music very far and wide from Texas without ever losing his deep connection to the Texas music. His fiddling reflects his embrace of tradition combined with his own innovative flair and sense of music history in the region.