The Conservatoire de musique et d'art dramatique du Québec (CMADQ) is a public network of nine state-subsidised schools offering
higher education
Higher education is tertiary education leading to award of an academic degree. Higher education, also called post-secondary education, third-level or tertiary education, is an optional final stage of formal learning that occurs after comple ...
in
music
Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspe ...
and
theatre
Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...
in
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 ...
, Canada. The organization was established in 1942 as a branch of the
Ministère des Affaires culturelles du Québec
The Ministry of Culture and Communications (french: Ministère de la Culture et des Communications ) is responsible for promoting and protecting the culture in the Canadian province of Quebec. The current Minister is Nathalie Roy.government of Quebec during the premiership of
Maurice Duplessis
Maurice Le Noblet Duplessis (; April 20, 1890 – September 7, 1959), was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 16th premier of Quebec. A conservative, nationalist, anti-Communist, anti-unionist and fervent Catholic, he and hi ...
Wilfrid Pelletier
Joseph Louis Wilfrid Pelletier (sometimes spelled Wilfred), (20 June 1896 – 9 April 1982) was a Canadian conductor, pianist, composer, and arts administrator. He was instrumental in establishing the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, serving ...
Claude Champagne
Claude Champagne (27 May 1891 – 21 December 1965) was a French Canadian composer, teacher, pianist, and violinist.
Early life and education
Born as Joseph-Arthur-Adonaï Claude Champagne in Montreal, Quebec, Champagne began piano and theo ...
are credited for their zeal in promoting this project, and the two men led the organization as director and assistant director for its first several years.Conservatoire de musique du Québec at
The Canadian Encyclopedia
''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' (TCE; french: L'Encyclopédie canadienne) is the national encyclopedia of Canada, published online by the Toronto-based historical organization Historica Canada, with the support of Canadian Heritage.
Available f ...
, accessed August 28, 2019 The organization's current director general is Nathalie Letendre.
The first two conservatoires in the CMADQ network were for music and were established in
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 ...
in 1943 and
Quebec City
Quebec City ( or ; french: Ville de Québec), officially Québec (), is the capital city of the Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the metropolitan area had a population of 839,311. It is t ...
in 1944. During the 1950s the organization founded additional schools for the theatre arts in both those cities, followed by four additional music conservatoires in 1967 in
Chicoutimi
Chicoutimi () is the most populous borough (arrondissement) of the city of Saguenay in Quebec, Canada.
It is situated at the confluence of the Saguenay and Chicoutimi rivers. During the 20th century, it became the main administrative and com ...
Trois-Rivières
Trois-Rivières (, – 'Three Rivers') is a city in the Mauricie administrative region of Quebec, Canada, at the confluence of the Saint-Maurice and Saint Lawrence rivers, on the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River across from the city of ...
, and
Val-d'Or
Val-d'Or (, , ; "Golden Valley" or "Valley of Gold") is a city in Quebec, Canada with a population of 32,752 inhabitants according to the Canada 2021 Census. The city is located in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region near La Vérendrye Wildlife ...
. The seventh and last school for music to be added was in
Rimouski
Rimouski ( ) is a city in Quebec, Canada. Rimouski is located in the Bas-Saint-Laurent region, at the mouth of the Rimouski River. It has a population of 48,935 (as of 2021). Rimouski is the site of Université du Québec à Rimouski (UQAR), t ...
in 1973. Many of Canada's most successful musicians and artists of the theatre of the 20th and 21st centuries have been trained or taught at these schools.
History
During the late 1930s and early 1940s, Canadian composer
Claude Champagne
Claude Champagne (27 May 1891 – 21 December 1965) was a French Canadian composer, teacher, pianist, and violinist.
Early life and education
Born as Joseph-Arthur-Adonaï Claude Champagne in Montreal, Quebec, Champagne began piano and theo ...
put together a large report on music education. This report was presented to the Quebec government by Champagne and conductor
Wilfrid Pelletier
Joseph Louis Wilfrid Pelletier (sometimes spelled Wilfred), (20 June 1896 – 9 April 1982) was a Canadian conductor, pianist, composer, and arts administrator. He was instrumental in establishing the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, serving ...
with the hopes of establishing Canadian institutes of higher learning for music. The report closely examined music education in Europe as well as in Canada and plans were soon formed to establish a network of state-subsidized schools which would be modelled after European conservatoires, particularly the
Conservatoire de Paris
The Conservatoire de Paris (), also known as the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue ...
. On 29 May 1942 The Conservatory Act ('Loi du conservatoire') was passed by the Legislative Assembly of Quebec, which allocated a $30,000 budget to form the CMADQ's first school, the
Conservatoire de musique du Québec à Montréal
The Conservatoire de musique du Québec à Montréal (CMQM) is a music conservatory located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. In addition to the Montreal region, the school takes in students from nearby cities, including Granby, Joliette, St-Jean, S ...
(CMQM). The CMQM opened its doors in January 1943 with its first round of courses, which were held at the
Saint-Sulpice Library
The Saint-Sulpice Library is an historic building located at 1700 Saint Denis Street in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It was designated a Historic Monument of Quebec in 1988.
At the dawn of the 20th century, the political elite and religious leaders ...
. Pelletier was the school's first director and Champagne the first assistant director.
With the successful opening of the CMQM, the CMADQ, under Pelletier's leadership, began plans to establish a similar conservatoire in
Quebec City
Quebec City ( or ; french: Ville de Québec), officially Québec (), is the capital city of the Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the metropolitan area had a population of 839,311. It is t ...
, the Conservatoire de musique du Québec à Québec. These plans were swiftly carried out and the school's first day of classes occurred on 17 January 1944 with Pelletier also serving as this school's first director. Most of the conservatoire's original faculty were also teachers at the CMQM and commuted back and forth between the two schools during its early years.
Originally the CMADQ was only concerned with musical education, but Pelletier felt that Quebec needed conservatoires for studies in theatre as well. He proposed the idea to the Quebec government and was met with resistance. However, he won the ear of Premier
Maurice Duplessis
Maurice Le Noblet Duplessis (; April 20, 1890 – September 7, 1959), was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 16th premier of Quebec. A conservative, nationalist, anti-Communist, anti-unionist and fervent Catholic, he and hi ...
Conservatoire de musique du Québec à Montréal
The Conservatoire de musique du Québec à Montréal (CMQM) is a music conservatory located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. In addition to the Montreal region, the school takes in students from nearby cities, including Granby, Joliette, St-Jean, S ...