Domaine Forget

Domaine Forget is an international music festival as well as music and dance academy located near La Malbaie in the Charlevoix region of Quebec.

File:DomaineForgetLogo.png

The logo of Domaine Forget.

History

Le Domaine Forget was three separate estates of three eminent Canadians: Joseph Lavergne — a judge, Adolphe-Basile Routhier — the lyricist of the French language version of O Canada, and Rodolphe Forget — a Member of Parliament and investor and entrepreneur in the Charlevoix region.

In 1945, the three estates were merged into an educational institution by the Les Petites Franciscaines, a religious order. However, in 1977 this was converted into now what is now know as Le Domaine Forget, a non-profit corporation with a mission of promoting the fine arts.

Festival

The festival features dance, jazz, and — most prominently — classical music on its program. Concerts go from May to September and feature notable personalities in each of the fields of the arts.

The festival events take place almost exclusively at Le Salle Francois Bernier, a 600-seat concert hall recently constructed in 1996 by Le Domaine Forget and known for its remarkable acoustics.

Academy

The academy plays host to number of different sessions: chamber music, brass, woodwinds, guitar, strings, new music/composition, singing, jazz singing, and dance. All occur at different times of the summer and fall and feature faculty from around Quebec, Canada, and the world. Most instructors are francophone, but bilingualism between English and French is common. Le Domaine features a dormitory for under-18 students and slightly more six three-story studios for its over-18 students. At the end of each session, a public concert is offered featuring student works.