Canadian Soundscapes: History of Composers and Defining National Music

Foundational Canadian Music and National Identity

Early Patriotic and Traditional Songs

• Alexander Muir (Toronto, Ontario)

  The Maple Leaf Forever (1867)

• Calixa Lavallée

  O Canada (1880)

• Eva Gauthier (Mezzo-Soprano Teacher, Active 1917)

  Known for preserving traditional French Canadian songs:

  • À la claire fontaine (Traditional, associated with the founding of Samuel de Champlain’s L’Ordre de Bon Temps, 1606). (Description: Female voice with male choir, historical recording.)
  • J'ai fait faire un beau navire

Canadian Opera and Art Song

• Stephen Codman (Active 1835)

  The Fairy Song (1824). (Description: Fast-paced piano accompaniment with soprano voice.)

• Joseph Vézina (Quebec Conductor/Composer, d. 1921)

  Le Fétiche (Operetta). Features the aria “J’ai pour maison.” (Description: Piano accompaniment, starting with baritone, then soprano.)

• Harry Somers (Toronto, ON, Active 1950s)

  Louis Riel (Opera). (Description: Male baritone/tenor singing about Métis leader Louis Riel, executed in 1885.)

Folk Traditions: Logging, Maritime, and Social Change

Songs of the Lumber Camp and Waterways

• Isidore Soucy (Montreal, Active 1961)

  En roulant ma boule. (Description: Traditional French Canadian paddling song, old recording featuring male voices. Used to synchronize paddling speed.)

• O. J. Abbott (Folksinger, Active 1950s)

  How We Got Back to the Woods Last Year. (Description: A cappella performance by an older man.)

• Jacques Labrecque (Folksinger, Active 1950s)

  Les Raftsmen. (Description: Male voice accompanied by accordion.)

• Wade Hemsworth (Folksinger, Active 1960s)

  The Log Driver’s Waltz. (Description: Female vocalist, often associated with the animated short film.)

• Omar Blondahl (Newfoundland, Active 1970s)

  Lukey’s Boat. (Description: Comic song originating in Newfoundland and Nova Scotia, performed with acoustic guitar. First notated in 1929 by Elizabeth Greenleaf.)

Industrialization and Urbanization

• Claud L. Graves

  Oh What a Difference Since the Hydro Came (1913). (Description: Tenor singing in English with piano accompaniment.)

  This song reflects the shift in Canadian society: while the economy was predominantly agricultural for much of the 20th century, more than half the population was urban by the 1930s. The arrival of electricity symbolized urbanization and social security through electric lighting.

Contemporary Voices and Modern Rock

• No No Keshagesh

  Running for the Drum (Rock, featuring female vocals).

• Neil Young

  Who’s Gonna Stand Up? (Country/Folk rock style with guitar.)

• Unknown Work (CPR Line Theme)

  Description: Female voices singing with piano accompaniment, likely related to the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR).

Classical and Contemporary Canadian Soundscapes

Musical Reflections of the Canadian Landscape

• John Beckwith (Classical, Active 1950s)

  The Great Lakes Suite (1970).

• Gilles Tremblay (Montreal, Active 1970s)

  Fleuves (1973). (Description: Contemporary 20th-century music utilizing instrumental noise.)

• Healey Willan (Organist/Composer, Active 1930s)

  Rise up, my Love, my Fair One (1929). (Description: Choral work for mixed voices.)

• Barbara Croall

  Noodin. (Description: Features two flutes, noise elements, and female Odawa whispering.)

• Murray Adaskin (Active 1950s)

  In Praise of Canadian Painting in the Thirties (1975). (Description: Orchestral work featuring violin.)

• Harry Freedman

  Images. (Description: Dramatic orchestral texture with prominent, fast flute passages.)

• Jean Coulthard

  The Pines of Emily Carr (1969). (Instrumentation: Narrator, mezzo-soprano, and string quartet.)

• Jocelyn Morlock

  The Jack Pine (2010). (Description: Piano piece characterized by sparse texture and focus on chord color.)

• R. Murray Schafer (Active 1977)

  Music from Wilderness Lake: Dawn (1979). (Description: Brass instruments recorded in an outdoor environment.)

• Alexina Louie (Active 1993)

  Winter Music. (Description: Features storm drum and wind flute at a fast pace, contrasting slow Violin II and fast Violin III sections.)

• Violet Archer

  Northern Landscape (1978). (Description: Features powerful piano sounds and tenor vocals in English.)