Jump to content

Monique Leyrac

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The printable version is no longer supported and may have rendering errors. Please update your browser bookmarks and please use the default browser print function instead.

Monique Leyrac
Born
Monique Tremblay

(1928-02-26)26 February 1928
Montreal, Quebec
Died15 December 2019(2019-12-15) (aged 91)
Cowansville, Quebec
NationalityCanadian
Occupation(s)Singer, actress
Known for"Mon Pays"
AwardsOrder of Canada
National Order of Quebec
Governor General's Performing Arts Award

Monique Leyrac, OC CQ (26 February 1928 – 15 December 2019) was a Canadian singer and actress [1] who popularized many songs by French-Canadian composers.[2]

Early life

Leyrac was born Monique Tremblay in Montreal, Quebec.[3] She helped raise her siblings while her mother worked as a milliner, while educating herself by reading poetry and fiction. She studied drama with Madame Maubourg.[4]

Career

Leyrac began her acting career on the radio in 1943, using her knowledge of music and drama.[3] In 1965 she won the grand prize at the Sopot International Song Festival in Poland for her rendition of Gilles Vigneault's "Mon Pays".[5] That year she also won first prize at the Festival de la Chanson at Ostende, Belgium. In 1967 she sang at Expo 67.[6]

Leyrac was named an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1967 and was the subject of an hour-long documentary on CBC television in 1972.[3] She received the 1979 Prix de musique Calixa-Lavallée. She recorded ten albums of music,[6] and in the 1980s she began to write and stage one-woman shows in which she sang and acted.[7]

In 1997, Leyrac received the Governor General's Performing Arts Award, Canada's highest honour in the performing arts.[8] In 1998, she was made a Knight of the National Order of Quebec.[9]

In 2007 a boxed set, Leyrac/La diva des années 60, was released, containing three albums of her performed songs, many by Quebec composers, as well as a DVD with a short documentary of her life and career.[10] In 2013 Leyrac was presented with the Prix Denise-Pelletier for her outstanding career in the performing arts.[11][12]

In 2019 a biography of Leyrac's life, written by François Dompierre, was released.[13]

Leyrac had been married for twenty-five years to actor-director Jean Dalmain, from 1952 to 1977.[14] Leyrac died on 15 December 2019 in Cowansville, Quebec at the age of 91.[15]

References

  1. ^ Catherine Pépin, "Exclusif : une rencontre intime avec Monique Leyrac, à écouter dès maintenant". Ici Radio-Canada, 26 February 2019.
  2. ^ "If Piaf Was France, Leyrac is Quebec". Victoria Daily Colonist, via Newspaper Archives. 27 October 1973 - Page 115.
  3. ^ a b c Alexis Luko, Rachelle Taylor and Hélène Plouffe, "Monique Leyrac". The Canadian Encyclopedia, 12 March 2007.
  4. ^ Jacques Lanctôt, "Magnifique Monique Leyrac". Le Journal de Montreal, 23 June 2019
  5. ^ Carlotta Hacker. The Book of Canadians. Hurtig; 1 October 1983. ISBN 978-0-88830-243-4. p. 130.
  6. ^ a b Bill Marshall. France and the Americas. ABC-CLIO; 2005. ISBN 978-1-85109-411-0. p. 720.
  7. ^ "Leyrac's one-woman performance managed only sporadic rapport". Winnipeg Free Press, Newspaper Archives. 27 November 1988 - Page 22
  8. ^ "Monique Leyrac biography". Governor General's Performing Arts Awards Foundation. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  9. ^ "La chanteuse Monique Leyrac est décédée". TVA Nouvelles, 15 December 2019.
  10. ^ "Monique Leyrac: la diva des années 60". Ici Radio-Canada, 8 May 2007.
  11. ^ Luc Boulanger, "Prix du Québec: divine Monique Leyrac". La Presse, 29 October 2013.
  12. ^ Martin Ouellet, "Monique Leyrac et Paul Gérin-Lajoie honorés lors de la remise des Prix du Québec". L'Actualité, 12 November 2013
  13. ^ Mario Girard, "Leyrac vue par Dompierre". La Presse, 8 April 2019.
  14. ^ Vigneault, Alexandre (1 April 2010). "Décès de Jean Dalmain (1915-2010)".
  15. ^ Mayssa Ferah, "La chanteuse Monique Leyrac s’éteint à 91 ans". La Presse, 15 December 2019.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Monique_Leyrac&oldid=1206410003"