Monique Gendron is a Canadian

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ (music), organ. An organist may play organ repertoire, solo organ works, play with an musical ensemble, ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumentalist, instrumental ...

of international renown. She won first prize at the

St Albans International Organ Festival The International Organ Festival (IOF) is a biennial music festival and organ competition held in St Albans, England since 1963. Originally held annually, it was changed to every two years in 1965 due to the complexity of organising the increasin ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and at the Grand Prix of Chartes in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. She has recorded

sonata Sonata (; Italian: , pl. ''sonate''; from Latin and Italian: ''sonare'' rchaic Italian; replaced in the modern language by ''suonare'' "to sound"), in music, literally means a piece ''played'' as opposed to a cantata (Latin and Italian ''cant ...

s by

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...

and

George Frideric Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque music, Baroque composer well known for his opera#Baroque era, operas, oratorios, anthems, concerto grosso, concerti grossi, ...

with oboist

Bernard Jean Bernard Jean (born 21 September 1948 in Jonquière, Quebec (now Saguenay, Quebec)) is a Canadian oboist, english horn player, conductor (music), conductor, and music educator. He has held principal oboist positions with several important Canadian o ...

and has performed in concert series presented by Les Amis de l'orgue de

Québec Quebec ( ; )According to the Government of Canada, 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 ...

. She has performed in concerts and recitals throughout North America and Europe. She currently teaches on the faculties at the Conservatoire de musique du Québec à Hull and the

Académie de musique du Québec The Quebec Music Academy (''L'académie de musique du Québec'') is a nonprofit association based in Montreal, Canada, founded in 1868. It was built by order of Queen Victoria in 1870 and brought together the most renowned musicians of Quebec. The ...

.Biography of Monique Gendron at www.uquebec.ca (in French)
/ref> Born in

Montréal 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-p ...

, Gendron earned a bachelor's degree from

Université de Montréal The Université de Montréal (UdeM; ; translates to University of Montreal) is a French-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university's main campus is located in the Côte-des-Neiges neighborhood of Côte-de ...

and a premiere prix in organ performance from 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 ...

. In 1956 she won a scholarship from Les Amis de l'art and she won the John Robb Organ Competition in 1963 1963, as well as in 1966. In 1966 she was awarded the

Prix d'Europe The Prix d'Europe is a Canadian study grant that is funded by the Ministère des Affaires culturelles du Québec of the Government of Quebec. Established in 1911, the award has been distributed annually to a single individual through competition wi ...

which enabled her to pursue graduate studies in France at the

École Normale de Musique de Paris The École Normale de Musique de Paris "Alfred Cortot" (ENMP) is a leading conservatoire located in Paris, Île-de-France, France. At the time of the school's foundation in 1919 by Auguste Mangeot, Alfred Cortot. The term ''école normale'' (Engl ...

where she earned a Master of Music. She also holds a diploma in organ performance from the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (german: Universität Wien) is a public research university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world. With its long and rich histor ...

. Some of her teachers are

Marie-Claire Alain Marie-Claire Geneviève Alain-Gommier (10 August 1926 – 26 February 2013) was a French organist, scholar and teacher best known for her prolific recording career, with 260 recordings, making her the most-recorded classical organist in the world ...

Anton Heiller Anton Heiller (15 September 1923 – 25 March 1979) was an Austrian organist, harpsichordist, composer and conductor. Biography Born in Vienna, he was first trained in church music by Wilhelm Mück, organist of Vienna's Stephansdom (St. Stephen' ...

, and

Michael Radulescu Michael Radulescu (born 19 June 1943) is a Romanian-German composer, organist, and professor. He was born to a Romanian father and a German mother. He studied with Anton Heiller and Hans Swarowsky at the University of Music and Performing Arts i ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gendron, Monique Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Canadian organists Women organists Conservatoire de musique du Québec à Montréal alumni École Normale de Musique de Paris alumni Université de Montréal alumni University of Vienna alumni 21st-century organists 21st-century women musicians