Studio de musique ancienne de Montréal

Studio de musique ancienne de Montréal

Studio de musique ancienne de Montréal. Ensemble of singers and instrumentalists dedicated to the performance of pre-1750 German, English, French, and Italian music 'in an informed and authentic spirit'. The ensemble was founded by Hélène Dugal and its music directors Christopher Jackson and Réjean Poirier in September 1974 and was incorporated in 1976. In 1988 Jackson became the sole director. Performances involving 40 musicians have provided Montreal audiences with an opportunity to hear published or manuscript works played and sung according to the performance practice of their individual periods, and adhering in particular to traditional pitch standards. Supported by donations from private citizens and subsidies from the Canada Council, the MACQ, and the Council of Arts of Greater Montreal (now the Conseil des arts de la Communauté urbaine de Montréal),the group has worked gradually to replace modern instruments with replicas of historical ones.

The Studio has given its concerts in Montreal in places selected for their acoustics and architectural attraction, such as the chapel of the Grand Séminaire, St-Pierre-Apôtre Church, Redpath Hall (McGill University) and the Notre-Dame-du-Très-St-Sacrement church.

The first concert, devoted to Monteverdi and Carissimi, took place in December 1974. The next season Claude Gingras drew attention to the 'high musical and musicological quality' of the ensemble's performance (La Presse, 1 Dec 1975). In 1975 the group performed at the Abbey at St-Benoit-du-Lac and organized a colloquium in Montreal on 17th-century Italian music. It performed works by Bach during a Quebec tour in 1977, and the same year broadcast 13 programs for the CBC radio series 'Les Goûts réunis'. The ensemble made numerous tours, notably in France (1978, 1980 and 1989) and in Spain (1980). In 1988 Chantal Rémillard was appointed principal violin of the orchestra. The ensemble participated in 1991 in the eighth season of 'Jouer dans l'Île' organized by the Conseil des arts de la Communauté urbaine de Montréal. As education has been an important part of the Studio's object, it has organized numerous master classes (1981-4) with the baritone Max van Egmond, the gamba player Jordi Savall, the oboist Bruce Haynes and the cellist Susan Napper, among others. Lecture-seminars also have been presented with world-renowned specialists of baroque repertoire. In 1981 the ensemble recorded Heinrich Schütz' Christmas Oratorio (Damzell DLM-813). It has produced three videos : Marvaux's Arlequin poli par l'amour, music by Mouret, recorded and broadcast by Radio France (1980), Handel's Messiah produced by Inter-Vidéo in Montreal (1981) and Bach's St. John Passion produced by Jack McAndrew Productions in Toronto (1983). In November 1979, the Studio began publishing the review Le Tic-Toc-Choc (Journal de musique ancienne).