Les Chemins du Concerto Marie-Josée Simard & François Bourassa

• 1 Delta Variation (1) 10:41
• 2 Jazette Concertante - En Émoi (2) 08:15
• 3 Jazette Concertante - Reflexive (3) 08:39
• 4 Jazette Concertante - En Exil (4) 06:56
• 5 De Résonnances et D'Échos (5) 09:48
• 6 Spirale (6) 08:05
• Total Runtime 52:24

Info zu Les Chemins du Concerto

Marie Josée Simard and François Bourassa galvanize us in this exhilarating duo featuring original arrangements of concertante works composed by four leading figures in Canadian jazz: Christine Jensen, Marianne Trudel, Jean-Nicolas Trottier and François Bourassa.

Piano, marimba, vibraphone, crotales, cymbals and hauntingly sonorous bows propel us into an unsuspected dimension of chamber music for percussion and piano.

Marie-Josée Simard, vibraphone, marimba, crotales, cymbals
François Bourassa, piano

Marie-Josée Simard
A remarkable percussionist, Marie-Josée Simard was the first woman to be awarded a First Prize in percussion at the Conservatoire de musique de Montréal in 1979. She went on to perfect her skills in London under the direction of James Blades of the Royal Academy of Music, and then in New York with eminent marimbist Leigh Howard Stevens.

During her forty-year career, she has performed extensively in Canada, Mexico, Korea, China, Poland and France.

In her home country, she has consistently promoted the creation of Canadian works, both for symphony orchestra and chamber music, as well as solo works in percussion.

In September 2015, she was awarded the CALQ Studio/Residency grant at the Tokyo Wonder Site Residency. She lived there for three months and worked with the internationally renowned marimbist Keiko Abe, professor at the Toho Gaguen School.

In 2016, Marie-Josée Simard undertook a seventeen-concert tour of China, followed in 2019 by nine concerts with the Trio En Trois Couleurs, an ensemble created at her initiative with the artistic complicity of pianists François Bourassa and Yves Léveillé.

A YAMAHA (marimba) and SABIAN (cymbals) artist, in 2017 she formed a duet with renowned contemporary pianist Louise Bessette dedicated to the music of the 20th and 21st centuries.

She recently premiered a 14th Concerto for marimba and vibraphone with the Orchestre National de Jazz, composed by Christine Jensen, Marianne Trudel and Jean-Nicolas Trottier, at the Cinquième salle de la Place des Arts de Montréal in December 2021.

Marie-Josée Simard’s discography includes nine CDs with ten premieres, four original compositions, and 27 adaptations of classical and world music works.

After more than forty years of activity in the artistic field, Ms. Simard has built a sterling international reputation that is admired by both the music-loving audience and her peers.

François Richard
was raised in Beloeil, QC, a suburb of Montreal. At age 10 he had the honour of studying with renowned classical flute masters Jean-Pierre Rampal and Gail Grimstead. He then continued his studies in both flute and piano at the Conservatoire de Musique de Montréal. In 1976 he founded, with vibraphonist Jean Vanasse, the Orchestre Sympathique. The group toured internationally, performing at some of the world's leading jazz festivals including Paris, Brussels, Detroit, Aarthus and Montreal. He has collaborated on several film soundtracks, most notably the Juno-awarded "Les Bon Débarras" with Bernard Buisson. He received five Prix Opus nominations in Quebec for his self-produced concerts (CMFR), and is the leader of several ensembles, including the Nouvel Orchestra, who's eponymous CD was listed among the top 10 jazz CDs of 2008 in La Presse. Over the last few years Nouvel Orchestra has toured throughout France and Quebec, and performed at the famed Dizzy's Club at Lincoln Center in New York City.

During his long career, François has performed with such renowned musicians as Don Alias, Gary Bartz, Jaco Pastorius, Michel Donato, David Binney, Mark Feldman, Sylvain Beuf and Claude Garden. He regularly performed for Radio-Canada (international) programs, including Jazz Beat and Jazz sur le Vif. François teaches Pop-Jazz flute at L'Université de Sherbrooke and l'Université du Québec à Montréal. In 2015 the album Azimuth is nominated in ADISQ GALA in the category Album of the year Instrumental.

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