William Eugene Beauvais (born October 9, 1956) 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 ...

classical guitarist This is a list of classical guitarists. Baroque (17th and 18th centuries) 19th century 20th century https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXAPUbFDFJfxY2qijBIG2Og?view_as=subscriberModern See also * List of flamenco guitarists References ...

and

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 ...

who has performed in the United States, Europe, and across Canada.

Early life

Beauvais completed a

Bachelor of Music Bachelor of Music (BM or BMus) is an academic degree awarded by a college, university, or conservatory upon completion of a program of study in music. In the United States, it is a professional degree, and the majority of work consists of pre ...

in Music Performance at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

. Shortly after graduation he won first prize both at the Canadian Music Competition and in the Carrefour Mondial de Guitare in Martinque.

Career

Beauvais is best known for his work as a teacher at

York University York University (french: Université York), also known as YorkU or simply YU, is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's fourth-largest university, and it has approximately 55,700 students, 7,0 ...

The Royal Conservatory of Music The Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM), branded as The Royal Conservatory, is a non-profit music education institution and performance venue headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded in 1886 by Edward Fisher as The Toronto Con ...

, Queen's University and the

University of Windsor , mottoeng = Goodness, Discipline and Knowledge , established = , academic_affiliations = CARL, COU, Universities Canada , former_names = Assumption College (1857-1956)Assumption University of Windsor (1956-1963) , type = Public universit ...

, and for his recordings, most notably, his 1991 recording of The Bulgarian Dances on the usica Viva 1071 In over three decades, Beauvais has accumulated many diverse performing and recording credits. The artists he has worked with include: Brian Katz, The Evergreen Club, Arraymusic, New Music Concerts, Alan Hetherington, The Canadian Chamber Ensemble and Les Amis Concerts. He has also worked with choreographers Terrill Maguire and Hedy Minton, as well as poets Steven McCabe, Richard Truhlar and Wayne Keon. He has given many premier performances, including works George Crumb, Elliott Carter, Jon Siddall, Stephen Wingfield, Ronald Bruce Smith and

Chris Harman Chris Harman (8 November 1942 – 7 November 2009) was a British journalist and political activist, and a member of the Central Committee of the Socialist Workers Party. He was an editor of ''International Socialism'' and ''Socialist Work ...

. More recently Beauvais has devoted much time to his own creative output writing music for The Montreal Guitar Trio, the

Canadian Music Centre The Canadian Music Centre was founded in 1959 by a group of Canadian composers who saw a need to create a repository for Canadian music. It now holds Canada's largest collection of Canadian concert music, and works to promote the music of its As ...

, Jeffrey McFadden and the Echo Women's Choir. His music is published by les Productions d'OZ,

Mel Bay Mel Bay (February 25, 1913 – May 14, 1997) was an American musician and publisher best known for his series of music education books. His '' Encyclopedia of Guitar Chords'' remains a bestseller. Biography Early life Melbourne E. Bay was bo ...

, Tuscany Publications and Frederick Harris Music. He is a member of the

, and currently teaches at York University.

Recordings

*''Memory Palace'' music of Gerry Berg - 1990 *''Dances and Romances for Violin'' - 1991 with Moshe Hammer and Valerie Tryon *''Bridges'' with Brian Katz - 1992 *''Traces'' with George Koller and Julian Knight - 1995 *''4/Four'' music of Michael Hynes - 1997 *''Invisible Cities'' - 2009 with George Koller: bass, Alan Hetherington: percussion, Barry Prophet: percussion, Raffi Altounian: guitar, Michael Kolk: guitar and Rob MacDonald: guitar *''Unspoken Dreams: Stories from Rumi'' - 2010 with Ariel Balevi: story-teller

References

Awards

*First prize at the Canadian Music Competition - 1980 *First prize at the World Centre For Guitar in Martinique - 1980 *He has received grants from the Toronto Arts Council, FACTOR and York University and his music has been heard in Switzerland, Denmark, the U.K., Turkey, South Korea, Australia and Argentina, and is published by Les Productions D’OZ.

External links

Bio of William Beauvais at www.musiccentre.ca
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beauvais, William 1956 births Living people Canadian classical guitarists Canadian male guitarists Canadian composers Canadian male composers University of Toronto alumni Place of birth missing (living people)