This concert features singers and pianists who participated in and stood out at the 2024 edition of the International Vocal Academy of Lachine. Each summer, the Academy hosts 18 young singers and 5 collaborative pianists who work intensively with seven world-renowned professors, including educators from Canada, France, Austria, and Sweden. Individual and group classes, as well as workshops, allow young artists from institutions such as the Montreal Conservatory of Music, the Schulich School of Music (McGill University), and the Atelier Lyrique of the Opéra de Montréal to better master aspects of the lyrical artist and collaborative pianist professions.

Amélie Baland-Capdet, soprano

Maéva Girard, soprano

Vincent Pollender, piano

LOCATION / TIME L’Entrepôt (2901, Saint-Joseph Blvd, Lachine) Arrival: 10:30 a.m. | Concert start: 11:00 a.m.

COST:  No ticket required (suggested donation: 10$) Recital, coffee, juice, brioche included.

PRESENTED IN COLLABORATION WITH THE LACHINE BOROUGH

PROGRAM

BIOGRAPHIES

Amélie Baland-Capdet, soprano

Renowned for her luscious vocal and stage talent (Revue l’Opéra), Franco-Quebec soprano  Amélie Baland-Capdet is a graduate of the Conservatoire de musique de Montréal, in  Donna Brown’s class. While at the Conservatoire, she sang, among other roles, the  Daughter (The Juniper Tree, P. Glass), Hébé (Les Indes Galantes, Rameau) and Miss  Pinkerton (The Old Maid and The Thief, Menotti). Her career also includes the roles of Fraü  Schmidt and Soeur Sophia in La Mélodie du Bonheur, presented in 2022 and 2023, and the  role of Pauline in Offenbach’s La Vie Parisienne, performed in October 2024 with Opéra  Bouffe du Quebec.

In concert, Amélie has appeared as soloist in Fauré’s Requiem, Dvorak’s Mass in D,  Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, Kodàly’s Te Deum and Verdi’s Requiem. Amélie has won  several awards over the years in various music competitions, including the Classival  competition, the Festival-Concours de Sherbrooke and the Festival-concours de Musique  de Sorel-Tracy. She has also taken part in a number of vocal training courses and master  classes (Académie Orford, Académie International d’Été de Nice, Académie internationale  vocale de Lachine), which have enabled her to work with Liz Upchruch, Nathalie Paulin,  Benjamin Butterfield, Lorraine Nubar, Cynthia R Sanner,

Maéva Girard, soprano

Maéva Girard is a young Quebec lyric soprano renowned for her impressive vocal mastery and undeniable musicality. Driven by a deep passion for music, she is currently pursuing advanced studies with soprano Donna Brown. Trained at the Conservatoire de musique de Montréal, she has performed a number of interesting roles, including the First Witch in Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas and Miss Todd in Menotti’s The Old Maid and the Thief. Her performance in the latter role earned her praise from the Revue l’Opéra, which highlighted her vocal excellence and dramatic effectiveness.

Alongside her academic apprenticeship, Maéva is a prizewinner in prestigious competitions such as Classival and the Concours de Musique de Sorel, accolades that testify to her talent and potential. Her career has been nurtured by exceptional opportunities to learn from renowned artists. She took part in the Orford Music Academy in 2023 and the Lachine International Vocal Academy in 2024, where she perfected her art alongside such influential figures as Philip Sly, Benjamin Butterfield, Liz Upchurch, Richard Turp, Olivier Godin, Wolfgang Holzmair, François LeRoux et Anna-Maria Popescu.

Vincent Pollender, piano

25-year-old Granby-born pianist Vincent Pollender is specialising in vocal accompaniment, with the aim of performing in a lyric workshop as a répétiteur. While in 2022 the pianist completed a bachelor’s degree at the Université de Sherbrooke, he is currently studying at the Conservatoire de musique de Montréal under the tutelage of Richard Raymond, Romain Pollet, Adrienne Savoie and Maxime McKinley to complete his master’s degree. His temperamental, rigorous and expressive profile never ceases to shatter the traditional frameworks of classical music. Never one to shy away from exploration, he stands out for his stylistic versatility. From baroque to contemporary music, he takes advantage of every opportunity to express himself.

An asset that sets him apart from other pianists is his ability to improvise, enabling him to develop a heightened artistic sensitivity and a keen musical instinct. This skill has led to a creative blossoming, prompting the young pianist to take up composition. To his credit, he has completed some thirty works. In 2019, he won a composition prize from the Fondation Jeunesse Musicale du Canada. More recently, his piece ‘Toccate pour guitare seule’ was selected to be part of a tour for JMC. He has also won several concerts, including third prize at the La Sinfonia de Lanaudière competition, second prize at the Canadian Music Competition and fourth prize at the Concerto competition at the Conservatoire de musique de Montréal. He was invited to participate in the Lachine international vocal Academy in 2024 and will return in 2025.

SUSTAIN THE ARTISTS

• Offer a donation to Concerts Lachine to enable us cover the artists’ fee
• Share this information