Gilles Vigneault (; born 27 October 1928) is a Canadian poet, publisher, singer-songwriter, and

Quebec nationalist 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 thirteen p ...

and sovereigntist. Two of his songs are considered by many to be Quebec's unofficial anthems: " Mon pays" and " Gens du pays", and his line ''Mon pays ce n'est pas un pays, c'est l'hiver'' (''My country is not a country, it is winter'', from "Mon Pays") became a proverb in Quebec. Vigneault is a Grand Officer of the

National Order of Quebec The National Order of Quebec, termed officially in French as ''l'Ordre national du Québec'', and in English abbreviation as the Order of Quebec, is an order of merit in the Canadian province of Quebec. Instituted in 1984 when Lieutenant Govern ...

, Knight of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleo ...

, and Officer of the

Ordre des Arts et des Lettres The ''Ordre des Arts et des Lettres'' (Order of Arts and Letters) is an order of France established on 2 May 1957 by the Minister of Culture. Its supplementary status to the was confirmed by President Charles de Gaulle in 1963. Its purpose is ...

Life and career

Vigneault was born in Natashquan, in the

Côte-Nord Côte-Nord (, ; ; land area ) is the second-largest administrative region by land area in Quebec, Canada, after Nord-du-Québec. It covers much of the northern shore of the Saint Lawrence River estuary and the Gulf of Saint Lawrence past T ...

region of Quebec. He started writing poetry during his studies at the seminary in

Rimouski Rimouski ( ) is a city in Quebec, Canada. Rimouski is located in the Bas-Saint-Laurent region, at the mouth of the Rimouski River. It has a population of 48,935 (as of 2021). Rimouski is the site of Université du Québec à Rimouski (UQAR), t ...

, and by the 1950s was publishing poems and writing songs for other performers. In 1959, he founded the publishing house ''Les Éditions de l'Arc'' to distribute his publications. His first collection, ''Étraves'', was published in 1959. In 1960, Vigneault made his singing debut at the L'Arlequin club in Quebec City, followed by a successful Montreal concert later that year. In 1962, he recorded his first album, ''Gilles Vigneault'', and received the Grand Prix du Disque from

Montreal 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- ...

radio station

CKAC CKAC is a French-language radio station located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Owned by Cogeco, the station operates as a commercial traffic information service branded as ''Radio Circulation 730''. Its studios are located at Place Bonaventure i ...

. His reputation grew in Quebec and beyond with the success of his song " Mon Pays", from the soundtrack of the NFB film '' The Snow Has Melted on the Manicouagan (La neige a fondu sur la Manicouagan)'' in 1965. Vigneault's reputation as a songwriter and performer continued to spread and he became popular not only in Quebec, but also in English Canada and Europe. He performed in major Canadian concert halls, including Montreal's

Place des Arts Place may refer to: Geography * Place (United States Census Bureau), defined as any concentration of population ** Census-designated place, a populated area lacking its own municipal government * "Place", a type of street or road name ** Often ...

, the

National Arts Centre The National Arts Centre (NAC) (french: Centre national des Arts) is a performing arts organisation in Ottawa, Ontario, along the Rideau Canal. It is based in the eponymous National Arts Centre building. History The NAC was one of a number of ...

in Ottawa, and at Toronto's

Massey Hall Massey Hall is a performing arts theatre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Opened in 1894, it is known for its outstanding acoustics and was the long-time hall of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. An intimate theatre, it was originally designed to sea ...

. In Europe, he toured in France, Switzerland, Poland, Belgium, and

Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...

. The mid-1970s saw Vigneault's participation in several major events. On 13 August 1974, 130,000 spectators came together 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 ...

for the ''Superfrancofête'', where Vigneault participated in a historic concert alongside

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 ...

and Robert Charlebois. The concert was recorded and released as the album '. At the Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day concert "Les 5 Jean-Baptistes" on Montreal's

Mount Royal Mount Royal (french: link=no, Mont Royal, ) is a large intrusive rock hill or small mountain in the city of Montreal, immediately west of Downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The best-known hypothesis for the origin of the name Montreal is the ...

on 24 June 1976, Gilles Vigneault performed together with Robert Charlebois, ,

Jean-Pierre Ferland Jean-Pierre Ferland, (born June 24, 1934, in Montreal, Quebec) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. Life and career Ferland began work with Radio-Canada in 1956 as an accountant, but his career there was short lived. Shortly after, he began ...

, and

Yvon Deschamps Yvon Deschamps (born July 31, 1935, in Montreal, Quebec) is a Quebec author, actor, comedian and producer best known for his monologues. His social-commentary-tinged humour propelled him to prominence in Quebec popular culture in the 1970s and 1 ...

. This concert was recorded and released as ''

1 fois 5 The album ''1 fois 5'', released in 1976, includes the greatest hits of the artists Robert Charlebois, Gilles Vigneault, , Yvon Deschamps and Jean-Pierre Ferland, interpreted on Mount Royal on Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day. The following year, the albu ...

'', which later received the

Grand Prix du Disque Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor * Grand Mixer DXT, American turntablist * Grand Puba (born 1966), American rapper Places * Grand, Oklahoma * Grand, Vosges, village and commun ...

(the

Charles Cros Charles Cros or Émile-Hortensius-Charles Cros (October 1, 1842 – August 9, 1888) was a French poet and inventor. He was born in Fabrezan, Aude. Cros was a well-regarded poet and humorous writer. As an inventor, he was interested in the field ...

award). Vigneault's political views have remained strongly in favour of national sovereignty for Quebec. During the

2014 Quebec general election The 2014 Quebec general election was held on April 7, 2014 to elect members to the National Assembly of Quebec. The incumbent Parti Québécois which had won a minority government in 2012 was defeated by the Quebec Liberal Party under Philippe Co ...

campaign, he supported the

Parti Québécois The Parti Québécois (; ; PQ) is a sovereignist and social democratic provincial political party in Quebec, Canada. The PQ advocates national sovereignty for Quebec involving independence of the province of Quebec from Canada and establis ...

. The main subjects of Vigneault's writing are Quebec and its people, as well as human relationships, love, and everyday life. Vigneault is also concerned with environmental issues and has written songs and tales for children. His childhood reminiscences about his upbringing were filmed by Michel Moreau for the 1993 documentary film '' A Childhood in Natashquan'' (Une enfance à Natashquan).

Family

Gilles Vigneault has seven children: Michel, Louis, François (a poet and lyricist), Pascale, Guillaume (a novelist), Jessica (a pianist and singer), and Benjamin (a percussionist).

Discography (partial)

Honours

Honorary doctorates: *

Trent University Trent University is a public liberal arts university in Peterborough, Ontario, with a satellite campus in Oshawa, which serves the Regional Municipality of Durham. Trent is known for its Oxbridge college system and small class sizes.

(1975) *

Université du Québec à Rimouski The Université du Québec à Rimouski (commonly referred to as UQAR) is a public university located in Rimouski, Quebec, Canada with a campus in Lévis. Since its establishment in 1969, Université du Québec à Rimouski (UQAR) has granted ...

(1979) *

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- ...

(1981) *

York University York University (french: Université York), also known as YorkU or simply YU, is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's fourth-largest university, and it has approximately 55,700 students, 7,000 faculty and sta ...

(1985) *

Carleton University Carleton University is an English-language public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1942 as Carleton College, the institution originally operated as a private, non-denominational evening college to serve returning Wo ...

(2017) Awards and honours: * Prix Félix-Leclerc for the song " Mon pays" (1965) * Governor General's Award for French language poetry or drama (1965) * Prix de musique Calixa-Lavallée (1966) *

of the Charles Cros Academy, Paris (in 1970 for ''Du milieu du pont'', in 1984 for two recordings for children: ''Les Quatre saisons de Piquot'' and ''Quelques pas dans l'univers d'Éviola'' and in 1990) *

Molson Prize The Thomas Henry Pentland Molson Prize for the Arts is awarded by the Canada Council, Canada Council for the Arts. Two prizes are awarded annually to distinguished individuals. One prize is awarded in the arts, one in the social sciences and human ...

(1982) *

Prix Denise-Pelletier The Prix Denise-Pelletier is an award by the Government of Quebec that is part of the Prix du Québec The Prix du Québec are awards given by the Government of Quebec to individuals for cultural and scientific achievements. Founded in 1977, the go ...

conferred by the Quebec government (1983) * Médaille Jacques-Blanchet (1987) * Grande médaille de la chanson française-Vermeil medal (1988) *

Governor General's Performing Arts Award A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

- Lifetime Artistic Achievement (1993) * Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame (2006) He is a Grand Officer of the

(2000), Knight of the

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

(1986), and Officier of the

(1990). Several cultural institutions and streets in Quebec and France bear the name of Gilles Vigneault: * The library of the Rimouski Community college (La Bibliothèque Gilles-Vigneault) * École Gilles-Vigneault (Montreal, Quebec) * École Gilles-Vigneault de Marseille (

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...

, France) * Rue Gilles-Vigneault (Blainville, Quebec) * Rue Gilles-Vigneault (Rimouski, Quebec) * Rue Gilles-Vigneault (Granby, Quebec) * Rue Gilles Vigneault (Saint-Charles-Borromée, Québec)

References

External links

*
Gilles Vigneault chante son pays – Archives de Radio-Canada (French)
*

*
Gilles Vigneault at Québec Info Musique
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vigneault, Gilles 1928 births 20th-century Canadian poets Canadian male poets Living people Grand Officers of the National Order of Quebec Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur Officiers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres Songwriters from Quebec French Quebecers French-language singers of Canada Canadian expatriates in France Singers from Quebec Prix Denise-Pelletier winners Columbia Records artists Canadian poets in French Writers from Quebec Governor General's Performing Arts Award winners 20th-century Canadian male writers Université Laval alumni Quebec sovereigntists