Indigenous cellist Cris Derksen dies after car crash at 45

Cris Derksen, an award-winning Indigenous cellist and composer, has died following a car accident. She was 45.

Derksen’s death was confirmed in a social media post by her booking agency, AIM, which stated she died in a car crash. Further details about the accident were not provided. According to a separate social media post from University of Manitoba assistant music professor Melody McKiver, the crash occurred while Derksen and her wife were leaving the funeral of Derksen’s father.

Derksen, originally from Treaty 8 territory in northern Alberta, was known for a unique musical style that blended her classical training, Indigenous heritage, and electronic music elements. Her biography on the National Arts Centre website described her work as weaving these influences to create genre-defying music. In a recent interview with the Penticton Herald, Derksen said she was living in Ontario.

Her artistic impact was significant. She performed across Canada, including with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, which commissioned her to create celebration preludes for its 2021-22 season. Derksen was nominated for a Juno Award for Instrumental Album of the Year in 2016 and for an Indigenous Music...