Friday: 7:30 p.m. Railroad; Saturday: noon Heritage, 4 p.m. Railroad; Sunday: 4:45 p.m. Penobscot

Barachois plays traditional Acadian music – a rhythmic, high-voltage style born in the heart of a culture kept alive through 21/2 centuries on Canada’s tiny Prince Edward Island. Music brought from France by some of North America’s first settlers blended with the Scottish and Irish fiddling styles of the Canadian Maritimes to create a distinctive Acadian style. The music has been passed down from generation to generation by way of “kitchen parties,” community dances and gatherings. Barachois, a bilingual family quartet whose Acadian name means “the shallow pools of water separated from the sea by sand dunes,” skillfully breathes new life and interpretations into this time-honored music. Their engaging stage presence and lively tunes capture the warmth and humor of the traditional gatherings.

Barachois consists of Helene Bergeron, her brother Albert Arsenault, their childhood friend Louise Arsenault and Chuck Arsenault. (Only in P.E.I. can you find three unrelated musicians named Arsenault playing in the same band.) Bergeron dances and plays the piano; Louise Arsenault fiddles, sings and dances; Albert Arsenault fiddles, sings, dances and plays percussion; and Chuck Arsenault plays the guitar, sings and dances.

The heartbeat of Acadian music is what one writer calls the “bedeviled rhythms” inherent in the tunes, reinforced by complex footwork with hard-soled shoes. The fiddles soar over the top, a driving piano creates the foundation, and homemade percussion instruments, close harmonies and the occasional brass instrument complete Barachois’ sound. These four performers also step dance like mad – sitting down, standing up, while playing the fiddle, alone and together.

“Because my father was a well-known fiddler, musicians were continually dropping in and there was always music in our house – always,” recalls Bergeron. “For us, it was like the kids today with radio and TV, only we had the fiddle, guitar and pump organ. The music was at the root of everything.”

Humor also is a part of Acadian culture – a bit of clowning is always encouraged at Acadian musical gatherings, and Barachois naturally brings this spirit to its performances.