Sénécal

Sénécal

Sénécal. Montreal publishers under a succession of names - Sénécal & Daniel 1854-6, Sénécal, Daniel et Cie 1857?-9, Eusèbe Sénécal 1860-80, Eusèbe Sénécal & Fils 1882-96, and Eusèbe Sénécal et Cie 1897-1902 - whose output included music. Sénécal & Daniel published such newspapers and periodicals as La Patrie (1855-7) and Journal de l'instruction publique / Journal of Education for Lower Canada (1857-9). The latter contained only brief notices of music teachers' activities until in 1859 two issues appeared with important music inserts: T.F. Molt's 'Sol canadien' (February) and Charles Sauvageau's 'Chant canadien' (June). Eusèbe Sénécal published the Journal on his own after 1860, but music seems not to have been included. However, one or two pages of music, besides musical announcements, chronicles, and reviews, appeared monthly in the Écho du cabinet de lecture paroissial (1859-75) after Sénécal took it over in 1862. This official publication of a literary circle formed in 1857 aimed to cover national and international news and opinion from the moral viewpoint of the group. The publication of music was discontinued after 1863 because of the cost of typesetting. Several sheet music publications of Sénécal, Daniel et Cie (including 'Sol canadien' and 'Chant canadien') and of Eusèbe Sénécal have survived. All are typeset and dated, in keeping with the practice of periodical publishers, and cover the years from 1859 to 1863. Among the composers are Antoine Dessane, Mathias Jung, and Charles Wugk Sabatier. In later years Eusèbe Sénécal & Fils published Father Cléophas Borduas's Nouveau Manuel de chants liturgiques (1888), R.-O. Pelletier's Accompagnement du nouveau manuel de chants liturgiques (1889), and P.L. Paré's Recueil d'introits et de motets (1891).