Trumpeter plays ‘O Canada’ to drivers trapped in Alberta snowstorm

By News staff

Imagine this: it is only October and a huge amount of snow falls on the highway, snarling traffic for hours. You have nowhere to go. You could get frustrated and toss around some expletives. But, that is not really the Canadian thing to do.

One man found himself in exactly the same situation when traffic came to standstill on the Trans-Canada Highway — also known as Highway 1 — during a snowstorm on Tuesday.

But he took a different — more Canadian — approach. He embraced the snow by playing O Canada on his trumpet.

And it wasn’t just any man. It was world-renowned Canadian trumpet player and Order of Canada recipient Jens Lindemann.

“Hello Canada, it’s hour six of being stranded on Highway 1 between Canmore and Calgary. There are literally 1,000 cars, if not more, stuck out here. We’ve got nothing to do, so we’re having fun anyway,” Lindemann said in a video posted on DiscoverAirdrie.com.

A similar video was also posted to Twitter by someone named Tara Sue.

“My daughter @mackmurphy_ and her boyfriend @JoshTSmith8 are stuck on HWY1 between Banff and Canmore and this guy decided to make the most of it. It’s been over 5 hours,” she wrote.

He was just one of many people who had to deal with a sudden blast of wintry weather that hit Calgary and other parts of Alberta on Monday and Tuesday.

Parts of Calgary reported snowfall amounts of up to 40 centimetres in a 12-hour period with similar amounts in the mountain parks and other areas of southern Alberta.

A warming centre was set up for the hundreds of people stranded for up to 13 hours on the Trans-Canada Highway, west of Calgary.

Lindemann’s solo was a pleasant and uplifting surprise for several drivers who were stranded on the highway along with him.

“This is what makes Canada and Canadians who we are. Well done and thanks for reminding us,” Charlene wrote on Twitter.

“A truly patriotic Canadian embracing winter!” Nora Shea echoed.

With files from The Canadian Press

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