François-Joseph Vézina (June 11, 1849 in Quebec City – October 5, 1924 in Quebec City) was a Quebec conductor,

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

, organist and music professor. Vézina is buried in the Cimetière Notre-Dame-de-Belmont in Sainte-Foy.

Early life

Vézina, born in 1849, was the son of François Vézina, a house painter and amateur musician who taught his son to play the piano. As a youngster, Vézina briefly studied under Calixa Lavallée but, for the most part, he was a self-taught musician.

Career

Vézina's work as a musician began in military bands. In 1867, he joined the

Voltigeurs de Québec Les Voltigeurs de Québec is a Primary Reserve infantry regiment of the Canadian Forces. It is located at the Quebec City Armoury in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The name of the regiment commemorates another older French-speaking Canadian militia l ...

and played the

baritone horn The baritone horn, or sometimes just called baritone, is a low-pitched brass instrument in the saxhorn family.Robert Donington, "The Instruments of Music", (pp. 113ff ''The Family of Bugles'') 2nd ed., Methuen, London, 1962 It is a piston-val ...

for the Voltigeurs band. He took over the duty of

bandmaster A bandmaster is the leader and conductor of a band, usually a concert band, military band, brass band or a marching band. British Armed Forces In the British Army, bandmasters of the Royal Corps of Army Music now hold the rank of staff s ...

in 1868 and held it until 1879. Vézina later went on to found and direct a number of military, amateur and professional orchestras, most notably the Orchestre Symphonique de Québec (1902-until his death). On June 24, 1880, he conducted the first performance of O Canada which eventually became Canada's national anthem. Vézina was also an accomplished composer. His work includes three

opéra comique ''Opéra comique'' (; plural: ''opéras comiques'') is a genre of French opera that contains spoken dialogue and arias. It emerged from the popular '' opéras comiques en vaudevilles'' of the Fair Theatres of St Germain and St Laurent (and to a l ...

: ''Le Lauréat'' (1906) —

libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...

Félix-Gabriel Marchand Félix-Gabriel Marchand (January 9, 1832 – September 25, 1900) was a journalist, author, notary and politician in Quebec, Canada. He was the 11th premier of Quebec from May 24, 1897, to September 25, 1900. Born in what is Saint-Jean-sur- ...

— ''Le Rajah'' (1910) and ''Le Fétiche'' (1912). He died before completing a fourth opera: ''La Grosse Gerbe'', adapted from a poem of Léon-Pamphile Le May. Throughout his career, Vézina's work as a teacher, musician, conductor, composer and active champion for his art made him the central figure in Quebec City's cultural life. He helped found the music school of

Laval University Laval means ''The Valley'' in old French and is the name of: People * House of Laval, a French noble family originating from the town of Laval, Mayenne * Laval (surname) Places Belgium * Laval, a village in the municipality of Sainte-Ode, Luxemb ...

in 1922 and taught there until his death. His notable pupils included

Henri Gagnon Henri Gagnon (6 March 1887 – 17 May 1961) was a Canadian composer, organist, and music educator. He spent 51 years playing the organ at the Notre-Dame Basilica-Cathedral of Quebec City where, according to music historian François Brassard, h ...

and Robert Talbot.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vezina, Joseph 1849 births 1924 deaths Canadian classical composers Canadian male classical composers Canadian classical musicians Canadian conductors (music) Male conductors (music) Canadian music educators Musicians from Quebec City Canadian military musicians Academic staff of Université Laval Les Voltigeurs de Québec