Conservatoire de musique et d'art dramatique du Québec

Conservatoire de musique et d'art dramatique du Québec

Conservatoire de musique et d'art dramatique du Québec is a network of music conservatories and theatre schools established by provincial legislation in 1942. In 1999 this network comprised 7 music conservatories (in Montréal, Québec, Trois-Rivières, Hull, Chicoutimi, Val-d'Or and Rimouski) and 2 theatre schools (in Montréal and Québec). The Conservatoire was founded by Wilfrid PELLETIER, Claude CHAMPAGNE, Yvonne Hubert and Gabriel Cusson, whose aim was to co-ordinate the professional training of composers, singers, instrumentalists, actors and theatre technicians. It is the first North American music and theatre school apparatus to be entirely funded by the state. Curriculum and instructors' selection criteria are established according to provincial norms, creating remarkable equality in the availability of advanced professional training throughout Québec. Two important landmarks in the Conservatoire's development have been the establishment of full-time staff appointments in 1961 and the opening of preparatory music schools in Trois-Rivières, Sherbrooke and Arvida in 1963-64. Its governing body, the Ministère de l'éducation, as well as the Conservatoire's headquarters, are situated in Québec City.

The Conservatoire operates according to 2 governing principles: admission by competition, and specialized, cost-free instruction. These distinctive characteristics, particularly the Conservatoire's individualized and specialized pedagogical approach, have produced a long list of highly successful professionals.

By virtue of an agreement between the Ministère de l'éducation and certain institutions in Québec's college system (CEGEP), the Conservatoire offers the Diplôme d'études collégiales (DEC) and the Diplôme d'études supérieures (DES), which qualifies holders for admission to university programs in education.