Joseph Gagnier (5 April 1854 – 9 April 1919) was a Canadian
clarinet
The clarinet is a Single-reed instrument, single-reed musical instrument in the woodwind family, with a nearly cylindrical bore (wind instruments), bore and a flared bell.
Clarinets comprise a Family (musical instruments), family of instrume ...
ist and the father of an important Canadian family of musicians.
Life and career
Born in
L'Ancienne-Lorette, Quebec
L'Ancienne-Lorette () is a city in central Quebec, Canada. It is a suburb of and an enclave within Quebec City. It was merged with Quebec City on January 1, 2002, as part of a 2000–2006 municipal reorganization in Quebec, but, after a 2004 re ...
, Gagnier moved to Montreal in 1874 after deciding to pursue a music career. In that city he studied the clarinet with Oscar Arnold and Jacques Vanpoucke. He was also a student of
music theory
Music theory is the study of theoretical frameworks for understanding the practices and possibilities of music. ''The Oxford Companion to Music'' describes three interrelated uses of the term "music theory": The first is the "Elements of music, ...
with Joseph Geai and
Ernest Lavigne.
Gagnier began his career performing in the orchestras of a variety of Montreal theatres during the late 1870s and 1880s. From 1890-1919 he was clarinetist at
Sohmer Park. In the 1905-1906 season he, along with his son
J.-J. Gagnier, became a bassoonist in
J.-J. Goulet's Montreal Symphony Orchestra, following the ensemble's unsuccessful attempt to acquire two bassoonists among the city's other musicians. He continued to play with that orchestra as a clarinetist up into the latter years of his life. He died in Montreal in 1919.
Gagnier was the father of 27 children. He taught music and a variety of instruments to most of them, "thus forming a veritable Gagnier orchestra". Many of his children became notable musicians, including
Armand Gagnier,
Ernest Gagnier,
Guillaume Gagnier,
J.-J. Gagnier,
Lucien Gagnier,
Réal Gagnier, and
René Gagnier. Several of his grandchildren became notable musicians, including
Claire Gagnier,
Ève Gagnier
Ève Gagnier (November 12, 1930 – September 19, 1984) was an actress and singer in Quebec, Canada.
The daughter of René Gagnier, a musician, conductor and composer, she was born in Montreal and was educated at the Conservatoire de musique d ...
,
Gérald Gagnier, and
Roland Gagnier.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gagnier, Joseph
1854 births
1919 deaths
Canadian classical bassoonists
Canadian clarinetists
Canadian music educators
19th-century classical musicians