Montrealer wins Juno award for classical album of the year
Posted March 25, 2024 4:45 pm.
Last Updated March 25, 2024 6:42 pm.
Montreal composer Maxime Goulet took home the Juno award for the “Classical Album of the Year: Large Ensemble” along with the Orchestre Classique de Montréal and conductor Jacques Lacombe, for their work on ‘The Symphonie de la tempête de verglas’ on Sunday.
The album included a 40-minute piece that ‘evokes’ the memories of the famous ice storm in Montreal in 1998.
Goulet said it felt amazing to win.
“First, Juno for myself and the Orcchestre Classique de Montréal. It’s a really such a meaningful project also. So, it felt awesome.”
The Juno Awards were held on March 24 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, to honour achievements in Canadian music in 2023.
Goulet said he had never been to Halifax before the award show.
“It’s the first time we come in Halifax. Me, my wife, my daughter, and my mom-in-law. And we enjoy it very much. It was my daughter’s first birthday yesterday, so it makes it even more meaningful.”
The ice storm occurred 25 years ago, which left millions of Quebecers in the dark for nearly a month.
The natural disaster claimed 30 lives and cost the Quebec government over $3 billion.
Goulet explained how the symphony is made up of four movements, that each evoke a difference aspect of the ice storm.
“The first movement is Turmoil. It talks about very descriptive music,” he said. “We hear the rain falling on the rooftop, the wind blowing. It’s a big crescendo, a dramatic emotion. It talks about the turmoil of the weather, but also the turmoil emotionally of the people going through the storm.”
