François Boucher (1860c. 1936) was a Canadian

violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...

ist and

music educator Music education is a field of practice in which educators are trained for careers as elementary or secondary music teachers, school or music conservatory ensemble directors. Music education is also a research area in which scholars do origina ...

. Born in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, Boucher was the son of Canadian publisher and musician Adélard Joseph Boucher and the brother of conductor Joseph-Arthur Boucher. His initial violin studies were with Jules Hone and Frantz Jehin-Prume. In 1876 he went to Europe to study at the

Royal Conservatory of Liège The Royal Conservatory of Liège (RCL) () is a historic conservatory in Liège, Belgium. It is one of four conservatories in the French Community of Belgium that offers higher education courses in music and theatre. Located at 29 Piercot Forgeu ...

with

Lambert Massart Joseph Lambert Massart (19 July 1811 – 13 February 1892) was a Belgium, Belgian violinist who has been credited with the origination of the systematic vibrato. He compiled ''The Art of Working at Kreutzer's Etudes,'' a supplement that contai ...

. After returning to Canada, he had a triumphant success in Montreal performing

Felix Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic music, Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions inc ...

's '' Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64'' in 1881. In 1882 he and his father established a successful music store in Ottawa. That same year he began playing first violin in a string quartet and working as a teacher. In 1887 he joined the faculty of the

Toronto 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 (musician), Edwar ...

. He taught concurrently at the

Toronto College 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 (musician), Edwar ...

beginning in 1889. He was a soloist with the Toronto Philharmonic Society in 1893 where he had success performing

Max Bruch Max Bruch (6 January 1838 – 2 October 1920) was a German Romantic Music, Romantic composer, violinist, teacher, and conductor who wrote more than 200 works, including three violin concertos, the first of which has become a staple of the violin ...

's '' Violin Concerto No. 1''. In 1894 he emigrated to the United States. In 1906 he joined the faculty of the Kansas City Conservatory of Music, where he taught through 1923. His wife taught piano at the conservatory and his daughter was later a singing teacher at the school. He died in

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more t ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boucher, Francois 1860 births 1930s deaths Canadian classical violinists Canadian male classical violinists Canadian music educators Violin educators Royal Conservatory of Liège alumni Academic staff of The Royal Conservatory of Music Academic staff of Toronto College of Music 19th-century Canadian violinists and fiddlers 20th-century Canadian violinists and fiddlers Canadian male violinists and fiddlers