Albertine Caron-Legris

Gaylord Caron-Legris (1906–1972) was a Canadian pianist, composer, and music educator. Many of her manuscripts and personal papers are held in the collection at the Library and Archives Canada.^[1]

Life and career

Born Gaylord Caron in Louiseville, Quebec, Caron-Legris began her piano studies with Romain-Octave Pelletier I in Montreal in her youth. She later studied the piano with Michel Hirvy, voice with Rodolphe Plamondon, and music composition with Eugène Lapierre at the Conservatoire national de musique. Several years into her professional career she entered the Université de Montréal where she earned a Bachelor of Music in 1942.^[2]

Caron-Legris married Mr. Legris in 1918, after which she taught music in Montreal and toured throughout Quebec as a recitalist. In the 1920s she began to gain recognition as a composer of vocal songs and piano works in Quebec. Many of her pieces used folksong harmonizations. Her most well known composition is the 1947 song La Berceuse de Donalda which was featured on both the radio and television version of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation program Un Homme et son péché. In 1962 her collection of song melodies for piano, Mes Plus Belles Chansons, was published through a grant by the Canada Council. Some of her other important works include Poème pastorale for the piano (published 1948) and the songs Ceux qui s'aiment sont toujours malheureux (published 1947) and Soir d'hiver (published 1948).^[1]

In 1972 Caron-Legris died in Montreal at the age of 66. During her lifetime, her works were included in the concert repertoires of such notable Canadian musicians as Maureen Forrester, Raoul Jobin, Marthe Létourneau, Nicholas Massue, and Albert Viau.^[1]

References