André Gagnon

André Gagnon is a Canadian pianist, composer, and arranger known for his unique blend of classical, pop, and world music. Born in Saint-Pacôme, Quebec, on August 2, 1936, he started playing the piano at a very young age, and by the time he was 6, he was already composing his own music. He received his formal music education at the Conservatoire de Musique du Québec à Montréal, where he trained under the guidance of Germaine Malépart, Clermont Pépin, and Gilberte Martin. After cutting his teeth accompanying singer-songwriter Hervé Brousseau on stage, he went on to form the group Les Bozos in 1959 alongside Brousseau, Clémence DesRochers, Jean-Pierre Ferland, Claude Léveillée, Jacques Blanchet, and Raymond Lévesque. In 1964, he released his eponymous studio debut, which was followed a year later by the collaborative album Léveillée-Gagnon, recorded with musician Claude Léveillée. Over the next few years, André Gagnon achieved international fame with his 1968 LP Pour les Amants and paid homage to Quebecois popular music on Mes Quatre Saisons (1969), a seasonal concept album featuring rearranged versions of songs by Jean-Pierre Ferland, Félix Leclerc, Claude Léveillée, and Gilles Vigneault, and the La Balduc tribute album, Les Turluteries (1972). However, it was his 1974 album Saga, his first collection of original instrumental pieces, that finally consolidated his fame. He followed this success with 1975's Neiges, which stayed on the Top 10 of the US charts for 24 weeks thanks to the popularity of songs like "Wow," "Dédéthoven," and "Flash Back." Neiges was eventually certified double-platinum and won a Juno award for Best Instrumental Album after achieving sales of over 700,000 worldwide. His winning streak continued in the following years with albums such as the Félix-winning Le Saint-Laurent (1977), Mouvements (1979), Virage à Gauche (1981), Impressions (1983), and Comme Dans un Film (1986). During this time, André Gagnon also scored the soundtrack of the films Running (1979), Phobia (1980), and The Hot Touch (1981) while simultaneously embarking on an extensive world tour. Throughout the 1990s, he wrote the music for the opera Nelligan, composed original music for the 1992 film The Pianist, and recorded the Christmas album Noël (1992) with Prague's Philharmonic Orchestra. Upon his return to Quebec after a lengthy Asian tour, he issued the album Les Chemins Ombragés (2010), followed by Dans le Silence de la Nuit (2011) and Les Voix Intérieures, his last studio effort, in 2016. The renowned pianist passed away on December 3, 2020, after a long battle with Lewy body dementia.

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