Browsing: Interviews

Mécénat Musica Donors-in-Residence help donors join Mécénat Musica and are Mécénat Musica donors to keep culture healthy forever, for generations to come. Since 2019, Jacques Marchand & Marie-Christine Tremblay’s leadership and collaboration have resulted in more than 100 Mécénat Musica donors for 24 cultural organizations. “I told some: we’ll keep your regular season going and still invest in a perpetual fund.” Jacques Marchand’s life falls neatly into two movements, each with its own tempo. The first is entrepreneurial: decades building LaSalle College from a local institution into a global network. The second is artistic: a late-career turn that channels his…

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After failing chemistry in high school, Tessa Fackelmann’s career path took an unexpected turn from nursing to music. Now, 10 years later, she is a young artist in Opéra de Montréal’s Atelier Lyrique, studying with internationally-acclaimed soprano Nova Thomas. “I’m so grateful to be living my dream as a musician,” Fackelmann says. At Opéra de Montréal’s 2024 Talent Gala, Fackelmann won the Jury Prize, performing “Enfin, je suis ici” from Massenet’s Cendrillon, an aria she loves for its combination of vocal virtuosity and heartfelt meaning. With her powerful performance abilities, she was also named the First Place Winner of the…

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Pianist Samuel Lauzon-Schnittka suggests that music fosters deep human connection. Whether between collaborative partners, the performer and their audience, or the composer and the interpreter, Lauzon-Schnittka recognizes the many different ways in which music allows us to truly see one another. This is perhaps why he says that honesty—or authenticity—is the quality he most looks for in an artist. Two of Lauzon-Schnittka’s most impactful musical experiences exhibit the connective power of music. Firstly, the pianist says that developing a deep and stimulating musical relationship with his duet partner, violinist Amellie Gendron, has resulted in rewarding work. The two have collaborated…

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“There is really nothing I love more than spending time with my cello,” says Mira Kardan. The young cellist grew up with two musician parents who, through their dedication to the arts, encouraged Kardan to pave her own path as a musician. With their support and guidance, she has discovered one of her greatest passions in life. Earlier this year, the American cellist competed at the 2025 Shean Strings Competition with a program featuring works by Bach, Ligeti, Debussy, Popper, and Shostakovich. “It was really exciting to prepare a program that was completely diverse, not one work similar to another,”…

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At the 2025 Eckhardt-Grammatté National Music Competition, pianist Linda Ruan won First Prize and Best Performance of the Commissioned Work: “where poppies still bloom and fall” by Rita Ueda. She played an almost entirely female program featuring works by composers Elisenda Fabregas, Alice Ping Yee Ho, Ann Southam, Vincent Ho, Rita Ueda, and Keiko Devaux. This competition allowed her to develop new performance skills aside from technical ability. “For instance,” she says, “I thought a lot about body movements and physicality in [Vincent Ho’s] J6ker, which eventually led to the maniacal and hysterical laugh at its conclusion.” This ability to…

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Colombian baritone Laureano Quant’s musical journey started at age nine with the guitar. “I became obsessed with learning my favorite songs by ear, playing regularly on Sundays at church and … in different bands.”  When he was about to graduate from high school, he went to a recording studio for the first time to interview a music producer. This experience—watching them direct a session—inspired Quant to pursue a formal education in music. “At the time, I didn’t know that it would take me to sing opera!” he says. Now an active opera singer, Quant recently won the Art Song Prize…

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Newly appointed Royal Court Organist of Stockholm, Johannes Skoog finds inspiration in every aspect of performance: the instruments, venues, and collaborators. His most impactful memories focus on how sound and space work together, resulting in a harmonious whole. His goal is to one day be completely free at the keyboard—to listen, to sense, and to let the music take unexpected paths. “The painter Paul Klee once said that one must paint what cannot be painted; I believe the same is true in music, and that is where I want to go,” says Skoog. With his extensive training and recent wins…

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Last year, Ming Jie (Jason) Xu made history as the first saxophonist to win the OSM Competition. He looks back fondly on the experience, especially the opportunity to perform his own arrangement of George Bizet’s “Air de La Fleur” from Carmen in the semifinal round. “In that moment, I did not care about anything but [playing] my heart out—and people really loved it!” he says. Expression is a driving force behind Xu’s journey to become a full-time musician. His playing allows him to convey his emotions and connect with the audience through this form of storytelling. He aims to improve…

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Australian Fleuranne Brockway’s first trip to Canada was a great success. The mezzo-soprano was crowned Grand Laureate in the 2025 Concours musical international de Montréal (CMIM), winning $30,000 and a career-development grant. “Unlike many competitions, CMIM asks for true versatility—arias, art song, and oratorio—which gave me the chance to show every facet of my artistry,” Brockway says. “I loved being able to present such variety in one place and share all parts of myself as a classical musician.” During her school years in Perth, Brockway participated in many choral programs. She went on to complete a Bachelor of Music at…

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Soprano Emma Pennell has been making waves in the Canadian opera scene. In the past year alone, they were awarded the Bernard Diamant Prize, the RBC Emerging Artist Award, and second place in the Canadian Opera Company’s Centre Stage Competition. With many opportunities on the horizon, Pennell wants to honour the resilience and amplify the stories of their community. “I grew up in Northern Ontario, where my family and I worked to preserve our Mi’kmaw knowledge and traditions despite the impacts of colonial displacement,” says Pennell when asked about their upbringing. Following their musical passion, the soprano has journeyed from…

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