Romain-Octave Pelletier I
Romain- Octave Pelletier ( born September 9, 1843 in Montreal, † March 4, 1927 ) was a Canadian organist, music teacher, composer and writer on music.
Pelletier was musically largely self-taught; he had only a few organ lessons with his brother Orphir Pelletier. At the age of fifteen, he became the successor of Jean- Chrysostome Brauneis organist at Saint -Jacques -le- Majeur. He studied law and became a notary in 1864. After a period of study at Samuel Prowse Warren in Hartford / Connecticut, he was from 1867 to 1875 organist at Saint -Jacques -le- Mineur. His performances " Protestant " composers such as Bach and Mendelssohn were included here with astonishment.
1871/72 he went on a trip to Europe. He took here hours at George Cooper, William Thomas Best, and John Baptiste Calkin in London and Louis Lebel, the organist of St- Étienne -du -Mont in Paris. He played on the organ of Saint- Sulpice works by Bach before Charles -Marie Widor, took piano lessons from Antoine François Marmontel and studied in Brussels with Jacques -Nicolas Lemmens.
Upon his return to Montreal he was from 1876 to 1907 professor of music at the École normal Jacques- Cartier and from 1887 to 1923 organist at the Cathedral of Saint- Jacques- le- Majeur. As profound organ connoisseur he was invited to the acceptance of many organs in the Casavant brothers in Canada and the United States. In 1904 he became professor of piano at the newly founded McGill Conservatory. Between 1884 and 1916 he was several times president of the Académie de musique du Québec.
As a music educator Pelletier published a series of writings about the piano. Among his many pupils are Alcibiade Beique, Victoria Cartier, Claude Champagne, Édouard Clarke, Alexandre -M. Clerk, Jean Dansereau, Joseph -Daniel Dussault, Nicholas Eichorn, Septimus Fraser, Joseph Gagnier, Alfred La Liberté Alfred Lamoureux, Alphonse Lavallée -Smith, Emery and Ernest Lavigne, Albertine Morin- Labrecque, Antonio Létourneau, Clarence Lucas, Joseph Piché, William Reed, Léon Ringuet and Amédée Tremblay mentioned.
Pelletier composed organ works alongside some piano pieces, two exhibitions and several motets. Among his contemporaries he was regarded as a respected improviser.
From Pelletier's brother Orphir Pelletier ( born September 7, 1825 Montreal, † 1855), the organist at St. Patrick's Church was an O Salutaris Hostia has been published. Even his sons Romain and Frédéric Pelletier were well-known musicians, his grandson Romain- Octave Pelletier music critic and producer.
Works
- Les Couleurs du Canada, 1860
- Scherzo for Piano, 1862
- Valse - caprice à la mémoire de Chopin
- Dix petits morceaux pour l' orgue, 1870
- Mécanisme you piano ou Nouvelles études techniques, 1876
- Six pièces d' orgue
- Accompagnement du nouveau manuel de chants de l' abbé liturgiques Borduas, 1889
- Quatre Noëls anciens for choir and organ, 1890
- Prince Arthur, march for piano or ensemble music
Writings
- Le Toucher du pianiste, Montreal 1916
- L' Étude de la littérature du piano, Montreal 1920
- L'Art pianistique, Montreal 1922
- Guide du professeur de piano, 1925