Jean-Baptiste Augustin Lavallée (August 22, 1816 – February 15, 1903) was a music teacher,

violin maker A luthier ( ; AmE also ) is a craftsperson who builds or repairs string instruments that have a neck and a sound box. The word "luthier" is originally French and comes from the French word for lute. The term was originally used for makers of ...

, conductor and

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such as gates, gr ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

. His surname also appears as Paquet or Paquet dit Lavallée. He was born near

Verchères Verchères is an off-island suburb of Montreal, in Montérégie, Quebec, located on the south bank of the Saint Lawrence River. The population as of the Canada 2011 Census was 5,692. History In the 17th century, the settlement at Verchères w ...

Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada (french: province du Bas-Canada) was a British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence (1791–1841). It covered the southern portion of the current Province of Quebec an ...

, the son of Jean-Baptiste Paquet and Charlotte Lalu. In 1842, Lavallée married Caroline Valentine. He settled in Verchères towards the end of that year. Around 1848, he moved with his family to

Saint-Hyacinthe Saint-Hyacinthe (; French: ) is a city in southwestern Quebec east of Montreal on the Yamaska River. The population as of the 2021 Canadian census was 57,239. The city is located in Les Maskoutains Regional County Municipality of the Montérég ...

, where he worked with pipe organ manufacturer

Joseph Casavant Joseph Casavant (18071874) was a French Canadian manufacturer of pipe organs. Casavant was born 23 January 1807 in Saint-Hyacinthe, Lower Canada to Dominique Casavant and Marie-Desanges Coderre. Originally a blacksmith, Casavant gave up his tr ...

. Lavallée also taught music and conducted the village band. In 1852, he opened an instrument repair shop. In 1865, he moved his business to

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

. He operated in partnership with his son Charles from 1888 to 1894 as Lavallée & Fils; they are believed to have manufactured over 200 violins. Lavallée then retired and Charles took over the operation of the business. His son Calixa became a famous pianist and composer, who wrote the music for ''

O Canada "O Canada" (french: Ô Canada, italic=no) is the national anthem of Canada. The song was originally commissioned by Lieutenant Governor of Quebec Théodore Robitaille for the 1880 Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day ceremony; Calixa Lavallée composed the mus ...

''. He died in Montreal at the age of 86.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lavallee, Augustin 1816 births 1903 deaths People from Verchères, Quebec French Quebecers Canadian musical instrument makers