Miriodor is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

musical group in the genre of

Rock in Opposition Rock in Opposition or RIO was a movement representing a collective of progressive bands in the late 1970s united in their opposition to the music industry that refused to recognise their music. It was initiated by English avant-rock group Hen ...

; the band combines

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. Init ...

and

chamber music Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small numb ...

into a powerful sound reminiscent of artists like Univers Zéro or

Art Zoyd Art Zoyd is a French band formed in 1969, mixing free jazz, progressive rock and avant-garde electronica. Gérard Hourbette was the band's director and composer until his death in May 2018. Another key member of the band was Thierry Zaboitzeff, w ...

History

Miriodor was founded by François Émond and Pascal Globensky in 1980. By 1983 the band consisted of Émond (violin, flute, keyboards, clarinet), Globensky (keyboards, acoustic guitar), Rémi Leclerc (percussion), Sabin Hudon (saxophone), Denis Robitaille (guitar, bass, vocals) and Marc Petitclerc (keyboards). In 1986, this line-up independently released the album ''Rencontres''. In 1984, Émond, Globensky, Leclerc and Hudon moved to Montreal, and began recording. One song, “Middle Ages”, appeared in the audio magazine ''

RēR Quarterly The ''RēR Quarterly'' (also known as ''Rē Records Quarterly'' and ''RēR Records Quarterly'') was an English "quarterly" sound-magazine comprising an LP record and a magazine. It was published at irregular intervals between 1985 and 1997 by R ...

''. In 1987, they independently released two albums: ''Tot Ou Tard'' and ''Metam Orpho Sis''. Émond left the band in 1987. In 1988, the band was signed by

Cuneiform Records Cuneiform Records is a record label in Silver Spring, Maryland. Founded in 1984, the label releases an mixture of musical styles, all with a Rock in Opposition aesthetic, including progressive jazz, jazz fusion, the Canterbury scene, and electr ...

and recorded the album ''Miriodor'', which included many of their previously-published songs. The album was released worldwide; they played the 1988

Festival International de Musique Actuelle de Victoriaville The Festival International de Musique Actuelle de Victoriaville is an annual international music festival held in Victoriaville, Quebec that showcases contemporary music. The festival is known for its small scale (usually no more than 20 performan ...

and, with the help of the l’Agence Québec/Wallonie-Bruxelles pour la jeunesse (the agency for international co-operation between Belgium and Quebec), toured in Belgium and France in March 1989. In 1991, Cuneiform released Miriodor’s ''3rd Warning''. The band played the Festival des musiques de création du Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean and the

International Computer Music Conference The International Computer Music Conference (ICMC) is a yearly international conference for computer music researchers and composers. It is the annual conference of the International Computer Music Association (ICMA). History In 1986, the Inst ...

. Bernard Falaise (electric guitar and bass) joined the band in 1993. The quartet recorded the song "Promenade sous zéro", which appeared on the compilation album ''Unsettled Scores''. In 1996, Miriodor released the album ''Elastic Juggling''. Sabin Hudon left the band mid-process; he was replaced by Nicolas Masino (bass, keyboards), and they performed at ProgScape ‘96 in Baltimore, the

Montreal International Jazz Festival The Festival International de Jazz de Montréal ( en, Montreal International Jazz Festival) is an annual jazz festival held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The Montreal Jazz Fest holds the 2004 Guinness World Record as the world's largest jazz fest ...

, and at La Maison du Québec in St-Malo (France). In 1998, Marie-Chantal Leclair (saxophones) joined the band. In 1999, Miriodor recorded the score for the documentary film ''Almanach'', produced by the

National Film Board of Canada The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; french: Office national du film du Canada (ONF)) is Canada's public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary f ...

. In October 2000, Miriodor played at Chicago's HotHouse, and at Edgefest, an

Avant-garde The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical ...

festival in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Their album ''Mekano'', was released in September 2001, now with the addition of violinist Marie-Soleil Bélanger. Miriodor performed at the progressive rock festival NEARfest in Trenton, NJ in 2002 and 2003.

NEARfest The North East Art Rock Festival, or NEARfest for short, was a multi-day event celebrating the resurgence of progressive and eclectic music in the United States and around the world. The event was held annually in early summer in Bethlehem, Pennsy ...

in Trenton, NJ in 2002 and 2003. By 2011, Miriodor was back to a trio, of Falaise, Globensky and Leclerc, and they recorded their 2013 album, ''Cobra Fakir''. Nicolas Lessard (bass guitar/keyboards) joined Miriodor, and the band premiered the material live on Sat. Aug. 31st at ProgDay 2013 in

Chapel Hill, North Carolina Chapel Hill is a town in Orange, Durham and Chatham counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Its population was 61,960 in the 2020 census, making Chapel Hill the 17th-largest municipality in the state. Chapel Hill, Durham, and the state ca ...

. In 2014, they played Seattle's Seaprog festival. In 2017, the band released the album ''Signal 9''. The album is dedicated to Miriodor co-founder François Émond, who died that year. As of 2021, the band has gone quiet, although it is still maintaining its Facebook page.

Discography

* ''Rencontres'' – 1986, Independent. Re-Issued 1998, Cuneiform Records * ''Tôt Ou Tard'' – 1987, Independent * ''Metam Orpho Sis'' – 1987, Independent * ''Miriodor'' - 1988, Cuneiform Records, Re-Issued 1993 * ''3è Avertissement / 3rd Warning'' – 1991, Cuneiform Records * ''Jongleries Élastiques'' – 1996, Cuneiform Records * ''Mekano'' - 2001, Cuneiform Records * ''Parade + Live at NEARfest 2002'' – 2005, Cuneiform Records * ''Avanti!'' - 2009, Cuneiform Records * ''LIVE 89'' - 2009, ProgQuébec (recorded 1989) * ''Cobra Fakir'' - 2013, Cuneiform Records * ''Signal 9'' - 2017, Cuneiform Records * ''Elements'' - 2022, Cuneiform Records

Soundtracks

* ''Almanach'', 1999, National Film Board of Canada

Members

The current lineup, as of 2013 (and 2017), is composed of: * Pascal Globensky –

keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

(since album 1) * Rémi Leclerc –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

(since album 1) *

Bernard Falaise Bernard ('' Bernhard'') is a French and West Germanic masculine given name. It is also a surname. The name is attested from at least the 9th century. West Germanic ''Bernhard'' is composed from the two elements ''bern'' "bear" and ''hard'' "brav ...

–

Guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

(since album 4) * Nicolas Lessard – bass (since album 9) Former members : * Sabin Hudon — sax (albums 1–2–3–4) * François Émond — flute/violin/keyboards (albums 1–2) (1964–2016) * Marc Petitclerc — keyboard (album 1) * Denis Robitaille — bass (album 1) * Nicolas Masino — bass/keyboards (albums 5–6–7) Other credited musicians: * Claude St-Jean — trombone (album 4) * Stéphanie Simard — violin (album 4) * James Darling — cello (album 4) * Jean-Denis Levasseur — flute (album 4) * Ivanhoe Jolicoeur — trumpet (album 4) * Stefka Iordanova — voice (album 4) * Marie-Chantal Leclair — sax (albums 5–6–7) * Marie-Soleil Bélanger — violin (albums 5–6) * Némo Venba — trumpet (album 5) * Lars Hollmer — (album 6) * Lise Millet — (album 6) * Pierre Labbé — sax (album 7) * Maxime St-Pierre — trumpet (album 7)

References

External links