The Quebec Contemporary Music Society, or Société de musique contemporaine du Québec in French (SMCQ), is a contemporary classical-music organization based in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

. It was founded in 1966 by Montreal composers and musicians, including

Wilfrid Pelletier Joseph Louis Wilfrid Pelletier (sometimes spelled Wilfred), (20 June 1896 – 9 April 1982) was a Canadian conductor, pianist, composer, and arts administrator. He was instrumental in establishing the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, serving ...

Jean Papineau-Couture Jean Papineau-Couture, (; November 12, 1916August 11, 2000) was a Canadian composer and academic. Born in Montreal, Papineau-Couture was the grandson of conductor and composer Guillaume Couture. As a child he studied piano with his mother. H ...

, Hugh Davidson,

Serge Garant Albert Antonio Serge Garant, (September 22, 1929 – November 1, 1986) was a Canadian composer, conductor, music critic, professor of music at the University of Montreal and radio host of ''Musique de notre siècle'' on Radio-Canada. In 1966, ...

, and Maryvonne Kendergian. The SMCQ presents an annual series of concerts involving its own ensemble as well as invited guests, the biennial Montreal/New Music International Festival, and a youth program called SMCQ Jeunesse (SMCQ Youth). The 2007–08 season marked the inaugural of an Homage Series, planned to be a biennial collaborative event featuring the music of an important Quebec composer, which that season was

Claude Vivier Claude Vivier ( ; baptised as Claude Roger; 14 April 19487 March 1983) was a Canadian composer, pianist, poet and ethnomusicologist of Québécois origin. After studying with Karlheinz Stockhausen in Cologne, Vivier became an innovative member ...

. The SMCQ's artistic director since 1988 has been

Walter Boudreau Walter Boudreau, (born 1947 in Sorel) is a Canadian composer, saxophonist and conductor. In 1969, he founded the group L'Infonie with Raoul Duguay, which dissolved in 1973. Since 1988, he has been the artistic director of the Société de ...

Artistic Directors

*1966-1986 :

*1986-1988 : Gilles Tremblay *1988-2022 :

*2022- ... : Ana Sokolović Canadian Music Centre website, ''Composer Ana Sokolovic Appointed as New Artistic Director of the Société de musique contemporaine du Québec (SMCQ)'', article by Andrea Ayotte dated 21 April 2022
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Montreal/New Music International Festival

The first Montreal/New Music International Festival was produced in 2005 and featured the music of more than 50 composers, including Cornelis de Bondt, R. Murray Schafer, and

Michel Longtin Michel Longtin (born 20 May 1946) is a Canadian composer and music educator based in Montreal. An associate of the Canadian Music Centre and a member of the Canadian League of Composers, he won the Jules Léger Prize for New Chamber Music in 19 ...

. It included performances by the

Hilliard Ensemble Hilliard Ensemble was a British male vocal quartet originally devoted to the performance of early music. The group was named after the Elizabethan miniaturist painter Nicholas Hilliard. Founded in 1974, the group disbanded in 2014. Although ...

, Klangforum Wein and the

Montreal Symphony Orchestra The Montreal Symphony Orchestra () is a Canadian symphony orchestra based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The orchestra’s home is the Montreal Symphony House at Place des Arts. History Several orchestras were precursor ensembles to the curren ...

. The format of the festival included a week of concerts, lectures, master classes, and public rehearsals with composers.

References

External links

Official site
*Official site o
Montreal/New Music International Festival
(alternate domain name) Music of Quebec Music organizations based in Canada Classical music festivals in Canada Contemporary music organizations 1966 establishments in Quebec Recurring events established in 1966 {{music-org-stub