Category: Quebec Music

Browsing: Quebec Music

Photo: André Leduc

alcides lanza, a Pioneer, Turns 90

By Andréanne Venne on 2 July 2020 Contemporary, Quebec Music, World Music

You may have noticed the absence of capitals in his name. This orthographic licence was inspired, he says, by his discovery as a young man of the poetry of e. e. cummings, who was known to eschew writing conventions like punctuation and standard syntax. Certain Bauhaus prints also gave him encouragement. Then, a more pragmatic motivation added to these influences: “At a time when everyone wrote on typewriters, I told myself one day that if capital letters were no longer necessary, typewriters would be smaller and lighter, saving much of the metal used in manufacturing.” And, to conclude this mindful…

Jeunesses Musicales Foundation overhauls Do-Mi-Si-La-Do-Ré contest after public outcry

By Arthur Kaptainis on 27 May 2020 Canadian Music, Music Competition, Quebec Music

The Jeunesses Musicales Canada Foundation has reorganized its Home Sweet Home (Do-Mi-Si-La-Do-Ré) Contest in response to criticism of a public voting system that apportioned voting weight according to the size of an individual donation. According to the press release from this morning, the Competition will now award two categories of prizes: an Artistic Prize (chosen by a series of juries) and a public vote Participation Prize (See the full press release below). Voir la version française du communiqué de presse. The competition attracted entries from more than 200 young composers by the deadline of May 19. It also saw the…

Photo: Yves Lacombe

François Girard: From Film to Opera

By Justin Bernard on 30 May 2019 Arts Industry, Film, Interviews, Musique de film, Opera, Quebec Music

I’m there to serve an idea, serve the music, not so much to transmit my own views or personal concerns […] You have to ask yourself: What does this story say now, how can I give it a contemporary resonance? That’s the real task of a director, making the music and meaning resonate. The main event of this summer’s ninth edition of the Festival d’opéra de Québec is an eagerly-awaited staging of The Flying Dutchman by Richard Wagner. Under the musical direction of Jacques Lacombe, a cast led by baritone Gregory Dahl will present the mythical story in a production…

Printemps Nordique - Place des Arts

Spring Festivals

By Viviane Reid on 15 April 2018 Canadian Music, Chamber Music, Classical, Classical Music, Contemporary, Quebec Music, Strings, Vocal

Montreal International Guitar Festival and Competition Again this year, the Montreal International Guitar Festival and Competition promises to be an event to follow. The program involving artists François Fowler, Jesus Serrano Huitron, Emma Rush, Roberto Fabri, Samuel Coyle, Tariq Harb, Jeffrey McFadden and Dave Pilon guarantees a rare spectacle. The festival continues its youth competition in addition to offering many master classes. Concerts start at 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. The musical cocktail is a mix of musicians of different nationalities. May 25-27, D.B. Clarke Theater. www.guitaremontreal.com 21C Music Festival The 21C Music Festival celebrates its fifth anniversary with…

Orchestre symphonique de Longueuil: A spring under the sign of Carmina Burana

By Marie-Claire Fafard-Blais on 9 April 2018 Classical Music, Opera, Quebec Music, Vocal

The Orchestre symphonique de Longueuil (OSDL) is celebrating spring with Carl Orff’s renowned Carmina Burana. The concert will bring together OSDL musicians, the St. Lambert Choral Society, Les Petits Chanteurs de Laval and soloists Raphaëlle Paquette (soprano), Antoine Bélanger (tenor) and Marc Boucher (baritone). They will be led by OSDL artistic director Marc David, who describes Carmina Burana as “one of those grandiose works of the symphonic repertoire dealing with a universal theme, where listeners, singers, musicians and conductors are satisfied.” This seminal work was composed in 1935 and premiered in 1937 in Frankfurt. The text comprises 24 medieval poems…

Joseph Rouleau

Joseph Rouleau: an Unwavering Commitment to Youth

By Pierre Chénier on 7 April 2018 Arts Industry, Canadian Music, Classical Music, Music Competition, Quebec Music

I recently had the great pleasure of conversing with Joseph Rouleau, a Quebec bass of international reputation, still working on projects at 89. Why, in the middle of a singing career that would have filled more than one life, was he interested in the development of young artists? “If we go back to the 1950s, there was not much [opportunity],” he replied. André Turp, Robert Savoie, Maureen Forrester and I, we all made our first tours with Jeunesses Musicales. “I made my first tour in 1950-1951 with Jeunesses Musicales. This allowed me to sing in more than 40 concerts and…

Julien Bilodeau, composer of the year, for Another Brick In The Wall. Photo: Yves Renaud

Opus Prize 2017: Overview of this year’s winners

By Dino Spaziani on 7 April 2018 Arts Industry, Canadian Music, Classical Music, Quebec Music

Known as the Association des organismes musicaux du Québec (AOMQ) at its foundation in 1987, this organization became the Conseil québécois de la musique (CQM) in 1993. The year 2017 marked the 21st anniversary of the Opus awards and the 30th of the foundation of CQM. This edition of the Opus awards recognized music created, produced and performed between September 2016 and 2017. We can only praise the hard work and the outreach. Awards were interspersed with generous performances, much collaboration and mixing of the genres and specialities. I allow myself a question regarding performances after prizes: it is impossible…

Photo : Suzane O’neill

Lorraine Vaillancourt: Winner of the Opus Hommage

By Dominic Trudel on 6 April 2018 Arts Industry, Canadian Music, Classical, Classical Music, Orchestral, Quebec Music

At the 21st Opus prize gala on Feb. 4, the Conseil québécois de la musique (CQM) awarded the Opus Hommage to Lorraine Vaillancourt for her significant contribution to contemporary music. Moved by this tribute in her honour, Vaillancourt admits that she rarely takes pause to reflect on her past. She lives from day to day, but with an eye to the future. It must be this anchorage in the present that has allowed her to dedicate her professional life to the music of her time. Unwavering Originally from Arvida, Saguenay, Vaillancourt chose the path of music at the age of…

Marc Hervieux

Marc Hervieux in Gala Mode: Closing of the 78th MCO Season

By Marie-Claire Fafard-Blais on 6 April 2018 Canadian Music, Classical Music, Orchestral, Quebec Music

To conclude its 78th season, the McGill Chamber Orchestra presents a gala in the company of tenor Marc Hervieux, its spokesperson for 2017-2018. This huge party on June 6 will have the Rialto resonating with the sound of the singer’s voice, which will be accompanied by his band as well as a string quintet comprising MCO players. The colourful setting of the famous Montreal theater will add a glamorous touch to this musical night. MCO artistic director Boris Brott has only praise for his collaborator: “To have Marc Hervieux as a spokesperson has been almost miraculous for us. We worked…

La Muse: Viva Verdi with Romanian accents

By Marie-Claire Fafard-Blais on 6 April 2018 Canadian Music, Choral, Classical Music, Quebec Music, Vocal

La Muse choir under the direction of Ioana German, will present its Viva Verdi concert in both Montreal and Ottawa. Supported by sopranos Chantal Dionne, Marina Negruta and Anca Maria Grigoriu; mezzo-soprano Antonela Barnat; tenor Jaime Sandoval; bass Dan Popescu and an orchestra, the choir will perform some of Verdi’s greatest choruses, including excerpts from the Requiem, Il Trovatore, La Traviata and Nabucco. This large-scale concert promises a burst of Verdian joy. Barnat has been a regular singer at the Bucharest State Opera since her debut as Rosina in Rossini’s The Barber of Seville in 2006. She made her debut…