Walter Boudreau - Compagnon des arts et des lettres du Québec

Kitten slippers on his feet, in “infoniacally infoniacal” chaos, Walter Boudreau pushed back the limits of artistic rationality from the start of his career. Does Walter Boudreau go to far? Hardly. Instead, he pursued a career for over 50 years that is the measure of the man, between vastness and intensity, never denying himself freedom and eclecticism, and giving us moments of great jubilation.

It hardly needs saying that the accomplishments of this enfant terrible of Québec contemporary music have often been the stuff of exploit. His Symphonie du millénaire, a collective piece by 19 composers, presented in “alloverphony” by almost 2500 performers, remains an unequaled happening since it debuted and is a landmark in our musical history. Master of the infinitely large and the infinitely small, he balances his visionary impulses by submitting each of his pieces – to date he has composed more than sixty – to a rigorous treatment combining his surgical precision with his mathematical logic.

At the Société de musique contemporaine du Québec, where he wore the hats of composer, conductor, and performer, in addition to being its artistic director and the initiator of the Festival Montréal/Nouvelles Musiques, Walter Boudreau has fought the winds and the tides in defence of contemporary musical creation. Having laid down his baton from the institution that he led to great heights, Walter Boudreau continues his quest for the perfect piece, from the first to the last thirty-second note, in the hopes of achieving what he calls the “infinite orgasm.” What comes next should be euphoric.

About the Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec

The Ordre des arts et des lettres du Québec is a distinction bestowed by CALQ honouring those individuals who have played a prominent role in Québec's artistic development.

The CALQ would like to thanks its partners, the Caisse de la Culture and the newspaper Le Devoir.

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