Charles-Désiré-Joseph Wugk Sabatier (1 December 1819 – 22 August 1862) was a Canadian

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, j ...

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ. An organist may play solo organ works, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumental soloists. In addition, an organist may accompany congregational ...

, composer, and

music educator Music education is a field of practice in which educators are trained for careers as elementary or secondary music teachers, school or music conservatory ensemble directors. Music education is also a research area in which scholars do original ...

of French birth.

Early life and career in Europe

Born Charles Wugk in

Tourcoing Tourcoing (; nl, Toerkonje ; vls, Terkoeje; pcd, Tourco) is a city in northern France on the Belgian border. It is designated municipally as a commune within the department of Nord. Located to the north-northeast of Lille, adjacent to Rouba ...

, Sabatier was the son of an immigrant from

Saxony Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...

. He enrolled at the

Conservatoire de Paris The Conservatoire de Paris (), also known as the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue ...

under his birth name in 1838, studying there through 1840. He adopted the last name of Sabatier some time during his early career. An article in the ''

Toronto Globe ''The Globe'' was a newspaper in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, founded in 1844 by George Brown as a Reform voice. It merged with '' The Mail and Empire'' in 1936 to form '' The Globe and Mail''. History ''The Globe'' is pre-dated by a title of the s ...

'' published on 25 September 1856 claimed that Sabatier was pianist to the Duchess of Montpensier and that he had conducted opera in Brussels. The former account is most likely accurate but music historians largely reject the latter claim.

Life and career in Canada

Sabatier most likely arrived in Canada in 1848, although an exact year is not definitely substantiated. He first resided in the city of

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...

and then lived in

Quebec City Quebec City ( or ; french: Ville de Québec), officially Québec (), is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Communauté métrop ...

from 1854 to 1856. During these years he worked as a music teacher, church organist, and concert pianist for both public and private performances. He played concerts of his own work as a guest artist at

St Lawrence Hall St. Lawrence Hall is a meeting hall in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located at the corner of King Street East and Jarvis Street. It was created to be Toronto's public meeting hall home to public gatherings, concerts, and exhibitions. Its main featur ...

in Toronto in 1856. His composition ''Le Drapeau de Carillon'' was published in the Journal de Québec for St Jean-Baptiste Day in 1858. He lived in a variety of cities over the next several years, first in St-Jean-Chrysostome-de-Lévis and then in St-Gervais and Chambly. In the latter city he was employed at a convent as an instructor in music. Sabatier ultimately settled in Montreal where he remained for the rest of his life. In that city he worked as a private music teacher and counted pianist Dominique Ducharme, organist Ernest Gagnon, and composer

Calixa Lavallée Calixa Lavallée (December 28, 1842 – January 21, 1891) was a French-Canadian- American musician and Union Army band musician during the American Civil War. He is best known for composing the music for " O Canada," which officially became th ...

among his students. He founded the short-lived journal ''L'Artiste'' with Paul Stevens and Édouard Sempé in May 1860. On 24 August 1860 his ''Cantata'' (with words by Sempé) was premiered under his direction on the occasion of the visit of the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rule ...

. For the performance he conducted the 250 voice Montreal Musical Union Choir and a full orchestra. The soloists for the cantata included

Adelina Patti Adelina Patti (19 February 184327 September 1919) was an Italian 19th-century opera singer, earning huge fees at the height of her career in the music capitals of Europe and America. She first sang in public as a child in 1851, and gave her la ...

and

Emma Albani Dame Emma Albani, DBE (born Marie-Louise-Emma-Cécile Lajeunesse; 1 November 18473 April 1930) was a Canadian-British operatic soprano of the 19th century and early 20th century, and the first Canadian singer to become an international star. He ...

. Sabatier died in Montreal in 1862 at the age of 42.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sabatier, Charles 1819 births 1862 deaths People from Tourcoing Canadian classical composers Canadian male classical composers Canadian classical organists Male classical organists Canadian classical pianists Male classical pianists Canadian music educators Conservatoire de Paris alumni 19th-century classical composers French emigrants to pre-Confederation Quebec 19th-century classical pianists Immigrants to Lower Canada Canadian male pianists 19th-century male musicians French people of German descent Canadian people of German descent 19th-century organists