Like many cosmopolitan cities,
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 ...
is a home for all genres of music. From
folk music
Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...
to
hip hop, music has always played an important role in Quebecer culture. In the 1920s and '30s singer/songwriter
Madam Bolduc performed comedic songs in a folk style with Irish influences. Quebec's most popular artists of the last century include the singers:
Félix Leclerc
Félix Leclerc, (August 2, 1914 – August 8, 1988) was a French-Canadian singer-songwriter, poet, writer, actor and '' Québécois'' political activist. He was made an Officer of the Order of Canada on December 20, 1968. Leclerc was posth ...
(1950s),
Gilles Vigneault
Gilles Vigneault (; born 27 October 1928) is a Canadian poet, publisher, singer-songwriter, and Quebec nationalist and sovereigntist. Two of his songs are considered by many to be Quebec's unofficial anthems: " Mon pays" and " Gens du pays", ...
(1960s–present),
Kate and Anna McGarrigle
Kate McGarrigle (February 6, 1946 – January 18, 2010) and Anna McGarrigle (born December 4, 1944) were a duo of Canadian singer-songwriters (and sisters) from Quebec, who performed until Kate McGarrigle's death on January 18, 2010.
Music ...
(1970s–present) and
Céline Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...
(1980s–present). The
First Nations
First Nations or first peoples may refer to:
* Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area.
Indigenous groups
*First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including:
**First Natio ...
and the
Inuit
Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: Inuuk, ) are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories ...
of Quebec also have their own traditional music. A local variety of
Celtic music is also found. Quebec also has many well-known
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 m ...
musicians and a culture of
classical music.
The song ''
À la claire fontaine
"À la claire fontaine" (; ) is a traditional French song, which has also become very popular in Belgium and in Canada, particularly in Quebec and the Maritime provinces of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island.
History
The song m ...
'' was the anthem of the
New France
New France (french: Nouvelle-France) was the area colonized by France in North America, beginning with the exploration of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Great Britain and Spa ...
,
Patriots and
French Canadian before being replaced by ''
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 ...
''. Currently, the song ''
Gens du pays
"Gens du pays" has been called the unofficial "national" anthem of Quebec. Written by poet, songwriter, and avowed Quebec nationalist Gilles Vigneault (with music co-written by Gaston Rochon), it was first performed by Vigneault on June 24, 1975 ...
'' is by far preferred by many Quebecers to be the national anthem of Quebec. The
Association québécoise de l'industrie du disque, du spectacle et de la vidéo (ADISQ) was created in 1978 to promote the music industry in Quebec. The
Orchestre symphonique de Québec and the
Orchestre symphonique de Montréal
The Montreal Symphony Orchestra (french: Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, or OSM) is a Canadian symphony orchestra based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The orchestra’s home is the Maison symphonique de Montréal, Montreal Symphony House at Plac ...
are respectively
Traditional music
Under French rule, what is now Quebec, used to be called Le Canada. In which it was the most developed colony of New France. After some generations of French settlers being born in Canada, the colonists began to identify with their home country and call themselves les Canadiens (the Canadians) as distinct from les Français (the French), those native to France. The ''Canadiens'' brought with them a rich tradition of songs and dances from northern France, namely the regions of
Île-de-France
The Île-de-France (, ; literally "Isle of France") is the most populous of the eighteen regions of France. Centred on the capital Paris, it is located in the north-central part of the country and often called the ''Région parisienne'' (; en, Pa ...
,
Picardy,
Normandy
Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
,
Poitou
Poitou (, , ; ; Poitevin: ''Poetou'') was a province of west-central France whose capital city was Poitiers. Both Poitou and Poitiers are named after the Pictones Gallic tribe.
Geography
The main historical cities are Poitiers (historical c ...
, and
Brittany
Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...
. Influence from these regions, and the Irish immigration to Quebec of the 19th century may explain the Celtic connection that Quebec still shares with
Brittany
Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...
, Ireland,
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
and the
Maritimes.
As time went by, the French Canadians began to develop their own music, and also incorporated and transformed the styles of music played by the settlers from Great Britain, in particular the Scots, after the
Conquest
Conquest is the act of military subjugation of an enemy by force of arms.
Military history provides many examples of conquest: the Roman conquest of Britain, the Mauryan conquest of Afghanistan and of vast areas of the Indian subcontinent, t ...
. (One hundred of these songs were collected by
Ernest Gagnon
Ernest Gagnon (7 November 1834 – 15 September 1915) was a Canadian folklorist, composer, and organist. He is best known for compiling a large amount of French Canadian folk music which he published as ''Chansons populaires du Canada'' in 186 ...
for an 1865 compilation, one of the first such collections to be published in Canada.)
Traditional music is imbued with many dances, such as the
jig
The jig ( ga, port, gd, port-cruinn) is a form of lively folk dance in compound metre, as well as the accompanying dance tune. It is most associated with Irish music and dance. It first gained popularity in 16th-century Ireland and parts of ...
, the
quadrille
The quadrille is a dance that was fashionable in late 18th- and 19th-century Europe and its colonies. The quadrille consists of a chain of four to six '' contredanses''. Latterly the quadrille was frequently danced to a medley of opera melodie ...
, the
reel
A reel is an object around which a length of another material (usually long and flexible) is wound for storage (usually hose are wound around a reel). Generally a reel has a cylindrical core (known as a '' spool'') with flanges around the ends ...
and
line dancing
A line dance is a choreographed dance in which a group of people dance along to a repeating sequence of steps while arranged in one or more lines or rows. These lines usually face all in the same direction, or less commonly face each other.Knight ...
, which developed in the festivities since the early days of colonization. Various instruments are more popular in Quebec's culture: harmonica (music-of-mouth or lip-destruction),
fiddle,
spoons
Spoons may refer to:
* Spoon, a utensil commonly used with soup
* Spoons (card game), the card game of Donkey, but using spoons
Film and TV
* ''Spoons'' (TV series), a 2005 UK comedy sketch show
*Spoons, a minor character from ''The Sopranos''
...
,
jaw harp and
accordion. The ''podorythmie'' is a characteristic of traditional Quebec music and means giving the rhythm with the feet. Quebec traditional music is currently provided by various contemporary groups seen mostly during Christmas and New Year's Eve celebrations,
Quebec National Holiday
Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day (french: Fête de la Saint-Jean-Baptiste, la Saint-Jean, Fête nationale du Québec), also known in English as ''St John the Baptist Day'', is a holiday celebrated on June 24 in the Canadian province of Quebec and by Frenc ...
and many local festivals.
Popular music
Perhaps the most remarkable phenomenon in the popular music of that century was the career of
La Bolduc
Mary Rose-Anne Bolduc, born Travers, (June 4, 1894 – February 20, 1941) was a musician and singer of French Canadian music. She was known as Madame Bolduc or La Bolduc. During the peak of her popularity in the 1930s, she was known as the ...
, who became extremely popular singing satirical and sometimes racy songs based on the Quebec and Irish folk traditions, and who also was expert in the wordless vocalization known as ''
turlutte''.
By the 1960s, radio and television had begun to help disseminate French folk songs, especially after the 1967 foundation of the Centennial Collection of Canadian Folk Songs, including recordings of Quebec performers like Yves Albert and Jacques Labrecque, as well as
Acadian Edith Butler
Edith is a feminine given name derived from the Old English words ēad, meaning 'riches or blessed', and is in common usage in this form in English, German, many Scandinavian languages and Dutch. Its French form is Édith. Contractions and vari ...
.
The most popular songwriters and singers of this period were
Gilles Vigneault
Gilles Vigneault (; born 27 October 1928) is a Canadian poet, publisher, singer-songwriter, and Quebec nationalist and sovereigntist. Two of his songs are considered by many to be Quebec's unofficial anthems: " Mon pays" and " Gens du pays", ...
,
Leonard Cohen
Leonard Norman Cohen (September 21, 1934November 7, 2016) was a Canadian singer-songwriter, poet and novelist. His work explored religion, politics, isolation, depression, sexuality, loss, death, and romantic relationships. He was inducted in ...
(attended
McGill University
McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous ...
, d.2016, buried in Montreal), and
Félix Leclerc
Félix Leclerc, (August 2, 1914 – August 8, 1988) was a French-Canadian singer-songwriter, poet, writer, actor and '' Québécois'' political activist. He was made an Officer of the Order of Canada on December 20, 1968. Leclerc was posth ...
, who brought more influences to the music of France-based singing stars like
Jacques Brel. Leclerc, from
La Tuque
La Tuque (; ) is a city located in north-central Quebec, Canada, on the Saint-Maurice River, between Trois-Rivières and Chambord. The population was 11,227 at the Canada 2011 Census, most of which live within the urban area. At over 28,000 ...
, and Vigneault, from
Natashquan in the north of Quebec, became heroes for a new generation of Quebec youth. It was Vigneault's "
Mon pays
"Mon pays" ("My Country", or "My Homeland", in English) is a song composed by Quebec singer-songwriter Gilles Vigneault in 1964.Suzanne Thomas, Stephen C. Willis and Hélène Plouffe"Mon Pays" ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'', November 20, 2011.
T ...
" (My Country), which became a rallying anthem for Quebec nationalism after a 1965 performance by
Monique Leyrac, and established a tradition of Quebec artists supporting Quebec's independence movement. Many artists openly endorsed it, notably Raymond Lévesque,
Pauline Julien
Pauline Julien, (May 23, 1928October 1, 1998), nicknamed "La Renarde", was a singer, songwriter, actress, feminist activist and Quebec sovereigntist.
Born in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, Julien was the companion of the poet and Québec provincial ...
and
Paul Piché.
In the 1960s, the French Canadians of Quebec were beginning to self-identify as ''Québécois'' (Quebecers). See the
Quiet Revolution
The Quiet Revolution (french: Révolution tranquille) was a period of intense socio-political and socio-cultural change in French Canada which started in Quebec after the election of 1960, characterized by the effective secularization of govern ...
. Another important nationalist performer during this period was
Georges Dor
Georges Dor (March 10, 1931 – July 24, 2001) was a '' Québécois'' author, composer, playwright, singer, poet, translator, and theatrical producer and director.
Early life
Dor was born Georges-Henri Dore in Drummondville into a large family. As ...
, who enjoyed international success with his recording of his own composition, "La complainte de la Manic" ("The Ballad of Manicouagan"); other popular singers of the time include
Claude Gauthier and Clemence Desrochers. Popular artists of the 70s included
Harmonium
The pump organ is a type of free-reed organ that generates sound as air flows past a vibrating piece of thin metal in a frame. The piece of metal is called a reed. Specific types of pump organ include the reed organ, harmonium, and melodeon. Th ...
,
Offenbach,
Plume Latraverse
Plume Latraverse (born ''Michel Latraverse'' 11 May 1946) is a prolific singer, musician, songwriter and author from Quebec. At the end of the 1960s he formed a band named La Sainte Trinité with Pierrot le fou (Pierre Léger) and Pierre Landr ...
,
Garolou and
Beau Dommage
Beau Dommage was a rock band from Montreal, Quebec, who achieved success in Quebec and France in the 1970s. The group's style included rich vocal harmonies and elements borrowed from folk and country music.
History
Beau Dommage started in 1972 ...
, as well as
Michel Rivard.
Country music, in both French and English (primarily the former), is prevalent in Quebec. An aspect of the overall Canadian country scene, it is the chief source of francophone country, inclusive of artists such as
Renée Martel
Renée Martel (26 June 1947 – 18 December 2021) was a French Canadian country singer. Her father was country singer Marcel Martel.
She died from pneumonia on 18 December 2021, at the age of 74.
References
External links
*
*
Entry at t ...
,
Gildor Roy,
Patrick Norman,
Willie Lamothe
Willie Lamothe was the stage name of Joachim Guillaume Lamothe (January 27, 1920 – October 19, 1992), a Canadian musician and actor from Quebec. , and
Georges Hamel.
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. In ...
and
fusion jazz
Jazz fusion (also known as fusion and progressive jazz) is a music genre that developed in the late 1960s when musicians combined jazz harmony and improvisation with rock music, funk, and rhythm and blues. Electric guitars, amplifiers, and ke ...
band
Maneige was founded in Quebec in 1972 by Alain Bergeron and Jérôme Langlois. The band was one of the Quebec progressive rock scene's longest running and most consistent bands. In 1974, Vigneault and Leclerc played on the
Plains of Abraham
The Plains of Abraham (french: Plaines d'Abraham) is a historic area within the Battlefields Park in Quebec City, Quebec, anada. It was established on 17 March 1908. The land is the site of the Battle of the Plains of Abraham, which took plac ...
with
Robert Charlebois
Robert Charlebois, OC, OQ (born June 25, 1944) is a Québecois author, composer, musician, performer and actor.
Charlebois was born in Montreal, Quebec. Among his best known songs are ''Lindberg'' (the duo with Louise Forestier in particular ...
, who made heavy use of
Quebec French in his
rock and roll
Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm a ...
fusions.
In 1976, multi-instrumentalist sisters
Kate & Anna McGarrigle
Kate McGarrigle (February 6, 1946 – January 18, 2010) and Anna McGarrigle (born December 4, 1944) were a duo of Canadian singer-songwriters (and sisters) from Quebec, who performed until Kate McGarrigle's death on January 18, 2010.
Music ...
emerged on the international music scene with their blend of folk-rock and vocal harmonies added to self-penned songs in English and French, many of the latter co-written with Swiss-born poet
Philippe Tatartcheff
Philippe Tatartcheff (born in Geneva, Switzerland) is a Canadian poet and songwriter. He is best known as the lyricist who wrote French language songs recorded by folk duo Kate & Anna McGarrigle.
Origins and early life
Tatartcheff's family was or ...
. The 1970s also saw roots performers like
La Bottine Souriante
La Bottine Souriante is a folk band from Canada. The band specializes in traditional French Canadian folk music, often with a modern twist.
Formed in 1976 by Yves Lambert, Andre Marchand, and Mario Forest, they have toured extensively throug ...
gain critical and commercial acclaim within Quebec.
Jim Corcoran and Bertrand Gosselin released ''La tête en gigue'', an influential album that helped bring Quebec roots to crossover audiences across Canada, the United States and Europe.
In addition to his musical career, Corcoran currently hosts a weekly show on
CBC Radio One
CBC Radio One is the English-language news and information radio network of the publicly owned Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It is commercial-free and offers local and national programming. It is available on AM and FM to 98 percent of C ...
, which airs Francophone music from Quebec for English audiences across Canada.
The early 1980s saw the formation of francophone
synthpop/
new wave groups such as
Nudimension
Nudimension were a francophone French Canadian new wave/ synthpop band from Montréal, Canada who were active between 1982 and 1989. The band were composed of lead singer/composer Louie Louie (real name Louis Rondeau), non musician Marc Fontain ...
that became involved in the genesis of music video and
MTV culture.
"On a retrouvé le premier chanteur punk du Québec"
''Vice'', Félix B. Desfossés, Sept. 26 2017
More recent Quebec performers include Richard Desjardins, Daniel Boucher, Marie-Chantal Toupin
Marie-Chantal Toupin (born July 14, 1971) is a Quebec singer. She has released a number of albums of pop and soft rock music. Toupin has sold over 300,000 albums in Canada and has had two albums certified platinum.
Early life
Toupin was born in M ...
, Éric Lapointe, Vilain Pingouin, Mes Aïeux, Les Trois Accords, Kaïn, Dumas, La Chicane, Les Colocs, Mélanie Renaud, Cindy Daniel
Cindy Daniel (born May 6, 1986 in Montreal, Quebec) is a Québécois singer.
After her debut album ''La petite indienne'' in 2002, the following year, she played the role of Elvira in the French Canadian musical version of ''Don Juan'' by F ...
, Daniel Bélanger
Daniel Bélanger (born December 26, 1961) is a Canadian singer-songwriter. His music is eclectic, inspired by alternative rock, folk and electronic music, sometimes humorous, sometimes wistful.
Biography
In middle 1983, he founded the band Hu ...
, Paul Cargnello, Laurence Jalbert, Rudy Caya, Jean Leloup
Jean Leclerc (born May 14, 1961) is a Québécois singer-songwriter and author from Sainte-Foy, Quebec, Canada. He is popularly known as Jean Leloup (which he likes to translate to John the Wolf), a stage name he kept using until 2006, when he ...
, Celine Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...
(who had 4 No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 hits like "My Heart Will Go On
"My Heart Will Go On" is a 1997 song recorded by Canadian singer Celine Dion. The song serves as the main theme to James Cameron's blockbuster film '' Titanic'', based on an account of the transatlantic ocean liner of the same name which san ...
" in 1998), Les Stups, La Chicane, Dan Bigras, Isabelle Boulay and more recently Cœur de pirate. Some bands, such as Les Cowboys Fringants
Les Cowboys Fringants are a Quebec folk rock music group formed in 1995 in Repentigny, Quebec. The French word ''fringant'' can be translated as "dashing", or "frisky".
They perform '' Québécois'' néo-trad music (modernized Quebec folk musi ...
have known success in Europe (primarily in France) while Karkwa, Vulgaires Machins, Les Batinses and Malajube
Malajube is a Canadian francophone indie rock band formed in Montreal, Quebec.
History
Formed by a group of friends in Sorel-Tracy, Québec, the band made itself known in 2004 with the release of its first album, '' Le Compte complet''. Critic ...
are also recognized elsewhere in Canada and internationally.
A hip-hop scene is also present in the Montreal area with groups like Loco Locass
Loco Locass are a Canadian hip hop group from Quebec formed in 1995. The group often defends the role of the French language, and champions Quebec sovereignty. Songs such as " ROC Rap" and "Résistance" highlight the band's political leanings, a ...
, Sans Pression, Dionysos
In ancient Greek religion and myth, Dionysus (; grc, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstasy, festivity, and theatre. The Romans ...
, Criollo
Criollo or criolla (Spanish for creole) may refer to:
People
* Criollo people, a social class in the Spanish race-based colonial caste system (the European descendants)
Animals
* Criollo duck, a species of duck native to Central and South Ameri ...
, Atach Tatuq, Manu Militari
Manu Militari (born May 21, 1979) is a francophone rapper from Quebec, Quebec, Canada. His stage name is taken from the Latin phrase meaning "By the force of arms".
After a tour that included India, Greece, and the Middle East, he released his ...
, KCLMNOP, Imposs
Stanley Rimsky Salgado, known by his stage name Imposs, is a Haitian-Canadian rapper based in Quebec. Before becoming a solo artist, he was part of Muzion, one of the well-known hip hop bands of Quebec. He has collaborated on many occasions with ...
, Muzion
Muzion were a Canadian rap group formed in 1996. The group is made up of rap artists of Haitian origin who lived in Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension in Montreal, including Dramatik, Imposs (real name Stanley Rimsky Salgado) and his si ...
and Dubmatique
Dubmatique is a French Canadian hip hop group formed in the 1990s in Montreal, Quebec. Groupmates Dj Choice, OTMC, and Jérôme-Philippe are the first French-language hip-hop group from Canada to have a number one hit single on the francophone po ...
.
The metal scene is represented primarily by Sword, Voivod and death metal bands Cryptopsy
Cryptopsy is a Canadian technical death metal band from Montreal, formed in 1988.
History Necrosis (1988–1992)
Necrosis was formed in April 1988 by drummer Mike Atkin, guitarist Steve Thibault and vocalist Dan "Lord Worm" Greening, initially ...
, Kataklysm, Martyr
A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...
, Neuraxis, Gorguts
Gorguts is a Canadian death metal band from Sherbrooke, Quebec, formed in 1989. The band has been through many personnel changes since its inception; its only constant member has been guitarist and vocalist Luc Lemay, who remains the primary cr ...
, Quo Vadis, Despised Icon
Despised Icon is a Canadian deathcore band from Montreal, Quebec. Formed in 2002, the band is noted for the talent of its drummer, Alex Pelletier, who makes frequent use of the blasting technique, as well as for its dual lead vocalists; Alex E ...
, Ex Deo
Ex Deo is a Canadian death metal band formed in Montreal, Quebec in 2008. The band is a side project of Kataklysm frontman Maurizio Iacono, and is based on the history of the Roman Empire.
History
Ex Deo was formed in 2008 as an artistic proje ...
, Blackguard, Beneath the Massacre
Beneath the Massacre is a Canadian technical death metal band from Montreal, Quebec. Their debut EP '' Evidence of Inequity'', was released in 2005, under Galy Records. In early 2006, the band signed with Prosthetic Records and released their ...
, Augury and many others. The Quebec black metal scene has also gotten some attention in recent years, including bands like Akitsa, Spirit of the Forest, Forteresse, Chasse-Galerie, Monarque and Nefastus Dies.
In 2003, TVA
The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is a Federal government of the United States, federally owned electric utility corporation in the United States. TVA's service area covers all of Tennessee, portions of Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky, an ...
began to broadcast '' Star Académie'', a Québécois version of a French reality music competition, several new artists including Marie-Élaine Thibert
Marie-Élaine Thibert (born April 18, 1982) is a Canadian adult contemporary and pop singer based in Quebec. Thibert was first notable for being the runner-up in the first season of Star Académie in 2003, the Quebec singing idol reality show. Sh ...
, Marie-Mai
Marie-Mai (born Marie-Mai Bouchard on July 7, 1984, in Varennes, Quebec) is a Canadian singer from Quebec. She was initially known as one of the finalists of the first season of the Quebec reality show '' Star Académie''.
Background
Marie-M ...
, Émily Bégin and Stéphanie Lapointe became well-known music artists after their passage in the reality show.
The tensions between Quebec and English Canada have, at times, played out on Quebec's music scene as well. In 1991, Céline Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...
won the Félix award for Best Anglophone Artist for her English-language debut, ''Unison'', but refused it as she did not view herself as an Anglophone artist.
Quebec has also produced a number of significant Anglophone artists, including Arcade Fire
Arcade Fire is a Canadian indie rock band, consisting of husband and wife Win Butler and Régine Chassagne, alongside Richard Reed Parry, Tim Kingsbury and Jeremy Gara. The band's current touring line-up also includes former core member ...
(who had 3 No. 1 albums on the Billboard 200 like '' The Suburbs'' in 2010.) Win Butler
Edwin Farnham Butler III (born April 14, 1980) is an American-Canadian singer, songwriter, musician, and multi-instrumentalist. He co-founded the Montreal-based indie rock band Arcade Fire with his wife Régine Chassagne.
Early life
Butler was ...
graduated from McGill University
McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous ...
in Montreal in 2004. Régine Chassagne
Régine Alexandra Chassagne (; born 19 August 1976) is a Canadian singer, songwriter, musician, and multi-instrumentalist, and is a member of the band Arcade Fire. She is married to co-founder Win Butler.
Early life and career
Régine Alexand ...
also went there. Patrick Watson, The Dears
The Dears are a Canadian indie rock band from Montreal, Quebec. The band is led by the husband-and-wife duo of singer-guitarist Murray Lightburn and keyboardist Natalia Yanchak.
History
The band formed in 1995 and released their first album, ...
, Godspeed You! Black Emperor
Godspeed You! Black Emperor (sometimes abbreviated to GY!BE or Godspeed) is a Canadian post-rock band which originated in Montreal, Quebec in 1994. The group releases recordings through Constellation, an independent record label also locate ...
, Riverbeds, Stars
A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma held together by its gravity. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked eye at night, but their immense distances from Earth ma ...
, The Stills
The Stills were a Canadian rock band from Montreal, Quebec, formed in 2000 and disbanded in 2011.
History
The band's original lineup consisted of lead vocalist and guitarist Tim Fletcher, guitarist Gregory Paquet, bassist Olivier Corbeil and dr ...
, The Unicorns
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
, Wolf Parade
Wolf Parade is a Canadian indie rock band formed in 2003 in Montreal. The band released three full-length albums before taking a five-year hiatus in 2011. They announced their return in 2016, releasing a self-titled EP in May of that year, and a ...
, Rufus Wainwright
Rufus McGarrigle Wainwright (born July 22, 1973) is a Canadian-American singer, songwriter, and composer. He has recorded 10 studio albums and numerous tracks on compilations and film soundtracks. He has also written two classical operas and set ...
, Sam Roberts, Paul Cargnello, We Are Wolves, The New Cities, Chromeo
Chromeo is a Canadian electro-funk duo from Montreal, formed in 2002 by musicians David "Dave 1" Macklovitch and Patrick "P-Thugg" Gemayel. Their sound draws from blue-eyed soul, dance music, rock, synth-pop, disco and funk.
, the band has ...
, Simple Plan and the infamous spoken-word musical career of William Shatner
William Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor. In a career spanning seven decades, he is best known for his portrayal of James T. Kirk in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, from his 1965 debut as the captain of the starship ''Enterpris ...
. In addition, some Quebec artists also included from the 1960s to the 1980s Lewis Furey
Lewis Furey, born Lewis Greenblatt (born 7 June 1949) is a Canadian composer, singer, violinist, pianist, actor and director.
Career
Born in Montreal, Quebec to French and American parents, Furey trained as a classical violinist, and at age 11 ...
, Men Without Hats
Men Without Hats are a Canadian new wave and synth-pop band, originally from Montreal, Quebec. Their music is characterized by the baritone voice of their lead singer Ivan Doroschuk, as well as their elaborate use of synthesizers and electro ...
, Norman Iceberg
Norman Joseph Bédard (born July 30, 1962), also known by the former stage names Norman Iceberg and Norman Joseph, is a Canadian singer-songwriter.
Early years: Performing as Norman Iceberg
A graphic artist turned performance artist, Norman Bed ...
, Rational Youth
Rational Youth was a Canadian new wave Synth-pop band that was originally active between 1981 and 1986, and at various points up until the end of 2021.
History
Rational Youth was formed in 1981 in Montreal, Quebec, by synthesizer players Tra ...
, Corey Hart, Julie Masse
Julie Masse (born June 3, 1970) is a Canadian pop singer.
Biography
Masse was born in Greenfield Park, Quebec. She released her self-titled debut album in 1990, a French language album that made her a star in Quebec and France, with the singl ...
, Martine St. Clair, Marjo, Offenbach, The Box, Gino Vannelli
Gino Vannelli (born June 16, 1952) is a Canadian rock singer and songwriter who had several hit songs in the 1970s and 1980s. His best-known singles include "People Gotta Move" (1974), "I Just Wanna Stop" (1978), "Living Inside Myself" (1981) an ...
, Luba
Luba may refer to:
Geography
*Kingdom of Luba, a pre-colonial Central African empire
* Ľubá, a village and municipality in the Nitra region of south-west Slovakia
*Luba, Abra, a municipality in the Philippines
*Luba, Equatorial Guinea, a town ...
, Jacynthe, France Joli
France Joli () (born February 2, 1963) is a Canadian singer, best known for the disco classics " Come to Me" and "Gonna Get Over You".
Teen stardom
Born France Joly in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, Joli grew up in Dorion. Her father was a hardwa ...
, Sass Jordan
Sass Jordan (c. 1962) is a British-born Canadian rock singer from Montreal, Quebec. Her first single, "Tell Somebody," from her debut album of the same name won the Juno Award for Most Promising Female Vocalist in 1989. Since then, she has been ...
and Grimskunk, who have frequently recorded both English and French material.
Quebec artists have dominated the long and short lists of the Polaris Music Prize
The Polaris Music Prize is a music award annually given to the best full-length Canadian album based on artistic merit, regardless of genre, sales, or record label. The award was established in 2006 with a $20,000 cash prize; the prize was incr ...
. Among them, Arcade Fire
Arcade Fire is a Canadian indie rock band, consisting of husband and wife Win Butler and Régine Chassagne, alongside Richard Reed Parry, Tim Kingsbury and Jeremy Gara. The band's current touring line-up also includes former core member ...
, Patrick Watson, Godspeed You Black Emperor, Karkwa and Backxwash have all won the coveted award.
Jazz music
Some famous jazz musicians from Quebec are Oscar Peterson
Oscar Emmanuel Peterson (August 15, 1925 – December 23, 2007) was a Canadian virtuoso jazz pianist and composer. Considered one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time, Peterson released more than 200 recordings, won seven Grammy Awards ...
, Paul Bley
Paul Bley, CM (November 10, 1932 – January 3, 2016) was a jazz pianist known for his contributions to the free jazz movement of the 1960s as well as his innovations and influence on trio playing and his early live performance on the Moog and ...
, Oliver Jones, Charles Biddle, Ranee Lee
Ranee Lee, CM (born October 26, 1942 in Brooklyn, New York City) is an American jazz singer and musician who resides in Montreal, Quebec. She is also an actor, author, educator and television host. Referred as “''Montreal's Queen of Jazz,'' ...
, Karen Young, and Alain Caron.
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 fes ...
has been hosted by the city since 1980 and is now the largest jazz festival in the world, attracting huge crowds of visitors each summer, half of which come from outside the country. For the rest of the year, there is an Off festival that organizes jazz shows in bars all over Montreal.
Classical music
The early part of the 20th century saw growth in opera, and the foundation of the Montreal Opera Company in 1910, and opera singers became popular.
André Gagnon
André Gagnon (2 August 1936 – 3 December 2020) was a Canadian pianist, composer, conductor, arranger, and actor, known for his fusion of classical and pop styles,Jean-Pierre Thiollet, ''88 notes pour piano solo'', Neva Editions, 2015, p.16 ...
, Angèle Dubeau, Michael Laucke
Michael Laucke (; 29 January 1947 – 2 December 2021) was a Canadian classical, new flamenco and flamenco guitarist and composer. Starting at the age of thirteen, Laucke gave professional snooker demonstrations and his winnings allowed him t ...
, Louis Lortie
Louis Lortie, OC, CQ (born 27 April 1959) is a Canadian ( Québécois) pianist.
Education
Born in Montreal, Lortie made his debut with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra at the age of thirteen and the Toronto Symphony Orchestra three years l ...
, Alain Lefèvre, Alain Trudel
Alain Trudel (born 13 June 1966) is a Canadian conductor, trombonist and composer.
Biography
Born in Montreal, Quebec, Trudel first became known to the public as a trombone soloist. He made his solo debut at the age of 18, with Charles Dutoit a ...
, Alexandre Da Costa
Alexandre Da Costa is a Canadian concert violinist and conductor from Montreal, Quebec.
He is the artistic director of the ''Orchestre Symphonique De Longueuil''.
Education
Da Costa has a bachelor's degree in performance (piano) from the Facul ...
, Marc-André Hamelin
Marc-André Hamelin, OC, CQ (born September 5, 1961), is a Canadian virtuoso pianist and composer. Hamelin is recognized worldwide for the originality and technical proficiency of his performances of the classic repertoire. He has received 11 Gr ...
, Nathalie Choquette and Richard Verreau are top classical musicians from Québec at the present.
André Mathieu is among the most renowned composers from the province. He has been compared to a 'little Canadian Mozart', and Rachmaninov
Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff; in Russian pre-revolutionary script. (28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of ...
pronounced him, "a genius, more so than I am". His works became the official music of the Summer Olympics of 1976. Other famous composers are 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 ...
, Calixa Lavallée
Calixa Lavallée (December 28, 1842 – January 21, 1891) was a French-Canadian-American musician and Union Army band musician during the American Civil War. He is best known for composing the music for "O Canada," which officially became the na ...
, Pierre Mercure
Pierre Mercure (21 February 1927 – 29 January 1966) was a Québécois people, Québécois composer, TV producer, bassoonist, and administrator.
Mercure was born in Montreal. As a student at the Conservatoire de musique du Québec à Mont ...
, Jacques Hétu, André Gagnon
André Gagnon (2 August 1936 – 3 December 2020) was a Canadian pianist, composer, conductor, arranger, and actor, known for his fusion of classical and pop styles,Jean-Pierre Thiollet, ''88 notes pour piano solo'', Neva Editions, 2015, p.16 ...
, Airat Ichmouratov, Denis Gougeon
Denis Gougeon (born November 16, 1951) is a Canadians, Canadian composer and music educator. His more than 80 compositions encompass a wide variety of genres, including orchestral works, chamber music, opera, ballet, and pieces for solo instrumen ...
, José Evangelista
José Evangelista (5 August 1943 – 10 January 2023) was a Spanish composer and music educator who was based in Montreal, Canada. He was professor of composition at the Université de Montréal from 1979 to 2009. A member of the Canadian Leagu ...
and composer-critic Alfred La Liberté, among others.
Quebec and France
Both nations have influenced each other in terms of music styles. In the last few years, Quebec singers have been taking the French stage quite extensively. Quebec singers that have performed in France included: Céline Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...
, Garou, Anthony Kavanagh
Anthony Kavanagh (born September 26, 1969) is a Canadian stand up comedian, actor, singer and TV presenter. After a successful career on the francophone stand-up scene in Quebec, he became a major star in France and is now a popular television h ...
(a stand-up comedian), Isabelle Boulay, Bruno Pelletier, Lynda Lemay, Cœur de pirate and many others.
Roch Voisine
Joseph Armand Roch Voisine, (born 26 March 1963) is a Canadian singer-songwriter, actor, and radio and television host who lives in Montreal and Paris. He writes and performs material in both English and French. He won the Juno Award for Male V ...
and Natasha St-Pier
Natasha St-Pier (born 10 February 1981) is a Canadian singer of Acadian origin who has spent most of her career in France. She was coach in the second and third season of The Voice Belgique (''The Voice of Belgium'').
Career
Natasha St-Pier r ...
are two artists who also perform in France and are often mistaken for Quebecers. They are actually from New Brunswick and are of Acadian heritage, like Daniel Lavoie
Daniel Lavoie (; born Joseph-Hubert-Gérald Lavoie on March 17, 1949) is a Canadian singer–songwriter, actor, producer, poet, and radio host, known for his song " Ils s'aiment" and the role of Frollo in musical ''Notre-Dame de Paris''. He rele ...
who is from Manitoba
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, capital = Winn ...
.
Musicals
Few musicals were made or adapted by Quebec artists. Among them, Luc Plamondon has had the brightest career as a songwriter, writing for the big ones (Céline Dion, Garou). The main musicals 'made in Quebec' : ''Starmania'', ''La Légende de Jimmy'', ''Notre-Dame-de-Paris'', ''Chicago (adapted into French)'', "Demain matin, Montréal m'attend", ''Dracula''.
Le Cirque du Soleil
Cirque du Soleil
Cirque du Soleil (, ; "Circus of the Sun" or "Sun Circus") is a Canadian entertainment company and the largest contemporary circus producer in the world. Located in the inner-city area of Saint-Michel, it was founded in Baie-Saint-Paul on 16 Ju ...
has always developed its own musical pieces to go along with various acrobatic tricks. The music aspect of the shows is essential as it sets a mood to every single performance and links one number to another.
See also
* Culture of Quebec
The culture of Quebec emerged over the last few hundred years, resulting predominantly from the shared history of the French-speaking North American majority in Quebec. Québécois culture, as a whole, constitutes all distinctive traits – spirit ...
* French-Canadian music
* Gogo (Quebec music) Gogo was a type of francophone music that was popular in the 1960s in Quebec, Canada. It accompanied dancing that was characterised by lively, quick and irregular movements of the body and wide gestures of the arms. The words and music were often a ...
* List of Quebec musicians
This is a list of singers, bands, composers and other musicians from the province of Quebec.
Blues
* Garou – also pop
* Okoumé – also néo-trad, rock and electronica
* Roxanne Potvin – singer, guitarist
* David Wilcox
Chanson
* ...
* List of Quebec record labels
This is a list of notable record labels from Quebec.
* Alien8 Recordings
* Ambiances Magnétiques
* Audiogram
* Arbutus Records
* Bonsound Records
* Constellation Records
* Dare to Care Records
* Distribution Select
* Disques Victoire
* Dupr ...
References
Further reading
* Brouillard, Marcel. ''Images de la chanson: un siècle chanté''. .l. Éditions l'Essentiel; Ville Montréal, Qué.: Distr. Novalis, 2000.
* Défossé, Félix. L'Évolution du métal québécois, vol. No Speed Limit, 1964–1989. Rouyn-Noranda, Qué.: Éditions du Quartz, 2014. N.B.: Two more vols. are projected to complete this 3 vol. history of heavy metal music of Québec.
* Duguay, Raoul. ''Musiciens du Québec''. Montréal: Éditions du Jour, 1971. ''N.B''.: The emphasis is on "classical" then- contemporary composers and on those of "musique actuelle".
* Lasalle-Leduc, Annette. ''La Vie musicale au Canada français''. Québec, Qué.: Ministère des Affaires culturelles, 1964.
* Lefebvre, Marie-Thérèse. ''La Création musicale des femmes du Québec''. Montréal: Éditions du Remue-ménage, 1991. ''N.B''.: Concerns women composers of Québec.
* Rodrigue, Patrick. "Rouyn-Noranda, la Mecque du rock 'n' roll" & "Un Musée du rock 'n' roll pourrait naître à Rouyn-Noranda", Abi''tibi-Express'', vol. 1, no 44 (31 mai 2011), p. 4. N.B.: Paired ill. articles, each individually titled and separately accessible also on the newspaper's Internet site, describing Rouyn-Noranda as one of the two contrasting poles, the other being Montréal, of popular music in Québec.
* Sévigny, Jean-Pierre. ''Sierra Norteña: the Influence of Latin Music on the French-Canadian Popular Song and Dance Scene, Especially as Reflected in the Career of Alys Robi and the Pedagogy of Maurice Lacasse-Morenoff''. Montréal: Productions Juke-Box, 1994. 13 p. ''N.B''. Published text of a paper prepared for, and presented on, on 12 March 1994, the conference, Popular Music Music & Identity (Montréal, Qué., 12–13 March 1994), under the auspices of the Canadian Branch of the International Association for the Study of Popular Music.
External links
Instrumental Folk Music of Quebec
Québec Pop
Bande à Part (CBC/Radio-Canada)
Les Violons du Roy
{{Canada topics
Culture of Quebec