Éditorial

Transcription

Éditorial

July/Juillet 2006
Le Musicien amateur/The Amateur Musician
Éditorial
au pied levé un autre professeur de flûte. L’entrevue s’est
déroulée principalement en français et il a souligné les
valeurs de CAMMAC et comment me préparer pour ma
première expérience d’enseignement là-bas. Il m’a donné
beaucoup de conseils que j’ai toujours essayé de transmettre
aux autres profs qui enseignent à CAMMAC pour la première fois.
J’ai été aussi surprise que plusieurs d’entre vous en apprenant le décès si récent de Jan Simons.Comme le disait
la pianiste Anne-Marie Denoncourt: “On savait qu’il était
malade, mais on croyait qu’il était immortel.”
Notre directeure artistique, Elizabeth Little, s’est adressée
à Peter Lowensteyn, Ray Sealey et moi-même pour savoir
si nous l’aiderions à composer cette édition spéciale de “Le
Musicien amateur” à la mémoire de Jan. Bien sûr, nous
avons accepté sans hésitation. Comme toujours, notre équipe
de traducteurs(trices) Hélène Auer, Monique Duplantie,
Rachel Gagnon, Madeleine Little, et Margaret Pye Arnaudin
ont traduit, corrigé et résumé des témoignages à l’égard de
Jan que vous trouverez dans ces pages.Un merci particulier
à M. Pat Devine à Anlo-PDC pour sa généreuse collaboration pour ce projet.
Travailler avec Jan me tenait toujours alerte. Je me suis
certainement efforcée d’améliorer mon maintien en sa
présence. Pendant mon premier été là-bas, il s’assura que je
me porte volontaire comme membre des profs chargée de
mettre en vigueur l’heure silencieuse. Je devais me promener autour du camping, dans les pavillons et au bord du lac,
avec l’ordre de “sssshhh” quiconque faisait du bruit, ou pire
encore, de la musique. Ce fut quelques années plus tard
que je réalisai que ce boulot n’existait pas réellement, mais
que c’était, pour les nouveaux profs, la meilleure façon de
découvrir l’importance d’une heure de silence.
J’ai vingt-quatre années de souvenirs merveilleux à chérir.
J’ai rencontré Jan (je l’appelait toujours “Prof. Simons”, en
ce temps-là!) lorsque j’étais en première année à McGill en
musique. Grâce à lui, j’ai réalisé mon rêve d’étudier la flûte
traversière avec Carolyn Christie. En tant que doyen pour
l’interprétation, il m’a invitée à son bureau et a fait plusieurs
appels téléphoniques pour moi. Malgré qu’il ne me connaissait pas, il a fait tout cela pour moi et je n’ai jamais oublié ce
geste de générosité.
Beaucoup a été dit sur la fierté de Jan à l’égard de ses
élèves, et personne ne peut le nier. Par contre, j’aimerais
dire qu’à mon arrivée à CAMMAC chaque été, ou lorsque
je le voyais à la faculté de musique de McGill, ses premières
paroles n’étaient pas au sujet de ses élèves, mais invariablement destinées à Scottie et leurs enfants. Il était tellement
fier de sa famille, et ce fut peut-être là une des plus grandes
leçons qu’il m’a transmise.
Des années plus tard, à titre de Directeur général de CAMMAC, il m’a interviewée au téléphone pour remplacer
Jill Rothberg
Images tirées du film
Harmonie
1977
Maison de production :
Office national du film du
Canada
Réalisateur
Bonnie Sherr Klein
Producteur
Michael McKennirey,
Dorothy Rosenberg, Bonnie
Sherr Klein
Image
Robert Lang
Montage
Ginny Stikeman
Son
Michel Descombes, John
Knight, Yves Gendron
--
July/Juillet 2006
Editorial
Years later, in his position as General Director of CAMMAC,
he interviewed me over the phone as a possible last-minute
substitute for another flute teacher. He conducted most of
the interview in French, and stressed the values of CAMMAC and how to best prepare for my first stint as a teacher
there. He gave me much generous advice, which I have
always tried to pass on to newcomers at CAMMAC.
I was as surprised as many of you to hear of Jan Simon’s
passing so recently. As the pianist Anne-Marie Denoncourt
said, “We knew he was ill, but we thought he was immortal.”
Our Artistic Director, Elizabeth Little, approached Peter
Lowensteyn, Ray Sealey and me to ask if we would help to
put this Special Issue of “The Amateur Musician” together,
as a tribute to Jan. Of course, we all agreed with no hesitation. As always, our talented team of translators, Hélène
Auer, Monique Duplantie, Rachel Gagnon, Madeleine Little,
and Margaret Pye Arnaudin have proofread, translated, and
summarized some of the tributes to Jan which you will find
in these pages. A special thanks to Pat Devine at Anlo-PDC
for his generous collaboration with this project.
Working with Jan always kept me on my toes. I certainly
strived to have better posture in his presence. During my
first summer there, he made sure to volunteer me as the staff
member in charge of enforcing Quiet Hour. I was to walk
around the camp, in the buildings, and down by the lake, and
was expected to “sssshhh” anyone who was making noise, or
worse, music. It was several years before I realized that such
a job didn’t actually exist, but was the perfect way of new
teachers to discover the value of an hour of silence.
I have twenty-four years of wonderful memories to cherish. I first met Jan (always “Professor Simons” to me in
those days!) when I was a first year undergrad flute major at
McGill. He personally helped to turn my wish of studying
the flute with Carolyn Christie into reality. As the Dean of
Performance, he took me into his office and made several
phone calls on my behalf. He did this although I had never
met him before, and that act of kindness towards me was
never forgotten.
Much has been said of Jan’s pride in his students, and that is
undeniable. However, I would like to say that when I would
arrive at CAMMAC each summer, or see him at the McGill
Music Faculty, his first words to me were not of his students,
but invariably of Scottie and their children. He was so very
proud of his family, and that was perhaps one of the greatest
lessons he passed on to me.
Jill Rothberg
Stills from:
Harmonie
1977
Producers:
National Film Board of
Canada
Director
Bonnie Sherr Klein
Producer
Dorothy Rosenberg, Bonnie
Sherr Klein
Images
Robert Lang
Editor
Ginny Stikeman
Sound
John Knight, Yves Gendron
--
July/Juillet 2006
Message de la présidente
President’s Message
Adieux à Jan
Jan Farewell
Jan Simons was an inspiration to us all. Without
question he will be sorely missed. Still, I am
confident that Jan’s spirit will continue to live
on at CAMMAC and through CAMMACers.
How could it be otherwise?
Jan Simons a été une inspiration pour nous tous. Il
nous manquera beaucoup, c’est certain. J’ai cependant la conviction que l’esprit de Jan continuera à
vivre à CAMMAC et à travers les CAMMACois.
Comment pourrait-il en être autrement ?
Pour plusieurs d’entre nous, CAMMAC, et spécialement le Centre musical du Lac MacDonald, sont
difficiles à imaginer sans la présence de Jan. Il semblait se trouver partout. Toujours accueillant et prêt
à aider, Jan personnifiait l’esprit de CAMMAC. Ce
n’est peut-être pas surprenant, étant donné l’énorme influence
qu’il a eue sur CAMMAC, et sa grande contribution, au cours
des années, à la formation de ce qu’est aujourd’hui CAMMAC.
For many of us CAMMAC, and especially Lake
MacDonald, are hard to picture without Jan’s
presence. Seeming to be found everywhere,
always welcoming and supportive, Jan personified the CAMMAC spirit. Perhaps this is not
surprising, given his enormous formative influence and
contribution to CAMMAC over the years.
J’ai un très net souvenir de mes cours avec Jan lors de ma
première visite au Centre musical. Quelle révélation c’était, et
quelle surprise agréable ! En tant qu’étudiante à temps partiel
auprès de studios et d’une institution, j’avais commencé à
éprouver de l’ennui et un certain déplaisir devant la poursuite
des diplômes. Sous la gouverne de Jan, à CAMMAC, j’ai
retrouvé ce qui m’avait attirée vers la musique à l’origine - le
simple amour de faire de la musique et de m’exprimer.
I remember clearly studying with Jan during my first visit
to camp. What a pleasant revelation this was! As a part
time learner at studios and an institution, I found myself
beginning to develop a certain ennui and distaste for the
pursuit of grade levels. Under Jan’s tutelage at CAMMAC,
I found again what had attracted me to music in the first
instance - the sheer love of making music and expressing
myself.
Mon expérience est loin d’être unique. La présence engageante
de Jan assurait que l’apprentissage se faisait dans le plaisir, et
de cette façon il supportait grandement les élèves de CAMMAC dans leurs efforts pour repousser leurs propres limites et
développer leurs propres talents. Jan, une étincelle à l’oeil et
un sourire aux lèvres, obtenait les résultats qu’il savait possibles, tout en acceptant et en respectant chaque personne.
On ne pouvait que progresser naturellement devant les défis
positifs qu’il nous lançait, qu’il s’agisse d’une respiration améliorée, d’une prononciation correcte, d’un maintien amélioré,
de l’interprétation, ou de tout ce dont pourraient bénéficier ses
élèves.
My experience was by no means unique. Jan’s engaging
presence ensured that learning was fun, and in this way
greatly supported CAMMAC students in their efforts to
stretch personal limits and develop their own individual
talents. Always with a twinkle in his eye and an engaging grin, Jan got the results he knew were possible, always
elicited with acceptance and respect for each person. From
his positive challenge growth quite naturally followed, be it
improved breathing, correct pronunciation, improved body
dynamics, interpretation, or whatever would benefit his
students.
Jan manifestait une grande curiosité et une grande ouverture
devant les nouvelles idées et les nouvelles approches. Il était
également formidablement déterminé. Jan a apporté ces
qualités non seulement à son enseignement, mais également à
toutes ses autres activités au sein de CAMMAC. Le comité de
la construction du projet spécial visant à construire un nouvel
édifice au Centre musical du Lac MacDonald doit beaucoup au
dévouement de Jan envers cette énorme entreprise. La Fondation CAMMAC et le fonds des bourses ont également bénéficié
grandement de son influence et de sa direction.
Jan had great curiosity and openness to new ideas and approaches. He also had tremendous determination. In addition to applying these traits as a master teacher, Jan also
brought these to other CAMMAC activities. The construction committee for the special project to build a purpose
built music centre at Lake MacDonald owes much to Jan’s
dedication to this enormous undertaking. The CAMMAC
Foundation and the bursary fund likewise benefited greatly
from his influence and direction.
Le Conseil d’administration de CAMMAC présente ses condoléances à la famille Simons.
The Board extends our condolences to the Simons family
in their loss.
Lucy Stumpf
Lucy Stumpf
--
July/Juillet 2006
Décès de Jan Simons
CAMMAC lui rend hommage
Death of Jan Simons
CAMMAC pays its respects
Raymond Sealey, directeur général du Centre musical CAMMAC, et le personnel du bureau national
ont le regret d’annoncer le décès de M. Jan Simons,
récipiendaire du Prix Hommage du Conseil Québécois de la Musique, musicien, professeur, ami et
modèle pour ceux qui ont eu la chance de le connaître. C’est à l’unisson que l’équipe CAMMAC offre
ses plus sincères condoléances à la famille Simons.
Raymond Sealey, Executive Director of CAMMAC, and national office personnel, regret to
announce the death of Jan Simons, recipient of the
“Prix Hommage du Conseil Québécois de la Musique”. Musician, teacher and friend, he was a role
model for all who knew him. The entire CAMMAC
team offers its sincere condolences to the Simons
family.
M. Simons laisse dans le deuil son épouse adorée
Winifred (Scottie) Whittier-Simons, ses enfants
bien-aimés, Mark, Andrew (Martha), Nicholas (Scott), Anne
(Rod), Katherine (D’Arcy), et Laura (John), ses chers petitsenfants, Annie, Thomas et Katherine, son frère George (Lucie), son beau-frère Mario Duschenes (Ellyn,1994) ainsi que
plusieurs neveux et nièces et leurs familles.
À l’image de M. Simons, c’est dans la simplicité, la sobriété,
le plus grand respect, l’amour, la musique et une touche
d’humour, que les funérailles ont eu lieu, mercredi le 10 mai
dernier, au Complexe funéraire Mont-Royal, à Montréal. Sa
famille, ses nombreux amis, ses principaux élèves et un bon
nombre de Cammacois étaient réunis pour lui rendre un dernier
et vibrant hommage. Conformément au souhait exprimé par la
famille, un don au fonds de bourses du Centre musical CAMMAC, à l’organisme Dans la rue ou à la Maison Emmanuel,
serait très apprécié.
Les Cammacoises et les Cammacois ont éprouvé un profond
chagrin en apprenant la perte d’un homme aussi remarquable,
qui a consacré 50 années consécutives d’enseignement au lac
MacDonald. Durant toutes ces années, il aura été un guide, un
conseiller, un professeur et un mentor pour tous.
Biographie de Jan Simons, baryton, interprète, professeur
et directeur :
Né en Allemagne le 11 novembre 1925, Jan Hugo Simons fut
naturalisé canadien en 1944 et étudia le chant avec Emilio de
Gorgoza à New York, (1950-53) Emmy Heim et Ernesto Vinci
(1953-58) sans oublier Yvonne Rodd-Marling à Londres, en
1970. Il a côtoyé les Glenn Gould, Gerald Moore, Oscar Peterson, Christopher Plummer et Maynard Ferguson. Il a offert
de nombreux récitals publics en plus d’être soliste d’oratorio à
la radio et à la télévision au Canada, en Europe, au Mexique et
au Japon. Soliste au premier concert du Festival de Stratford
en 1955, il fut également soliste en 1956, lors de la première
canadienne du ballet sur les Kindertotenlieder de Mahler, dansé
par le Ballet national du Canada.
En 1964, on le retrouva à titre de soliste avec la Chorale Bach
de Montréal dans le film de l’Office National du Film intitulé
« Selections from the Christmas Oratorio ». Membre fondateur
des Festival Singers, connus aujourd’hui sous le vocable Elmer
Iseler Singers, il devint, en 1969, directeur général de CAMMAC. Depuis 1961, Jan Simons a enseigné avec dévotion à la
Mr. Simons leaves to mourn, his adored wife Winifred (Scottie) Whittier-Simons, his beloved children Mark, Andrew (Martha), Nicholas (Scott), Anne (Rod),
Katherine (D’Arcy), and Laura (John), his dear grandchildren
Annie, Thomas and Katherine, his brother George (Lucie), his
brother-in-law Mario Duschenes (Ellyn, 1994) and many nieces
and nephews and their families.
In the image of Mr. Simons, the funeral service and celebration of his life took place in an atmosphere of simplicity, calm
and reverence, on Wednesday, May 10th 2006, at the Mt-Royal
Funeral Complex, in Montreal. His family, numerous friends,
former students and many Cammacers joined together to bid
a final farewell to Jan with respect, love, music and a touch
of humour. In keeping with the family’s wishes, a donation in
support of the CAMMAC Lake MacDonald Scholarship Fund,
Dans la Rue, or Maison Emmanuel would be greatly appreciated.
All Cammacers are deeply saddened at the loss of such a
remarkable man, who devoted fifty consecutive years to teaching at Lake MacDonald. Throughout those years he was guide,
counsellor, teacher, and mentor for one and all.
Biography of Jan Simons, Baritone, Performer, Teacher,
and Director:
Born in Germany on November 11th, 1925, Jan Hugo Simons
became a naturalized Canadian in 1944. He studied voice with
Emilio de Gorgoza in New York (1950-1953) with Emmy Heim
and Ernesto Vinci (1953-58) and Yvonne Rodd-Marling in
London (1970). Along the way, he rubbed shoulders with Glenn
Gould, Gerald Moore, Oscar Peterson, Christopher Plummer
and Maynard Ferguson. He gave numerous public recitals and
was an oratorio soloist on radio and television in Canada, Europe, Mexico, and Japan. He was soloist for the first Stratford
Festival concert in 1955, and the following year, for the Canadian première of the National Ballet of Canada’s presentation
of Mahler’s Kindertotenlieder.
In 1964 he was soloist with the “Chorale Bach de Montréal”
in the National Film Board production “Selections from the
Christmas Oratorio”. A founding member of the Festival Sing-
voir page 5
--
continued page 5
July/Juillet 2006
faculté de musique de l’université McGill et il a poursuivi son
implication avec cette grande université canadienne jusqu’à ces
dernières semaines. Jan a été professeur au Marianopolis College de 1963 à 1967 et au Cegep Vanier de 1973 à 1977 mais
c’est à CAMMAC qu’il a consacré cinquante années consécutives d’enseignement. Depuis 1955, il n’a manqué aucune
saison musicale à CAMMAC.
Son rôle prépondérant à CAMMAC :
Homme d’initiative, Jan Simons s’est investi corps et âme au
Centre musical CAMMAC du lac MacDonald puisqu’il a été,
pendant vingt-cinq ans, impliqué à la direction générale et
artistique. Étant chanteur professionnel, Jan enseignait le chant
de sa façon originale, toujours avec humour et respect pour les
chanteurs de tous niveaux.
En 1963, Jan s’est joint au conseil d’administration de CAMMAC, en plus de devenir directeur des cours d’hiver de Montréal. C’est ainsi qu’il s’est impliqué activement, en 1967-68,
dans la campagne de levée de fonds pour acheter White Forest
Lodge, le présent site du lac MacDonald. Après avoir agi à
titre de directeur pendant plusieurs années, il a participé à la
campagne OPUS pour la reconstruction du nouveau pavillon
quatre saisons de CAMMAC. En effet, c’était autour de sa table
de salle à manger que les plans du nouveau pavillon ont été
développés. Il était heureux de voir le programme se poursuivre
toute l’année et croyait profondément en la mission sociale de
CAMMAC.
Professeur d’un grand renom
La carrière de Jan Simons comme chanteur et comme professeur a très vite atteint des sommets impressionnants. C’est
pourquoi le Conseil Québécois de la Musique a reconnu sa
contribution remarquable à la vie musicale du Québec, son
dévouement à CAMMAC et son importante carrière en lui
conférant le Prix Hommage en 2005. Il va sans dire que M.
Simons a insufflé à tous sa passion de la musique.
Parmi ses élèves, on retrouve notamment Claudine Ledoux,
Suzie Leblanc, Daniel Taylor, Marie-Anik Béliveau, Michiel
Schrey, Simon Fournier, Olivier Laquerre, Matthew White,
Lyne Fortin et Gregory Charles, qui ne tarit pas d’éloges pour
son maître : « J’ai eu la chance d’être bien encadré par cet
excellent professeur et il a certainement eu un impact dans ma
carrière », nous révélait Gregory Charles, lors de son passage à
CAMMAC, en mai 2005. Claudine Ledoux nous a également
confié à quel point elle est attachée à ce grand homme qui a su
lui insuffler, ainsi qu’à tant d’autres élèves, l’essence même de
la musique : « Il nous a donné de solides assises en nous acceptant tels que nous sommes et il a fait fleurir ses élèves. C’est
avec lui que ma carrière a été lancée. » Les brillantes carrières
de plusieurs de ses élèves sont un témoignage éloquent des
capacités de Jan Simons, un être humain exceptionnel. Il a tellement semé de bonté et de notes musicales autour de lui qu’il
continuera à vivre dans le cœur de chacun.
Claire Gaudet
Directrice des communications
ers now known as The Elmer Iseler Singers, in 1969 he became
Executive Director of CAMMAC. Since 1961, Jan Simons
devoted his time to teaching in the Faculty of Music, McGill
University, and kept close ties with McGill until recent weeks.
Jan was a professor at Marianopolis College from 1963 to 1967
and at Vanier College from 1973 to 1977, and taught music at
CAMMAC for fifty consecutive years, having never missed a
season during that time.
His Primary Role at CAMMAC
A man of great initiative, for twenty-five years Jan Simons gave
body and soul to the CAMMAC Music Centre at Lake MacDonald in his dual roles as Executive and Artistic Director.
As a professional singer, Jan taught voice in his own original
way, always with humour and respect for singers at all levels of
ability.
In 1963 Jan became a member of CAMMAC’s Board of Directors and Director of winter courses given in Montreal, leading
to his involvement in the fundraising campaign to purchase
White Forest Lodge, the Lake MacDonald site (1967-68).
After serving as Executive Director of CAMMAC for several
years, he actively participated in the Opus Fundraising Campaign for the reconstruction of the new all-season main lodge.
The idea of building a new lodge was in fact developed around
his dinner table. It gave him great joy to see the Campaign carried on throughout the year and he believed deeply in CAMMAC’s social mission.
Renowned Teacher
Jan Simons’ career as a singer and teacher rapidly reached
impressive heights, leading the “Conseil Québécois de la Musique” to recognise his remarkable contribution to the musical
life of Quebec, his devotion to CAMMAC and his impressive
career, by honouring him with the “Prix Hommage” in 2005. It
goes without saying that Mr. Simons inspired everyone around
him with his passion for music.
Among his students were Claudine Ledoux, Suzie Leblanc,
Daniel Taylor, Marie-Anik Béliveau, Michiel Schrey, Simon
Fournier, Olivier Laquerre, Matthew White, Lyne Fortin and
Gregory Charles, who unceasingly praised his former teacher:
“ I was fortunate to have been trained by this excellent teacher
who had a great impact on my career”, Gregory told us while
visiting CAMMAC in May 2005. Claudine Ledoux also
expressed her attachment to this great man and how he inspired
her and so many other students with the essence of music:
“ He gave us a solid footing by accepting us as we were. We all
flourished under his tutelage. It was with him that my career
was launched.” The brilliant careers of many of his students are
a living testament to the talents of Jan Simons, an exceptional
human being. His kindness and love of music which always
surrounded him, will live on in the hearts of all who knew him.
Claire Gaudet
Director of Communications
--
July/Juillet 2006
Jan : une réflexion personnelle
- souvenirs et la physique -
Jan: a personal reflection
- memories and physics -
Le temps s’est beaucoup assombri dans les semaines qui ont suivi le décès de Jan. Les éléments
de ce printemps démesurément pluvieux de 2006
semblaient en accord avec mes propres sentiments.
Le service funèbre, par contre, eut lieu par un temps
magnifique avec une vue spectaculaire du MontRoyal symbolisant l’homme en personne, avec sa
verdure printanière.
The weather turned very dark in the weeks following Jan’s death. The elements of this inordinately
rainy spring of 2006 seemed in tune with my own
feelings. The funeral service, however, was held on
a glorious day with views from Mount Royal spectacularly symbolizing the man himself with their
flowery warmth and fresh green colours.
Plus tôt dans la semaine, je devais écrire la biographie de Jan pour notre communiqué de presse de
CAMMAC et cela m’a semblé très bizarre. Comment pouvaisje m’asseoir pour écrire la vie de cet homme? Comment pourrait-il être possible de choisir ceci ou cela comme exemples de
quelque chose d’aussi éphémère que la simple impression que
l’homme me faisait.
Earlier in the week I had to edit Jan’s biography
for our press release from CAMMAC and it struck
me as being very odd. How could I sit there and edit this man’s
life? How could one possibly select this or that as examples
of something as ephemeral as the simple impression the man
made on me.
Quels aspects de l’homme m’étaient vraiment connus? Je ne
pouvais jamais deviner le fond de la vie personnelle de Jan ni
ses relations intimes avec sa famille. Je ne pouvais jamais connaître ses moments les plus sombres ni ses luttes intérieures ni,
en fait, ses moments d’extase. Mais je peux savoir ce qu’il me
communiquait.
What were the parts of the man that I really knew? I could
never know Jan’s deep personal life or his intimate relationships with his family. I could never know his darkest moments
or his inner struggles or, for that matter, his personal ecstasies.
But I can know what he imparted to me.
Eclair de mémoire: Jan parcourt ce trajet matinal qui lui est
familier, du chalet CAMMAC au pavillon principal du lac
MacDonald, avec sa démarche particulièrement rapide faite de
pas juste un peu courts pour la vitesse qu’ils portent. C’étaient
les pas d’un homme qui savait où il se dirigeait et ce qui
l’attendait, à la lumière du grand matin. Il avait un mot pour
chacun même s’il émanait de sur son épaule pendant sa trajectoire. Il ne serait pas en retard pour les annonces de 8h30. Son
temps était fait de précision.
Memory flash: Jan treads that familiar morning line from
CAMMAC house to the Main Lodge at Lake MacDonald with
his particular quick walk made with steps just a little short for
the speed they were carrying. They were the steps of a man
who knew where he was going and what he was about in the
bright early light. He had a word for everyone even if said
slightly over the shoulder during his trajectory. He would not be
late for the 8:30 announcements. His time was one of precision.
He was a man of precision and detail but, miraculously, with an
overall panoramic view of everything around him. Jan noticed
things. Like the paradox of modern physics he could pick up
both the quantic and cosmic vibrations of things.
C’était un homme de précision et de détail mais, par miracle,
il avait une vue panoramique de tout ce qui l’entourait. Jan
remarquait tout. Tel le paradoxe de la physique moderne, il
pouvait percevoir à la fois les vibrations quantiques et cosmiques des choses.
Il pouvait discerner les sentiments et les insécurités d’un
artiste en même temps qu’il scrutait l’atmosphère de la salle de
concert (ses yeux étudiaient rapidement l’auditoire). Il pouvait
jeter un coup d’oeil appréciatif sur les pentes laurentiennes, le
ciel et les lacs, tout en captant le chant d’un oiseau rare.
Jan avait une conscience sociale qui observait l’état regrettable
du monde mais apportait un support discret à des individus
moins heureux ou chanceux que nous. Et oui - il chantait les
louanges du monde glorieux de l’art vocal et de ses maîtres,
He could discern an artist’s feelings and insecurities at the
same time as he judged the concert hall’s atmosphere (his eyes
rapidly surveying the audience). He could cast an appreciative
gaze over the Laurentian hills, skies and lakes at the same time
as he caught some rare warbler’s song.
Jan had a social conscience that observed the unfortunate state
of the world but quietly supported individuals not as well or as
fortunate as we. And yes - he extolled the glorious world of the
vocal arts and its masters while, practically in the same breath,
voir page 7
--
continued page 7
July/Juillet 2006
et presque du même souffle, disait à une personne ordinaire
avec la sincérité dont personne ne doutait: toute voix est noble,
surtout une voix s’exprimant par le chant.
say to an ordinary person, with sincerity that no one ever
doubted: any voice is noble, especially a voice raised in song.
Humilité et humanité, passion et travail acharné, talent de pédagogue et humour, compassion et empathie, pudeur et clémence
- voilà les aspects que je connaissais de cet homme. Ce sont les
parties de son être que je voyais. Et elles formaient les éléments d’une vie qui serait bonne pour n’importe lequel d’entre
nous dans nos propres complexités.
Et me voilà tentant de définir à travers ces aspects toute la
dimension de l’homme qu’il était. Quelle tâche impossible.
Peut-être existe-t-il des lois de physique moderne appliquées
à l’Homme – une sorte de théorie des champs unifiés de
l’existence dans laquelle les atomes de sa personnalité virevoltent simultanément autour du centre musical des Laurentides,
dans les couloirs de McGill et, sûrement, autour de tous ceux
qui le connaissaient où qu’ils soient.
I find myself trying to seize the whole person through these
parts. What a hopeless exercise. Perhaps there is a modern
physics of the person - a unified field theory of being wherein
the atoms of his character will simultaneously zip around the
music centre in the Laurentians, through the halls of McGill
and, surely, follow all who knew him wherever they are.
Le départ d’un être cher provoque toujours une réflexion
profonde sur ce que nous laisserons derrière nous. Maintenant,
nous devons poser des gestes dans cet univers vaste et inquiétant. Tel le bourdon constant des électrons de notre présence,
ces gestes seront la chaleur laissée sur notre passage. Ils sont
les traces infrarouges que nos enfants et amis ressentiront tels
des souvenirs. Que nos traces soient aussi méritantes que celles
de Jan et les souvenirs aussi précieux.
Raymond Sealey
Directeur général
Humility and humanity, passion and hard work, pedagogical skill and humour, compassion and empathy, decency and
forgiveness - these are a few of the parts that I knew of this
man. They are the bits of his being that I saw. And they made
up parts of a life that would be good for any of us to have in our
own complexities.
Someone’s passing always provokes a deep reflection on what
we ourselves will leave behind. Now we must make our gestures in this vast and fearful space. These gestures will be the
humming electrons of our presence. They will be the warmth
we shall leave behind. They are the infrared traces our children
and friends will feel like memories. May our traces be as worthy as Jan’s and the memories as precious.
Raymond Sealey
Executive Director
Prix Hommage du Conseil Québécois de la Musique - 2005
Élise Paré-Toussignant, President du Conseil québécois de la musique, Jan Simons,
Raymond Sealey
--
July/Juillet 2006
Adieu, Jan, et merci
Goodbye, Jan, and thank you
Merci pour ton dévouement, ta droiture d’esprit, ta volonté
d’agir quelles que soient les circonstances ou l’heure, pour ton
attention (parfois exaspérante!) aux détails.
Thank you for your dedication, your outstanding sense of
right and wrong, your willingness to do whatever is necessary
no matter what time it is, your attention (occasionaly frustrating!) to detail.
Merci pour tes enseignements, petits et grands, à ceux qui ont
du talent, à ceux qui en ont moins, aux avancés, aux intermédiaires, et aux débutants, même ceux qui le resteront toujours!
Tous ont reçu ton attention entière, lucide et courtoise.
Merci pour l’intérêt que tu as toujours eu pour les gens et pour
l’humanité, pour ta façon de faire rire les enfants et sourire
les bébés, pour la facilité avec laquelle tu communiquais avec
tous : quelle inspiration!
Merci pour ton sens de l’humour (même les blagues réchauffées!), pour tes sketches inoubliables, pour ta façon de nous
faire rire, mais jamais aux dépends de quiconque.
Merci pour ta voix, merci d’avoir si souvent chanté pour nous.
Thank you for your teachings, both great and small, to the
talented, the advanced, the beginners, the intermediates and
sometimes to the hopeless! All received the same courtesy,
the same attention, the same insight.
Thank you for your real interest in people and in mankind,
for the way you made children laugh and babies smile, for
the way you were always able to communicate with people,
inspiring all.
Thank you for your refreshing sense of humour (even the old
reheated jokes!), for your unforgettable skits, for the way you
made everyone laugh but never at anyone’s expense.
Thank you for your voice, for your singing.
Merci d’avoir aimé les oiseaux et la nature.
Thank you for liking birds and nature.
Merci d’avoir été si formidable.
Thank you for being so great.
Abeth (Elizabeth Little)
Abeth (Elizabeth Little)
Au revoir, Jan, et Merci!
de tout un chacun. C’est là une qualité qu’il exerçait tout autant en dehors de CAMMAC, comme ses nombreux étudiants
le savent bien.
Imaginer CAMMAC sans Jan est difficile : Jan avec son sens
de l’humour, son pas rapide en train de courir quelque part,
son amour des oiseaux, de la nature, sa voix dans les concerts,
Jan qui semblait être partout à la fois et toujours là quand on
avait besoin de lui...
Quand je pense à Jan à CAMMAC, ce qui me frappe surtout,
c’est son accessibilité, sa disponibilité, et cela, non seulement
vis-à-vis de l’organisation dans son ensemble, mais vis-à-vis
Je suis heureuse d’avoir bien connu Jan, car il enrichissait la
vie de ceux qui l’entouraient. Je l’en remercie, et je le remercie aussi de nous avoir donné la présence lumineuse de Scottie. J’espère que sa nombreuse famille animera CAMMAC de
sa présence pendant longtemps encore.
Madeleine Little
Scottie and/et Jan Simons
with/avec Gregory Charles - 2005
--
July/Juillet 2006
A Beloved Teacher / Un professeur bien aimé
Jan’s Song Interpretation class was unique. His knowledge of
the German lieder and French art song repertoire was vast;
the teaching of this repertoire and how to acquire the skills
to perform it was after all his life’s work. In class you could
rarely produce a song of which he did not know the text
and the music by heart. He was somehow able to take every
student at their level and make a difference in their performance, and at the same time make it interesting for everyone
else in the class. For an amateur singer with not much else
but a love of the music, this was an opportunity which I don’t
think could be found anywhere else, and I’m sure none of us
who have been part of this will forget the experience, and the
chance to learn.
Margaret Kamester
Un des derniers souvenirs que je garde de Jan Simons : il
était venu assister au cours de chant donné par David Taylor.
Moi, je n’ai pas une très belle voix, mais j’adore chanter. Je
crois que cette fois-là, c’était un Schubert. La réflexion passée par M. Simons : « It comes from the heart », « Ça vient
du cœur! »
En l’année 1977, qui marquait le 25e anniversaire de CAMMAC, nous avions mis sur pied une pièce de théâtre. Jan
Simons, la tête coiffée d’une impressionnante perruque, y
jouait le rôle de la personne chargée de recevoir les aspirants
élèves musiciens. Moi, je tenais le rôle d’une dame qui
arrivait avec son jeune fils (Richard Turcotte, le professeur
de danse) pour l’inscrire à CAMMAC. Quant à Madame
Simons, on lui avait donné le rôle d’un Allemand qui, fidèle
à la tradition germanique, faisait porter toutes ses valises par
une jeune fille!
Pierrette L. Ferth
I have so many good memories with him.....I met Jan when
I was 19, but I only got to study with him in my last year at
McGill. What an amazing time I had with him!
When I started studying with him, I had so many technical
problems and he offered extra lessons to get me going. Of
course, that was without charging me extra! That is so unheard of back then, and even now.
One day, I went to his house for a lesson, and another student
walked in right after me. Yes, he double-booked me, and I
think that was about third time happening to me. Jan said,
“Jin-Hee, I never do this to anybody else.” “Then, why me?”
I asked. Jan replied, “Oh, because I am a racist and a sexist!”
I don’t know how much I laughed!
That was Jan I knew. He was a great, generous, loving, and
funny teacher.
I’m so honored that I even got to know him.
Jin-Hee Choi
P.S: The picture was taken in 1999, Pollack Hall. (Song Interpretation Class) Michael McMahon, Alicja Basinska, me,
and Jan.
Pierrette Ferth, Jan Simons, Richard Turcotte - 1977
Photo : John & Pierrette Ferth
I only met Jan last summer, when I took his voice training
class. He was an excellent teacher and very energetic, considering his age. I had seen him around CAMMAC previous to
taking his class and he always seemed to be laughing or chatting away to students or other teachers. I’m sorry that I didn’t
get to know Jan better, but the man that I did get to know was
a great man and I will miss him in the years to come.
Daniel MacDonald, Kingston, Ontario
--
July/Juillet 2006
I am very grateful to Jan and his Vocal Technique classes,
which incorporated elements of Alexander technique, for
helping me overcome a problem I had with posture. By
taking this class, one could be warmed up and ready for a
strenuous week of singing. By the end of the week, one
would be singing with ease. The famous Jan Yawn, the North
South position of the mouth, the Low Larynx, the Space
Between the Ears, the Flipping of Top Notes and Singing the
High Notes Low were a few of his precepts. He warned us
against abdominal breathing, which he termed “abominable
breathing”.
This photograph was taken at the end of Week 4 in 2005. We
had not been to CAMMAC together in many years and here
we were, once again, in the boathouse, in Jan Simons’ voice
training class. We remarked to each other both that the class
had not changed and that it had changed at the same time—
some of the old jokes were still there and some of the same
exercises. But there were new ideas coming through and an
enthusiasm and dynamism in Jan’s teaching that invigorated
us all. We were probably one of Jan’s last CAMMAC voicetraining classes and, almost as if we knew this, we seemed
to absorb his teaching and give him what he was looking for.
He was, we believed, pleased with us. We will miss him.
Carol Collier and Carole Swan
A smiling glance from Jan Simons cast after a performance
meant that I had achieved my goal. There was a way Jan had
about him that made me want to seek his approval, to sing
something that he might find beautiful or exciting. More
still was my eagerness to learn how he might fix a certain
approach to a phrase so that it would just sing “better.” Jan
helped mould me into a better singer each time I worked with
him and gave me confidence to continue what sometimes
feels like a torturous journey. He understood the very essence of what it is to be a singer: to seek perfection in the details, to strive always for a better performance and to respect
the art and the instrument.
There was something so inspiring about this man. Jan had a
way of building relationships with people that were meaningful and deep without even knowing he was doing it. The
rides he offered me to the train station, the way he warned me
not to add salt to my food when I was pregnant, the way he
would glow when relating news about his children’s or students’ accomplishments, and the pride with which he invited
me to visit his song interpretation class at McGill, told me
that this was a man who invested in life and in music in a way
that was profound and utterly awe inspiring. I looked forward
to each minute I would spend in Schubert each summer.
I will miss Jan Simons very, very much.
Romina Farrell
Jan had seen and heard everything in his Song Interpretation classes, always a motley crew, a good percentage of
whom came back year after year. He had encountered every
possible type of singer, voice and singer’s ego, and nothing
fazed him. There were wannabees and has-beens, mighthave-beens and could-very-well-bees. Trained and untrained
voices. Ingrained problems. Anyone from the neophyte who
wanted to try singing a solo for the fun of it to Jan’s own
students (such as Olivier Laquerre) who were preparing to
launch into a professional career.
Singers performed folk songs, popular songs, lieder, opera,
oratorio, hymns, obscure ballads, “big arias”, and early
music. Styles ranged from timorous to resounding bravura.
Now and then a sensational voice was discovered. Sometimes the least able singer would get the biggest round applause at our Saturday afternoon concerts, simply because of
the sincere earnestness and enthusiasm of the execution. All
were grateful for the opportunity of trying out their voices in
public.
I think I fell into more than one of the above categories. In
my case, Jan was never very lavish with his praise. I realize
now, on listening to recordings of my former self, that he was
displaying a good deal of forbearance. It began to dawn on
me that I would not get very far without a proper teacher. It
took a while to find someone, but eventually I got on the right
track. Jan was quick to note my progress. “You have lost
all of your technical problems,” he finally told me. Coming
from him, this meant a great deal to me. I had started attending his classes in 1990, so he knew my voice well. I am still
progressing, I suppose, but who else but Jan would really
know? Or, for that matter, care as much?
Margaret Arnaudin
- 10 -
July/Juillet 2006
From his colleagues / De ses collègues
When Sister Mary O’Neill, c.n.d., established the music program at Marianopolis College, Jan was one of the first musicians she asked to assist in this new venture.
Jan was one of the most dedicated teachers I have ever known.
If you asked him if he could help a young singer who was having vocal difficulties, he would immediately reply, “Send him
(or her) to me and I’ll see how I can help.” And, help, he did.
It didn’t matter how advanced the vocal student was, Jan was
always concerned with helping that particular student reach
new goals.
Sometimes that meant he played a fatherly role in helping a
young musician sort out a problem in his or her life. Whereas
some teachers might not have bothered about this, Jan did, and
cared for the well-being of that individual.
It was this combination of a great musician, and mentor that
made Jan a hero to so many of our young students. We valued
him so deeply at Marianopolis.
Professor Jean Walkinshaw
Marianopolis College, Montreal
Une seule phrase résume mes sentiments et ma gratitude envers
Jan:
MERCI de m’avoir donné ma première chance de travailler à
CAMMAC en tant que pianiste-accompagnatrice en 1982 et de
m’avoir ainsi ouvert les portes d’un petit paradis terrestre dans
lequel je continue d’évoluer année après année.
Anne-Marie Denoncourt
Jan Simons fut une personne influente dans mon parcours de
musicienne comme flûtiste. J’ai eu l’honneur de l’avoir comme
professeur de respiration durant mes études à McGill. Et de là
commença un rapport de plusieurs années d’encouragement et
de soutien de sa part. Grâce à lui j’ai su de la Technique Alexander dont il m’incita à recevoir des leçons lorsqu’il apprit que
j’allais étudier à la Guildhall School of Music and Drama de
Londres. Je ne pouvais m’imaginer à ce moment là les changements que ça apporterait à ma vie. Grâce à cette Technique j’ai
pu refaire mon jeux de flûte d’une façon harmonieuse avec
mon corps et me donner des outils pour m’épanouir comme
personne et musicienne. Naturellement ce processus se renouvelle sans cesse. Depuis 13 ans je couvre le poste de Flûte Principale à l’Orquesta Filarmónica de Gran Canaria en Espagne et
je peux dire que si ce n’était pour Mr. Simons qui m’a ouvert à
cette technique je n’aurais pas de carrière.
Je lui garde une place toute spéciale dans mon coeur et je garde
de très beaux souvenirs des moments passés en sa compagnie,
incluant les étés pendant lesquels j’ai eu le plaisir de travailler
à CAMMAC. J’envoie mes condoléances et mon soutien à sa
famille que j’apprécie beaucoup et que je n’oublie pas.
A kaleidoscope of memories has settled, forever frozen into
place, and one particular memory shines brighter than all the
others. Picture this: it is very late on a cold winter evening, and
four weary members of the Special Project Committee (Jan,
Susan van Gelder, Rafik Matta and I) are sitting around Susan’s
dining room table. Despite a long day’s work and a long meeting, no one is rushing to leave; we are simply savouring the
pleasure of being together. Each of us remembers other such
moments in our five years of activity, bright jewels in the night
of time, which we will always cherish. Thank you, Jan, for your
friendship.
“Homme de foi et de convictions profondes, musicien passionné, Jan fut pendant cinq ans un membre fidèle du Comité
pour le projet spécial. Premier nommé au Comité lors de sa
création en octobre 1994 par le Conseil d’administration de
CAMMAC, Jan était un collaborateur empressé et un travailleur acharné. Cela n’étonnera personne. Mais c’est le souvenir
de notre grande complicité qui nous émeut aujourd’hui. Pour
le petit noyau du Comité (Jan, Susan van Gelder, Rafik Matta
et moi) il y eut des moments d’intense satisfaction et d’entente
profonde, dont nous garderons toujours la souvenance. Merci,
Jan, de votre amitié.
Hélène Gagné.
C’est avec beaucoup de tristesse que j’ai appris la nouvelle du
décès de Jan Simons. Je connais Jan (Mr. Simons à l’époque!)
depuis ma toute première année de baccalauréat à McGill en
1984-85 alors que j’arrivais, en plein milieu de l’année scolaire, dans le cours de Song Interpretation qu’il enseignait avec
Michael McMahon. Je dois ma passion pour la musique vocale, ma carrière de coach et professeure de diction, ainsi que
ma carrière de pianiste collaboratrice à ce cours exceptionnel
qui m’a ouvert les yeux et les oreilles sur ce répertoire magnifique. L’enthousiasme de Jan, son humour, sa maîtrise des
styles musicaux, son souci du détail et sa diction impeccable
ont laissé des marques indélébiles dans ma mémoire.
J’ai aussi suivi son cours de diction allemande où j’étais la
seule pianiste! Un jour, une chanteuse vint me trouver et me
dit: « Mr. Simons m’a recommandé de coacher l’allemand avec
toi. Il m’a dit que tu ne comprendrais pas un mot mais que tu
saurais comment ça se prononce! » Typique!
Je dois aussi mon engagement à CAMMAC à Jan Simons qui
m’avait contactée pour la première fois en 1990. CAMMAC
continue d’être une expérience inestimable pour moi et ma
famille. Je suis certaine que des centaines de témoignages
comme le mien seront envoyés à CAMMAC afin d’exprimer
une immense gratitude envers ce petit “géant.” Merci, Jan,
d’avoir enrichi ma vie.
Sylvie Beaudette
Johanne-Valérie Gélinas
- 11 -
July/Juillet 2006
His Humour / Son humour
I met Jan at CAMMAC. One year, when I had just ended
my studies with a voice teacher and was at loose ends, Jan
approached me and asked me how things were going. He
perceived my distress. He was so encouraging and positive
- talking to me for about an hour! He offered me some lessons and suggested some teachers in my area. I will never
forget his kindness and his perceptiveness.
What a kind, humourous and amazing man - he’s a role model
to me - I’m a teacher now!
Victoria Zajchowski, Vancouver B.C.
Un soir de 1988, le récital de chant que donnait la regrettée
Gaby Billette fut interrompu par un violent orage. C’est alors
que Jan vint nous annoncer dans les ténèbres les plus totales
que des fils électriques jonchaient le sol et qu’un énorme
peuplier s’était abattu sur deux des autos stationnées à
l’extérieur et les avaient réduites en bouillie, bloquant tout accès au camp. Sa description des véhicules était si bizarrement
détaillée que je n’eus aucun mal à réaliser que la mienne
était du nombre. Mais au-delà de mon désarroi, je ne pus
m’empêcher de trouver l’épisode presque drôle.
C’était ça Jan, un être savoureusement spontané, que j’ai eu
le privilège de fréquenter de près sur le comité de reconstruction du nouveau bâtiment (qui peut oublier ces réunions de
travail intense agrémentées par les exquises gâteries de Scottie), ainsi que sur le plan artistique, alors qu’il me conseillait
régulièrement sur le choix des solistes pour notre ensemble.
Il occupera toujours une place en or dans ma mémoire.
Every time I start to get a sore throat, I think of how Jan
taught many of us to stretch our soft palettes when we feel
one coming on. Next, I invariably think of his joke about how
stretching one’s soft palette in public will always get you a
seat on the Metro, and I start to giggle. It’s amazing that the
joke is still funny to me after hearing it soooo many times,
year after year.
Jan was always so kind and supportive; to me, and to any
other singer who was brave enough to stand in front of a
group of people in such a vulnerable way. His sense of humor
and quick wit eased the nerves of inexperienced singers
countless times. Jan was a master at relaxing students in class
and at entertaining a crowd with his jokes. He was especially
good at telling jokes in two languages. He’d tell something
funny in English and half the room would burst into laughter.
Without skipping a beat, he’d tell the same joke in French and
the other half of the room would follow suit.
Harriet Buckwalter, California USA
I’m not much of a singer but Jan kindly allowed me into
his Song Interpretation classes. The first year, not knowing
the man or his background, I chose a piece in German. Of
course, he stopped me every two bars to correct my miserable
pronunciation, and this frustrated me no end since I naively
just wanted to sing. Finally I snapped, “Jan, if you keep stopping me, I’ll switch to something in English!” His immediate
reply (deadpan, but with that classic twinkle of the eye) was,
“Bob, it’s quite possible that your English is worse than your
German!”
Rafik Matta
Bob Weaver
Il y a des semaines à CAMMAC où l’on rit plus que
d’autres...Un de mes bons souvenirs de Jan sont les années où
il était directeur avec Louis Lavigueur.
Les annonces du matin, dans leur bilinguisme éclaté, étaient
vraiment d’un humour incroyable...
Gaby Billette and
Jan Birdwatching,
1986
Gaby Billette et
Jan observent les
oiseaux, 1986.
Anne Massicotte
2) During a class, a lady was singing a lied with much feeling; Jan said to her: “Your past is showing...”
Jan’s sense of humour was very special. During morning
announcements I remember he once said that “...if people
insisted on talking on the phone in the evenings, they should
realize that their voices could be heard and, in fairness to all
the people listening they should at least repeat what the person at the other end of the line was saying so that the whole
conversation could be followed…”. He and Louis Lavigeur
were an inimitable pair, masquerading as headwaiter during
Viennese snack evenings, dressing up and making jokes…
such marvelous memories!
Sent in by Hélène Auer
Dorothy and Julio Laufer
Photo: David Briggs
Overheard in the voice class at CAMMAC:
1) One summer a baby grand piano was rented for concerts,
and it was not up to standard. For the entire summer, Jan
referred to it as “the ill-tempered piano”.
- 12 -
July/Juillet 2006
Overheard at a Thanksgiving Week-end auction when a photo
of the Main Lodge that also included Jan was being offered
for sale: Katherine Simons crying out: “You can’t sell that
picture. There’s a defect in it!”
Jan being Jan, there was always lots of joking and laughs during the class; for the rest of the students his vocal warm-ups
before morning choir gave an idea of this side of him. Who
can forget the “silent warm-up” exercises with those awful
grimaces (stretching the muscles supporting the larynx) and
wide open mouths that caused so much hilarity – especially
when punctuated by Jan saying, “you can do this on the way
to work on the New York underground and no-one will take
any notice” – then a little later, “if you do it on the Montréal
metro, someone will give you a seat!” – and finally, “if you
do it on the underground in Toronto, you’ll get arrested!”
- and then of course the famous quip about making space
between your ribs and your hips, and “finding your waistline
for the first time at CAMMAC!”
David Briggs
Jan’s performances were not always serious! His repertoire
of “funnies” included the inimitable amateur wedding song,
sung slightly off-key (this is not easy to do deliberately!),
and with Louis Lavigeur (their combined senses of humour
simply struck sparks off both of them) the duet “The Lord is
a Man of War” (from Israel in Egypt, I think!) with it’s long
piano introduction during which they sat and read a newspaper and then of course missed their entries. Happy memories.
Margaret Kamester
Photo: Audrey Bush
For many years, the high point of my week at Lake MacDonald has been Jan’s Song Interpretation class. The skill with
which he taught was remarkable, both for the performer and
the onlookers. It was an ever fascinating experience to see
which faults of a singer’s technique or interpretation Jan would
choose to work on; and even more fascinating was the remarkable improvement that often resulted. His corrections covered
all facets of singing and performing:
A timid and too restrained soprano was advised: “Pretend
you’re Italian.”
Another singer was told: “You’re not breathing – you just think
you are.”
Knowing that a nervous singer often stands with knees locked,
he made a habit of hitting the performer behind the knees.
Perhaps his most famous advice referred to the position of the
mouth: “North-south, not east-west.”
With his courteous manner, combined with a dry sense of
humour, Jan did his best to put the most nervous performers
at ease. One morning as I was about to sing in his class, he
remarked: “The weather’s warmer today – you can take your
hands out of your pockets.”
An inexperienced male singer who had chosen a notoriously
demanding piece was asked, “For tomorrow, do you think you
could find something more difficult?”
Jan’s musical knowledge and experience were vast. Whatever
the song or aria that the members of the class had brought, it
was rare for him not to know the piece and the way in which it
should be sung. He was also intimately familiar with the pronunciation of English, French, German and Italian, and would
not tolerate sloppy diction. Sometimes he turned to the native
speakers of the language which had just been sung and asked,
“Could you understand what he (or she) was saying?”
I cherish my memories of Jan’s classes and will remember his
corrections whenever I sing.
Freya Godard, Toronto
Next, let’s see about getting some more air into those lungs...
Maintenant, voyons si on peut mettre un peu plus d’air dans ces
poumons...
Illustration : Otto Gal
- 13 -
July/Juillet 2006
His Performances/Jan le chanteur
You know, I remember Jan only with a twinkling smile and a
quick and clever response to anything with a pun or pure wit.
I cannot remember him not laughing or smiling.
I recall an outstanding evening during a summer session at
CAMMAC. I do not remember when it was, but probably
when I was teaching there during the 1960s. It might also
have been during the one summer I returned during the mid
80s. I wish my recollections were more accurate.
Anyway, it was an evening featuring Jan with a recital of
Hugo Wolf songs. I was transported by the music and Jan’s
interpretation. I had never experienced such an unpretentious,
such an honest performance of this genre of music before
that evening. “Lieder Abende” were totally foreign to me as
a baroque buff tied to a tooting recorder. It must have been
spectacular to have remained in my memory so long and so
strong.
Jan was exceptionally friendly. He seemed to think that I
thought something was amiss with CAMMAC when I did
not return to teach after the summer of 1970 (or was it 71?)
Au contraire! I had been offered a job in Salzburg which was
enticing. I’m still there! His words to me were something
like: “I guess we’re not good enough to keep you here.” Balderdash! I loved CAMMAC and I loved Jan. What a special
person he was, and how sad I am that we did not meet again
after our last encounter in the 80s.
Lieber Jan, leb’ wohl.
Miriam Samuelson
Salzburg, Austria
Of course in his younger days, Jan was well known as a
singer; among my more treasured CDs is a set which my
eldest son and his family gave me for Christmas a year or so
ago called “Great Canadian Singers” – and there on CD 1,
item 4 is: “Elizabeth Benson-Guy and Jan Simons – Lost is
My Quiet (Henry Purcell), John Newmark, piano.” His performances during staff concerts at CAMMAC were always
memorable; among many others, I particularly remember one
Sunday morning concert some years ago in the days before
Festival CAMMAC – it happened to be the last day of that
season, and the work was the Bach Cantata “Ich habe genug”,
for baritone solo. The title of course raised a smile – it roughly translates, “I have had enough”. The performance however
was beautiful and especially moving as several of the younger
generation of the Simons and Duschenes family were in the
instrumental ensemble; I remember meeting Scottie afterwards and we both had tears in our eyes. Today, of course, the
words of the cantata are particularly poignant.
Margaret Kamester
Although I’m not much of a singer and never took lessons
in “voice straining,” I enjoyed the warmup sessions that Jan
often led before morning choir practice. I admired his great
sense of humor. On at least one occasion I felt much honored
when someone confused me with him, probably because we
often wore the same kind of sports shirts and khaki pants, and
had somewhat similar builds.
But what I remember best was to hear Jan sing “Dichterliebe”
when my wife and I first came to CAMMAC in the middle
1960’s. Of course I haven’t heard all the famous singers of
the last half century sing this work, but in my opinion he
performed it better than any that I did hear.
Ernest Nussbaum
My connection to CAMMAC goes back almost 20 years. One
of my very first memories is of arriving for the first time at
Lake MacDonald with my two children. We disembarked from
the car and there was a lanky man, with a broad smile, welcoming us, showing us where to go and making sure we knew that
our car had to move. Jan was a stickler for rules, but they were
rules that gave a wonderful quality of life to those at the camp.
For the week we were there we did not think about the outside
world unless we drove away from Lake MacDonald. Radios
were not welcome. Instead we talked to each other. Silent hour
was respected (my children fondly recall the silent baseball
games); we needed rest and time just to hear the breezes. On
regular weeks, vocal warmups complete with tonsil massages
were part of everyone’s morning. And everything was with a
sense of humour. It is hard to think of Jan without thinking of
his smile, the twinkle in his eye and his quick repartee.
our new building to be as kind to its setting as possible and his
respect for all people. He could be firm in defending his position.
I am a lover of early music and attend many concerts. Often I
saw Jan who went to hear one or another of his students. He
would proudly tell me how the careers of some of his students
were progressing or tell me about an up and coming singer at
McGill. It was obvious, that despite many years of teaching and
many students taught, he never tired of helping each one find
their voice.
I will never forget the first time I heard Jan sing. By the time
I started going to CAMMAC he was no longer performing.
One Thanksgiving we sang Fauré’s requiem with Gaby Billette
conducting. Jan sang the baritone solo. Out of this slight man
came a rich, deeply moving sound. Sadly, Gaby passed away
I served on the Board for four years and in that time I saw Jan shortly after. Fauré’s Requiem was sung at her funeral. I was
as a man who was passionate about his convictions: his love of not able to go, but I put on the CD and remembered Jan’s voice.
music and his belief that music was for everyone, not just the I hear it still.
professionals, his love for the environment and the need for
Susan van Gelder
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July/Juillet 2006
Jan the Birdwatcher
Jan, observateur oiseaux
Jan was a big fan of bird song. He became interested in birds
in the early 1960s through a CAMMAC member, Geneva
Baird, whose father, the painter,
mycologist and avid birdwatcher
H.A.C. Jackson (brother of A.Y.),
was a prominent member of the
Province of Quebec Society for
the Protection of Birds. He and
Scottie joined the Society, and
Jan himself served on its Board
of Directors for a while. Through
the Society’s field trips and encounters with experienced birdwatchers and ornithologists Jan
learned all the local birds and their songs and calls. He instituted the early morning bird walks at Lake MacDonald, which
he led for many years. I shall miss being able to exchange
bird sightings with such a competent birder.
Ayant eu le privilège de participer pendant de multiples étés
aux activités du Lac MacDonald, j’aimerais témoigner toute
ma gratitude à un homme, Monsieur Jan Simons. Depuis
plusieurs années, comme infirmière du camp CAMMAC, on
m’attitrait la première semaine. Celle des « Master Class », et
tous les ans, Jan se présentait à nous avec, toujours la même
ardeur, ce même sourire, et surtout dans les yeux, ce
même éclat de Vie et de Passion pour la musique, et
à la beauté et à la force universelle de cette dernière.
Son amour, son dévouement à tous ceux et celles qui
aspiraient à se perfectionner dans la voie difficile,
mais oh! comment belle, de la maîtrise de la voix, il
s’exprimait par sa capacité de corriger avec beaucoup
de sagesse, de bonté et de clairvoyance.
J’ai n’ai jamais eu l’honneur d’être son élève, mais
j’ai souvent eu l’occasion de me promener avec lui,
lors de nos marches matinales, où en petit groupe et dans le
silence, on écoutait avec lui le chant des oiseaux, et de son
oreille d’écoute parfaite, il identifiait l’oiseau qui osait se laissée entendre ce matin-là.
Merci M. Simons
Margaret Arnaudin
Marguerite Bilodeau inf.
Jan the Recycler / Jan le recycleur
his wit, and old-timers seemed to accept the retelling of these
one-liners as part of the CAMMAC tradition. Once, during
Jan’s introductory talk, I found myself sitting in front of a
man – obviously a seasoned Cammacer – who kept muttering
“Heard that one before,” . . . “Heard that one before,” as Jan
inserted yet another classic witticism into his talk.
Jan was frugal by nature and a great believer in conservation.
One of his pet peeves was lights turned on during the day.
Consequently, our Song Interpretation classes were held in the
dim natural light of the Grand Salle.
He also liked to recycle his jokes, unabashedly retelling the
same ones year after year. Newcomers were enchanted by
Margaret Arnaudin
Photo :
Louise Boyer
- 15 -
July/Juillet 2006
Some Letters We Received / Quelques lettres des membres
When my sisters and I were kids at CAMMAC,
we had to be very careful not to make too much
noise during quiet hour, because we didn’t want
Jan to have to remind us about being quiet. It
wasn’t that we were afraid of him. Rather, we held
him in such high regard; it would be awful to have
him disappointed with us.
When I grew to be a young adult and first sang for
Jan in a voice class, I was quite intimidated. I’d
already sung in front of many people before then,
but to do so in front of Jan was another thing entirely. I wanted him to like my voice. I didn’t really
know much about his reputation as a great voice
teacher. He was just Jan – the man who always
inspired such awe and respect from me as a child.
Jan was a witty man in front of a crowd, but he
was equally engaging one-on-one. We shared
many a stimulating conversation about social
injustices, education, and world peace, to name a
few topics. He was a thoughtful, caring, intelligent
man and he will be sorely missed. It’s going to be
hard to imagine CAMMAC without Jan. And yet,
I have faith that his presence will always be felt at
Lake MacDonald. He will be there in the two
forces that run most strongly through CAMMAC:
During the late 60’s and early 70’s the Duschenes and Simons kids used to orlaughter and music.
Harriet Buckwalter, California USA
I met Jan for the first time at CAMMAC at the
Round Lake Inn in 1959, when I was walking with
my wife Janny along the path through the woods
between the Inn and the CN railroad station in
Weir. Yes, you could get to CAMMAC by train in
those days.
ganize a yearly Carnival as a CAMMAC fundraiser. Jan, using his famous voice
production technique, always won the “watermelon-pip-spitting” contest.
À la fin des années ‘60 et au début des années ‘70, les enfants Duschenes et
Simons organisaient chaque été un “carnaval” pour recueillir des fonds pour
CAMMAC. Jan, utilisant sa fameuse technique pour projeter la voix, gagnait
toujours le concours pour “cracher très loin les graines de pastèque”.
Photo : Manfred Liebert
For my daughter Wanda, he was also the father of friends she
grew up with at CAMMAC.
My wife and I must have been talking in Dutch, because Jan,
who was bird watching, picked up on that and spoke to us in
the same language, but used the word “species” when describing to us the many birds he had seen in the woods. For some
reason “Jan” and “species” remained connected in my mind.
Perhaps it was because he was a species all by himself with the
ability of wearing many, many hats, sometimes more than one
at a time.
For me, Jan was CAMMAC; teacher, director of the Lake MacDonald Music Centre, many different hats in that job; campground boss, and a tough one at that; prowler through the halls
in the old lodge, sniffing out smokers; concerned father of all
teenagers, specially when they went off to Lost River without
permission; announcer at many Saturday evening concerts, bad
puns; colleague at the Board of Directors, more bad puns!
Whatever hat Jan was wearing, he carried out his tasks with
great intensity and with complete dedication to CAMMAC.
Although slight in stature, he had a formidable presence you
could not ignore. It is that presence I will sorely miss.
Peter Lowensteyn
His quick wit and associated twinkling eyes will always stay
with me. I remember the latest example was just last July. My
wife Pat and I were standing on the main building veranda,
discussing with Jan the idea which we had for selling off the
Grande Salle fireplace stones to the membership as a fundraiser for Opus CAMMAC. Jan loved the old building and
the Grande Salle, and he was very supportive of the idea. We
- 16 -
continued/voir page 17
July/Juillet 2006
discussed with him how the stones might be salvaged upon the
destruction of the building. Then they would be stored on the
CAMMAC site, where members who have paid up for OPUS
PHOENIX (that’s the name of the stones project) might pick
them up by arrangement. In a steady voice, but with his eyes
twinkling, Jan said, “Oh, yes, that makes sense. It would not be
practical to SEND the stone to the members, as it takes a lot of
stamps and they stick poorly to the face of the stones!”
Eighty-five of the stones are still available to the membership. They cost a minimum of $100.00 (a greater contribution
would of course be welcome) per CAMMAC household, and
the proceeds go to OPUS CAMMAC. It would also be a way to
remember Jan, who graced the Grande Salle for so many valuable years.
Malcolm Wall
The last time I saw Jan Simons was a late summer afternoon, at
CAMMAC House, over a cup of tea and conversation about the
new life I was starting in New York City, only I did not know it
would be the last time. Surely, we would have many more lazy
afternoons, mornings filled with hard work and lots of singing
when I returned to CAMMAC, the music camp I have been
attending for 20 years, where Jan had been a voice teacher,
long-time artistic director, and legend. When I said goodbye, I
just assumed we would see each other as we always had, every
summer for years, and he would scowl at me if I forced a note,
stare through me with those steely blue eyes, make a wry comment about me being a neurologist and thinking too much when
I sang, then break into his trademark, inimitable, mischievous
smile.
I first met Jan when I was 15 years old and signed up for his
vocal technique and song interpretation class at Lake MacDonald. I timidly sang a Schubert lied, no vibrato, the quivering
in my voice due entirely to nerves. I thought he was intimidating, daunting, exacting, and I wanted so badly to impress him,
to hear his scant but very genuine praise. He had an amazing
ability to hone in on the weaknesses of singers, our failings,
traps we set for ourselves, physical tensions that prevented the
air from flowing effortlessly from our mouths. In master classes
he would often jostle your shoulder, flick your cheek, place his
hands on your back in an attempt to draw your mind to the root
of the problem, to become aware of it and then release it. It was
genius the way a tight, screechy, soprano high-note would suddenly turn sweet in his hands.
I went on to study voice performance at McGill University,
only was not lucky enough to have Jan for a private teacher.
After struggling with my inner diva and personal demons about
being a professional musician versus a doctor, I eventually
chose medicine, but could not relinquish the hold that music
had on me. Every summer I returned to CAMMAC to study
with Jan, if only for a week; a week of his vocal exercises, his
crazy contortions during the morning choral warm-up that
brought even the most self-conscious, non-singers out of their
shells, yawning and bellowing with the rest of us.
As I grew older and had abandoned the notion of a professional career in music, I lost
my fear of performing and
managed to see the humour
in what we do; the humility
in standing up in front of an
audience and attempting to
produce something beautiful and moving with our
vocal cords. Jan did not let
you get away with anything:
a mispronounced syllable,
a missed beat, a faulty note
or false expression, but at
the same time he made you
laugh at yourself and take
pleasure in it all.
Jan shaving Mario Duschenes with a machete, Christopher Duschenes looking on. Around 1973
Jan rase Mario Duschenes avec une machette, pendant que Christopher Duschenes regarde. Vers 1973
- 17 -
His joy in music, teaching, and life was evident
in everything he did. You
only had to see him with his
wife, Scottie, with whom he
had a seamless, almost symbiotic, relationship, or with
his six extremely talented
July/Juillet 2006
children, all of whom are musicians, amateur and professional,
to see how fully he lived every second.
When I learned of Jan’s death on Sunday, May 7, I almost
didn’t believe it. He was still so alive for me; I could hear
his strong, clear voice, see his distinctive, wiry figure cutting
across the room in loose jeans and a pleated shirt; feel those
piercing blue eyes watching my every move, following my
every note, wincing now and then, smiling, nodding, getting it
right, finally.
I am living in New York, practicing neurology, and had only
last week decided to take up private singing lessons again,
knowing how pleased Jan would be, and how I couldn’t wait to
tell him this summer at CAMMAC.
But this summer something will be missing: a presence, the
vital, commanding force of a person, a brilliant teacher, a lover
of music, a performer, and a friend. But the mark he has left on
me will stay with me always, and every time I sing I will feel a
tiny part of him is there with me, watching, listening, and hopefully, smiling.
Zarya Rubin, New York
and bathrooms, painting the porch floor and sewing curtains.
Every fall Jan got a group of people to come and rake leaves
– did those leaves really have to be raked? It was not easy
work, but it sure was fun...we all loved improving CAMMAC,
a magical place for all of us!
Jan’s passion for throwing himself into things was not limited
to music or CAMMAC. As we all know he loved nature and
it was normal for him to remind us to get up early to hear the
loon’s cry on the lake. He organized an annual walk up the
mountain during Thanksgiving weekends. He initiated the
‘silent baseball’ during the quiet hour in the summer program...
AND YOU DIDN’T DARE MAKE A SOUND WITH JAN
OVERSEEING IT...
We loved listening to Jan sing during concerts. He started the
Sunday morning concerts, using it as a dress rehearsal. For our
family Jan’s voice production classes during the CAMMAC
summer sessions were a must, and highly valuable. Jan taught
us to “discover our waists”. He also taught us how to breathe
properly, not, as he explained, “just for the week, but for life”
I wonder if he ever realized how effective this instruction was.
We still chase our sore throats away by the face and throat
exercises that Jan taught us. We smile as we remember Jan saying, “...you think I look funny – you should see what you look
Memories – so many memories going back 40 years.
When we first started coming to CAMMAC, in
1966, we dealt with Jan who ran the CAMMAC
office from the basement on Metcalfe Street. It
seemed to us that he ran it single-handedly - yet
he always seemed to be available. Office hours
meant nothing: Jan brought his work home! We
have vivid memories of Jan organizing work
sessions right in his dining room. He managed
to get groups of people to come and spend
evenings stuffing endless amounts of envelopes
with mailings of the summer program. This was
no easy task, but somehow, Jan managed to get
people to agree to come and we all seemed to
enjoy the wonderful camaraderie. These sessions continued for many years.
Jan’s ability to get people to give up their free
time to work wasn’t restricted to mailings. He
organized work weekends up at Lake Macdonald. Our earliest memories of this go back to
the time before “CAMMAC House” existed.
Jan and Scottie and their young children kids
took rooms above the kitchen in the main lodge.
Scottie came equipped with games. We remember spending time in the evenings around the
fireplace, playing Boggle -do you remember that
Scottie? During the day Jan was a hard taskmaster, working hard himself and walking around
making sure that the job got done. We remember
Ellyn Duschenes & Jan Simons - September/septembre 1992
washing and painting the walls in the kitchen
- 18 -
July/Juillet 2006
like..”
CAMMAC will never be the same without Jan. It is very sad
that he never got to see the new building. Jan’s vitality continues to live on in the very vivid memories we have. We are sure
that the angels in heaven are singing more sweetly than ever
with Jan among them.
Dorothy and Julio Laufer
Recollections of Jan, Scottie and Family
We all have our special recollections of Jan, - his big smiles, his
energy, his teaching skills, his passion for birds, his humour,
especially for me his puns; it was always such a delight to cross
puns with him. Some of my special memories, however, arise
from work parties that took place on fall week-ends after rental
of the Lake MacDonald facility had ended for the season. A
call went out for volunteers to rake leaves and a goodly number
of adolescents, teen-agers and families responded, usually
about 15 to 20 people. We arrived Friday evening, caught up
to date with old friends and got to sleep in a room of our own
choice, one of those longed-for rooms with private bath, sheer
luxury after summer camping.
Scottie organized some great meals for us from contributions
that were brought and by drawing upon the meager provisions
remaining in the larder. Jan was Director-General at the time
and organized the project but it was Dick Champagne, the
CAMMAC maintenance man, who set the ground rules for the
work. Saturday morning right after breakfast, armed with rakes
and large plastic sheets for collecting and moving the masses of
leaves, we set to work. There was much chatter and tom-foolery
but the progress was steady. The job was finished by mid-afternoon and then we moved on to what the teens really looked
forward to, a wild game of touch football. Jan certainly was
not a boss in all this but every bit as much a hard worker and
instigator of pranks as any of us.
The Simons children and their Duschenes cousins were an important part of this work-and-play group. There was a wonderful interplay among them of keen but friendly rivalry interlaced
with kindly consideration for the younger combatants and
for us less adept older ones. The evenings were “do as you
wish”, often with board games, word games, music of course,
chi-chat around the fire-place. Again the keen but friendly
Simons rivalry. Undoubtedly, the warmth of my memories of
these week-ends derives from sharing these activities with the
Simons family.
David Briggs
A Requiem for Jan Simons
Over the years since our first visit to CAMMAC in 1962, the
Thompson family (Ray and Ilse, Judith and David, and in
recent years Judith’s sons Dylan and Aidan) came to regard
Jan Simons as an eternal lyric presence, a living embodiment
of the wonderful and harmonious spirit that is CAMMAC. For
us Jan is inseparable from Scottie (as it should be); yet paging
through over 40 years of memories of them together, we can
find no specific pictures or anecdotes to recall, only a warm and
all-embracing glow of cumulative friendship and guidance. In
the end, though, what seems to have lingered with us most of
all are his morning warm-ups. Love ‘em or hate ‘em, morning
at CAMMAC won’t be the same without Jan’s Simonizing.
We’ll miss him; but we know his spirit will live on, in the new
Grande Salle, in the birdsong and the sunrise and the voices all
around the world that he has touched.
We’ll miss his elfin grin, his jaunty step,
His watchful eye that bent so gently
Down upon the smallest grace-notes of the earth,
The leaf and berry, twig and feathered wing,
Yet mounted to the heights of heavenly song.
He played with us
And opened up his home
To all those young at heart:
He gave us all a voice
And gladly sang for us
And gladly heard us sing.
But most of all, we’ll miss our mornings
Simonizing in the Salle;
Our Buttocks firm, our “Pentecostal” muscles tight
We sang with tongues of fire
And sat while standing up.
Today we bend our heads while standing for him
And sing more sadly for awhile
But soon we’ll raise our eyes and listen,
For in the heavens choirs will sing more sweetly now
Hearing him in the grace-notes of their wings.
From the Thompson family
Unfortunately, we did not know Mr. Jan Simons personally;
however, we did have the pleasure of being coached by his son
Mark and his daughter Anne.
Jan was present during many of our summers at CAMMAC,
and we enjoyed hearing him sing with his beautiful voice and
wonderful sense of musicality.
We will sincerely miss his presence and contribution to the
special CAMMAC atmosphere. Please convey our most sincere
condolences to his entire family.
Linda & Maya Rand
Tel Aviv, Israel
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July/Juillet 2006
Jan performing a skit with
Anne-Marie Denoncourt at
Thanksgiving 1995.
Jan joue un sketch avec AnneMarie Denoncourt, Action de
grâces 1995
Photo: Graham Carpenter
Lifelong Friend
L’ami d’une vie
Back in 1963, I read a CAMMAC ad in a Montreal newspaper
offering voice training by Jan Simons, well known baritone
and specialist of the German Lieder, whom I had heard and
admired. I called Jan and got an appointment; thus began an
experience that is still going on and still has wonderful benefits.
Un journal de Montréal publiait en 1963 une annonce de Cammac offrant des cours de technique vocale par Jan Simons,
un baryton réputé, spécialiste du lied allemand, que j’avais
entendu et admirais. J’ai appelé Jan et pris rendez-vous. Ce
fut pour moi le début d’une expérience encore active et aussi
enrichissante.
I discovered in Jan a wonderful, rigorous teacher, full of jokes
and dedication. With patience and time he managed to teach
me the committed discipline required for the interpretation of
classical song. I also found a lifelong friend who introduced me
to CAMMAC, roped me into the Board of Directors and got
me involved in all kinds of projects. For example, there was a
major project concerned with defining a clearer structure for
the regions, their establishment and development and their reports to the CAMMAC Board of Directors. All this had become
essential to the survival of CAMMAC as a single entity.
Sure, a lot of this structuring was technical (more or less
defined by my legal input and Richard Driscolls accounting
expertise) but its human aspects were very complex and delicate. Jan’s relationship with the Directors of each region was
of paramount importance and his ability to communicate with
them in direct and simple terms was the real key to success. We
all owe a lot to Jan for this achievement.
The major success was of course the purchase in the early
seventies of the hotel on Lake MacDonald which CAMMAC
had been renting every summer for some time called White
Forest Lodge. When it was put up for sale, we campaigned
together (I was then President) to buy it. Without Jan and his
drive, the purchase would never have happened. He was the one
who found the “Anonymous donor” who agreed to double any
amounts raised in the membership.
Jan se révéla un professeur engagé, merveilleux mais rigoureux, plein de mots d’esprits et de calembours. Il sut avec le
temps m’inculquer la discipline de l’interprétation intérieure et
engagée du chant classique. Il devint vite l’ami d’une vie entière qui me fit connaître CAMMAC, et me proposa au Conseil
d’administration (dont je devins membre) puis m’engagea avec
lui dans toutes sortes de projets.
Un projet important fut de définir plus clairement les structures
des régions, leur création et leur développement et les rapports à fournir par eux au Conseil d’administration de CAMMAC. Ces remaniements étaient devenus essentiels à la survie
de CAMMAC comme entité unique. Ils auraient été presque
impossibles sans Jan.
Ces nouvelles structures comportaient évidemment beaucoup
d’aspects techniques (définis par mes conseil juridiques avec
l’appui de l’expertise comptable de Richard Driscoll) mais
c’étaient surtout les aspects humains qui étaient très complexes
et délicats. Les rapports cordiaux de Jan avec les directeurs de
chaque région étaient d’importance primordiale et sa capacité
de communiquer avec eux en termes directs et simples fut la
clef du succès de cette aventure. Nous devons tous reconnaissance à Jan pour ce succès important.
Mais le succès d’importance capitale fut évidemment
continued page 21
- 20 -
voir page 21
July/Juillet 2006
There was quite a bit of opposition at the time and despite
our many meetings in Ottawa, in Toronto and in Montreal, we
barely squeaked through getting the approval to purchase the
land and buildings for a little less that $50,000. We then raised
within a few months the needed $25,000 from the membership.
The time Jan put into this effort was incredible and the successful raising of the money required was due mainly to his efforts
and to the admiration and respect he generated everywhere.
Three years later, without any alteration to land and buildings,
the place was valued at around $600,000 for insurance purposes! It was and still is the heart of CAMMAC.
I suppose that besides my private memories of Jan and Scottie
and their wonderful children, one pleasure keeps cropping up:
The infamous Handel duet (The Lord is a Man-o-war) sung
with passion and “sincerity” by Jan and Louis Lavigueur. A
masterpiece of fun and spoof. I truly believe that Jan was one
of very few professional singers who could deliberately sustain
singing a quarter tone off pitch while Louis managed to stay on
pitch!
Another very important memory was his interpretation of the
Winterreise which moved me and most of the audience to
tears. I never forgot that. Every time he sang was a musical
event. Nor will I forget his “Snack’s Over” which I hope CAMMAC keeps using as a pure and innocent expression of the
spirit of Jan and of CAMMAC.
Jan was a profound artist; every lesson he gave was oriented to
the proper expression of the music being performed. For him
every detail of the music was essential and had its place and
reflected a respect for the author that was reverent and total.
But despite his total dedication, he kept the atmosphere light
and did not ask for performances beyond the capacity of the
person he taught. He just nudged us forward with infinite
patience.
Throughout all these years, there was of course Scottie who
was more than wife and mother of many children, being also
the caring and devoted director of the young children’s program. She was also a wonderful singer with a glorious voice,
which I regret we did not hear often enough. But she was and
still is the very soul of the Simons family and of the Lake
MacDonald Center.
I do hope that the MacDonald music center will be renamed
“The Jan and Scottie Simons Music Center”. They both were
the heart and soul of the Center for over forty years and without their unfailing and irreplaceable contribution, the Center
would not be what it is and is becoming.
I really feel as though I had lost a very dear brother and I thank
deeply Scottie and the family for allowing me to spend some
time with him on the Friday night before he left us.
Guy Gagnon
l’acquisition au début des années 70 de l’hôtel du Lac MacDonald, White Forest Lodge (Les Bouleaux Blancs) que
CAMMAC louait chaque été depuis plusieurs années. Lorsque
l’hôtel fut mis en vente, nous avons fait campagne ensemble
(j’étais alors président) pour l’acheter. Sans l’apport de Jan
et son dynamisme charismatique, cet achat n’aurait jamais eu
lieu. C’est lui qui trouva le “Donateur anonyme” qui s’engagea
à doubler tous les montants obtenus des membres.
Il y avait beaucoup d’opposition à cet achat et malgré de
multiples réunions sur place avec les membres des régions
d’Ottawa, de Toronto et de Montréal, nous avons obtenu de
justesse l’approbation de l’achat de la propriété et des bâtisses
pour environs 50 000,00$ et nous avons (surtout Jan) de peine
et de misère dans les quelques mois suivants réussi à obtenir
des membres les 25 000,00$ nécessaires.
Le temps et les efforts que Jan a consacrés à cette démarche
sont incroyables et la réunion de tous les fonds nécessaires
dans le temps disponible est due surtout à ses efforts et à
l’admiration et au respect dont il jouissait partout. Trois ans
plus tard et avant toute amélioration au terrain ou aux bâtisses, les lieux furent évalués à environs 600 000,00$ pour fin
d’assurances. Ce Centre continue d’être le cœur de CAMMAC
depuis cet achat.
À part mes souvenirs personnels de Jan, de Scottie et de leurs
merveilleux enfants, un souvenir revient toujours en surface,
C’est l’incroyable duo de Händel (The Lord is a Man-o-war)
chanté avec passion et “sincérité” par Jan et Louis Lavigueur.
Un chef-d’oeuvre de comédie loufoque. Je crois bien que Jan
était l’un des rares chanteurs professionnels capables de fausser
volontairement d’un quart de ton de façon soutenue comme
il le faisait dans ce duo alors que Louis réussissait à chanter
juste! Un tour de force.
Un autre souvenir important pour moi est son interprétation du Winterreise qui m’a fait pleurer et pratiquement tout
l’auditoire. Je ne l’ai jamais oublié! Chaque fois qu’il chantait
d’ailleurs c’était un événement musical important.
Je n’oublierai jamais non plus son « Snack’s Over! » qui
j’espère continuera d’être chanté au Centre en souvenir de
l’expression pure et innocente de l’esprit de Jan et de CAMMAC.
Jan était un grand artiste; chaque leçon qu’il donnait n’avait
qu’un but: bien exprimer la musique qui était chantée. Chaque
détail de la musique était essentiel pour lui et avait sa place;
son respect pour l’auteur était révérenciel et total. Cependant, il
maintenait toujours un climat décontracté et n’exigeait jamais de celui ou celle à qui il enseignait d’aller au-delà de ses
capacités. Il nous amenait plus loin un pas à la fois avec une
patience inouïe.
Au cours de toutes ces années il y avait aussi Scottie qui était
à la fois épouse et mère de plusieurs enfants et qui en plus était
la tendre et dévouée directrice du programme des enfants au
Centre. Mes enfants et petits-enfants en ont grandement profité.
voir page 22
- 21 -
July/Juillet 2006
Elle était aussi une chanteuse à la voix magnifique qu’on a peu
entendue, malheureusement. Scottie a été et est encore l’âme
de la famille Simons et du Centre du Lac MacDonald.
J’espère avec ferveur que le Centre musical du Lac MacDonald
sera rebaptisé “Le Centre Musical Jan et Scottie Simons”. Ils
ont tous deux été le cœur et l’âme du Centre pendant plus de
quarante ans et sans leur indéfectible et irremplaçable contribu-
tion le Centre ne serait pas ce qu’il est et ce qu’il devient.
J’ai le sentiment d’avoir perdu un frère bien aimé. Et je remercie du fonds du cœur, Scottie et toute la famille qui m’ont
permis de passer un peu de temps avec lui le vendredi soir qui a
précédé son départ.
Guy Gagnon
Jan and
Pierre Perron
Thanksgiving, 1990
Jan et Pierre Perron, Action de
grâces 1990
Photo: Graham
Carpenter
Excerpt from the eulogy given
by Michael McMahon
Extrait du panégyrique
par Michael McMahon
I am Michael McMahon; a pianist and Professor at the Schulich School of Music of McGill University and a friend of Jan
Simons.
Je suis Michael McMahon: pianiste et professeur à l’Ecole
de Musique Schulich de l’Université McGill et un ami de Jan
Simons.
Professor Jan Simons began teaching at McGill University in
1960 and continued to teach until shortly before he went into
the hospital a few weeks ago.
Le professeur Jan Simons commença son enseignement à
l’Université McGill en 1960 et continua d’enseigner jusqu’à
peu de temps avant son hospitalisation, il y a quelques semaines.
I remember the first time I saw Jan. He was in the hall on the
fifth floor of the Strathcona Music building telling someone
that they really should work on their posture. Little did I know
what effect this man would have on my life.
Je me souviens de la première fois que je vis Jan. Il était dans
la salle du cinquième étage du pavillon de musique Strathcona
et il disait à quelqu’un que l’on devrait réellement travailler à
améliorer son maintien. J’étais loin de me douter des effets que
cet homme aurait sur ma vie.
In 1975, I joined McGill’s Song Interpretation Class as a
student and met someone who has been my mentor for the
past thirty years. I played for many of his singing students and
even some of the family members. In the mid-eighties, I began
teaching the Song Interpretation class with Jan.
During these years, I was able to observe the man, the results
En 1975, je m’inscrivis à la classe d’interprétation de chant
de McGill comme étudiant et fis la connaissance de celui
qui fut mon mentor pendant les trente dernières années.
J’accompagnai plusieurs de ses élèves en chant et même des
membres de la famille. Au milieu des années quatre-vingt, je
commençai à enseigner dans la classe d’interprétation de chant
avec Jan.
continued page 23
- 22 -
voir page 23
July/Juillet 2006
of his teaching and his approach to pedagogy. Jan did not just
teach singing, he taught the whole person. He genuinely cared
about his students and treated them all equally and with love.
He listened to their problems and helped to find solutions. He
shared his great passion for music and his vast knowledge of
the vocal repertoire. He was a very cultured man who taught
us about music, art, poetry, history, language, diction and style
(I mean musical style, not fashion---although he always had an
opinion about the singer’s dress).
He was very proud of his students. Most conversations would
begin with “You should hear Singer X or Y, he/she sounds
fantastic. We have been getting back to basics and it is really
paying off.”
As long as the students were progressing, he was happy. They
could be singing with a major Symphony Orchestra, an Opera
Company, a chorus, or in someone’s living room. It didn’t matter. When he thought a student was ready, he would not hesitate
to call friends, agents, conductors and orchestras to help them
get started in their career.
He could also be very critical and didn’t hesitate to tell you
how he felt about your performance. The students would even
joke about Jan coming up to them after concerts and saying
“Wonderful concert….but the diction was terrible”. It was
tough to hear sometimes, but he did it because he wanted them
to improve.
Au cours de ces années, je fus en mesure d’observer l’homme,
les résultats de son enseignement et son approche en tant que
pédagogue. Jan ne se contentait pas d’enseigner le chant, il
enseignait la personne dans son essence. Il manifestait un
intérêt particulier pour ses élèves et les traitait tous sur un pied
d’égalité et avec amour. Il écoutait leurs problèmes et les aidait
à trouver des solutions. Il partageait sa grande passion pour la
musique et ses vastes connaissances du répertoire vocal. C’était
un homme très cultivé qui nous enseignait la musique, l’art,
la poésie, l’histoire, les langues, la diction et le style (Je veux
dire le style musical, pas la mode---bien qu’il eut toujours une
opinion sur la robe que portait la chanteuse)
Il était très fier de ses élèves. La plupart des conversations commençaient ainsi: “Vous devriez entendre le chanteur X ou Y,
il/elle est fantastique. Nous en sommes revenus à l’essentiel et
cela est très profitable.”
En autant que les étudiants progressaient, il était heureux.
Ils pouvaient chanter avec un orchestre symphonique important, une compagnie d’opéra, une chorale, ou dans un salon
privé. Peu importait. Lorqu’il jugeait qu’un élève était prêt, il
n’hésitait pas à contacter amis, agents, chefs et orchestres afin
de les aider à se lancer dans leur carrière.
Il pouvait aussi être très critique et n’hésitait pas à vous faire
savoir ce qu’il pensait de votre prestation. Les étudiants plaisantaient à propos de Jan s’approchant d’eux après les concerts
disant “Merveilleux concert....mais la diction était terrible”.
Cela était parfois pénible à entendre, mais il le faisait parce
qu’il voulait qu’ils fassent des progrès.
An important part of studying with Jan took place in the Simons’ home, where he would give lessons, master classes and
receptions. Scottie would make tea, coffee and chocolate cake
and Jan would talk of his many experiences and demonstrate
his very quick wit.
Une part importante des études avec Jan avait lieu à la résidence des Simons, où il donnait des leçons, des cours de maître
et des réceptions. Scottie préparait le thé, le café et le gâteau
au chocolat et Jan racontait ses nombreuses expériences en
démontrant sa finesse d’esprit.
It is not only the students who have benefited from Jan’s
wisdom. Colleagues from McGill and from across the country
would call on him for advice.
Les élèves ne sont pas les seuls à avoir bénéficié de la sagesse
de Jan. Des collègues de McGill et de tout le pays s’adressaient
à lui pour ses conseils.
On behalf of his colleagues at McGill University and all the
students -and the students of his students- I would like to say
how grateful we are to have had Jan in our lives. I would also
like to thank the Simons family for sharing so much of him
with us.
Au nom de ses collègues de l’Université McGill et de tous les
élèves - et les élèves de ses élèves - j’aimerais témoigner notre
gratitude d’avoir eu Jan dans notre vie. J’aimerais aussi remercier la famille Simons d’avoir partagé une si grande part de sa
personne avec nous.
In closing, I would like to read the text of a Schubert song that
Jan often sang.
It is in German and is entitled “An die Musik” (Franz von
Schober). It is poem that praises music for its ability to lift our
spirits.
En terminant, j’aimerais lire le texte d’un lied de Schubert que
Jan chantait souvent.
Il est en allemand et s’intitule « An die Musik » (Franz von
Schober). C’est un poème à la louange de la musique pour son
habileté à élever nos esprits.
Du holde Kunst, in wie viel grauen Stunden,
Wo mich des Lebens wilder Kreis umstrickt,
Hast du mein Herz zu warmer Lieb entzunden,
Hast mich in eine beßre Welt entrückt!
continued page 24
- 23 -
voir page 24
July/Juillet 2006
Oft hat ein Seufzer, deiner Harf’ entflossen,
Ein süßer, heiliger Akkord von dir
Den Himmel beßrer Zeiten mir erschlossen,
Du holde Kunst, ich danke dir dafür!
To Music
A la musique
O sacred art, in how many a grey hour
When I am caught in life’s unruly round,
Have you fired my heart with ardent love
And borne me to a better world!
O toi, art tout de noblesse, que de fois, en ces tristes heures
où la vie resserrait son étau,
m’as-tu réchauffé le coeur,
m’as-tu transporté dans un monde plus clément!
Often, has a sigh from your harp,
A chord, sweet and holy, from you,
Opened for me a heaven of better times;
O kindly art, for that I thank you!
Souvent, un soupir échappé de ta harpe,
un doux accord céleste
m’a ouvert d’autres cieux.
O toi, art tout de noblesse, sois en remercié!
Jan with one of the Song Interpretation Classes he inspired at Lake Mac,
July 2004
Jan avec l’un de ses groupes de la
classe de chant interprétation, Lac
Mac, juillet 2004
Photo: Graham Carpenter
For CAMMAC as an institution, and for all CAMMAC members, the loss of Jan Simons creates a gap which cannot be
imagined. His years of devoted service are unparalleled and
will not be forgotten by any of us.
now Septet, was on the market, and there was a move afoot to
populate it with CAMMAC members. Of course this changed
my life! – and every one of the 31 summers since then I have
taken part in Jan’s classes and the choirs.
My own association with Jan and with CAMMAC began
soon after we arrived from the United Kingdom in 1960. A
cousin who then lived in Montréal worked with Helen Gross,
a long-time member who many of us remember fondly, and
through her had got the job of doing the CAMMAC books
– which then meant spending a weekend once every summer
at Round Lake Inn (how times have changed!) So in the summer of 1961, we were invited to join him and his family there;
I think Jan and Scottie were practically on their honeymoon!
We went to Jan’s classes and George Little’s choir, and our
eldest son actually took his first steps on the veranda.
Many have commented on Jan’s love of sports, particularly
hockey; my memories of this however concern baseball –
many years ago when my sons were teenagers they had an old
television in the sun-porch at the back of our cottage, and one
evening after the concert as I was returning up the driveway,
I was somewhat disconcerted to see a figure slip furtively out
of the back door and hurry back towards CAMMAC – Jan
checking the baseball scores!
After that there was a long gap, although we were always in
touch, until in 1975 we met Jan at a concert and he called
over to us, “Are you people interested in buying a cottage
up next to CAMMAC?” This was when the Vallée property,
Jan and Scottie and their family have been such an integral
part of CAMMAC, and I am sure we all hope that Scottie and
the “children” will find support and comfort in the CAMMAC
family and our shared memories, and be part of it for many
years to come.
Margaret Kamester
- 24 -
July/Juillet 2006
Ode to Jan Simons
We too were greatly saddened to know that Jan will no longer
be with us at Lake Mac. As well as being such a talented and
dedicated teacher, he was a good friend and had a rare combination of wisdom with a wonderful sense of fun. As Director
for a long time, he helped put a “stamp” of common sense on
the music camp that will endure for many years.
Some years ago, we put together a light-hearted song as a
tribute to Jan, probably at a Thanksgiving weekend and he and
Scottie seemed to really enjoy it.
Graham and Maureen Carpenter
Ode to Jan Simons (M. Cammac)
(With apologies to M. Offenbach and his “Can-Can”)
REFRAIN:
We come back and you come back, we all come back to good Lake Mac.,
We can sing and you can sing, we’ll sing until the rafters ring.
One technique, the only choice, when Monsieur Cammac trains your voice,
Let the floor support your weight, good words from M. Cammac.
VERSE 1:
You, do it in the shower, hoo-ha, hoo-ha, hoo-ha,
Any time of day, for hour after hour.
It, is a form of torture, good tone you must nurture,
Hark unto the words of M. Cammac.
(Insert vocal exercise)
VERSE 2:
We, hasten to Lost River, there to drown our sorrows,
For the opera that we will sing tomorrow,
We’re, sitting there so sadly, fearing we’ll do badly,
We must sing like birds for M. Cammac.
(Mozart - Figaro: “O my heart’s in my boots, I am quaking;
From this nightmare, I hope I’ll be waking!”)
VERSE 3:
We, learn from M. Cammac, how to get our own back,
On our neighbours, when they play their ghetto-blasters.
We, practice in the garden, they will beg for pardon,
When we do our hoo-ha, hoo-ha, hoo-ha!
FINAL REFRAIN:
We come back and you come back, we all come back to good Lake Mac,
We can sing and you can sing, we’ll sing until the rafters ring.
We will practice night and day, whenever we’re at work or play,
Good posture will see you through, Hooray for M. Cammac!
- 25 -
July/Juillet 2006
Dear CAMMACers,
Scottie, Mark, Andrew, Nicholas, Anne, Katherine, Laura, and
our families thank you for your loving words, prayers, and
thoughts which gave Jan and all of us strength over the last
months. We continue to be uplifted by these kind gestures.
Jan would have been so touched with the sentiments that have
poured in since his death. One could almost hear him say
“Don’t mention it” or “That’s not necessary”.
For Jan, CAMMAC was all about the members past and present, young and old, recent and long-standing, medieval and
contemporary, early birds and night owls (as long as they were
quiet), professional and amateur. The Littles exposed Jan to
the dream of bringing people together from all walks of life
through music; he joined in with great passion. Not only was
the music important: everything from quiet hour and silent
baseball, to snack times, carnivals, leaf-raking weekend, envelope-stuffing and Thanksgiving played important parts.
Jan’s passion was expressed in a variety of ways. Most of you
have probably witnessed (or were subject to) Jan defending
the camp rules with staunch enthusiasm, often with a well
supported SHHHHH during quiet hour, or with a rousing
version of the “Snack’s Over” song. He could be quite a force
confronting rule-breakers, although always in an effort to
ensure a welcoming and pleasant environment for all the other
participants.
During the off-season, Jan put much time into helping organize the winter Orff and Recorder courses in Montreal, and
held countless meetings in our home planning the summer
activities and fund-raising strategies. He spent long evenings
poring over penciled-in spreadsheets finding solutions for
room assignments and teachers for each week. This same
steadfast enthusiasm led him to do things in preparation for
the season which in retrospect, one would not necessarily
expect a general director to do; for instance, “I’m bringing a
load up (or down)” was something we heard 4 or 5 times each
spring and fall for many years. It referred to Jan stuffing the
Volkswagen bus with various CAMMAC things like the old
set of timpani, craft supplies, Orff instruments, as well as the
entire CAMMAC office (including the Gestetner), which was
formerly located in our basement.
We have always felt that Jan’s biggest passion was for the
well-being of our family, and his enthusiastic support for all
our ventures. Jan also found time to share his passions with all
of us: birding, camping, music, art, and sports, just to name a
few. Our own participation in CAMMAC deeply shaped each
of our lives, and it is truly gratifying to see a new generation
including Jan and Scottie’s grandchildren beginning to enjoy
all that CAMMAC has to offer.
Over the past weeks we have heard from many CAMMACers
singing praises for Jan. However, he would have you bear in
mind the motivation driving his actions rather than the actions
themselves: his profound and unwavering belief in all that
CAMMAC stands for.
Thank you for being such a big part of Jan’s life. Thank you
for enabling the fulfillment of a dream. And thank you for
joining us in laughing at Jan’s jokes, whether or not you had
heard them before.
The Simons family
Jan & Scottie
September/
septembre
1992
- 26 -
July/Juillet 2006
Chers CAMMACois,
Scottie, Mark, Andrew, Nicholas, Anne, Katherine, Laura et
nos familles, vous remercient pour vos marques d’affection,
prières et pensées qui apportèrent à Jan et à nous tous la force
morale durant ces derniers mois. Vos témoignages de bonté
continuent de nous émouvoir. Jan aurait été si touché des pensées qui n’ont cessé de pleuvoir depuis sa mort. L’on pourrait
presque l’entendre dire “Il n’y a pas de quoi” ou “Ce n’est pas
nécessaire”.
Pour Jan, CAMMAC représentait les membres passés et
présents, jeunes et âgés, récents et de longue date, médiévaux
et contemporains, les oiseaux matinaux et les hibous nocturnes
(pourvu qu’ils fussent silencieux), professionnels et amateurs.
Les Littles révélèrent à Jan le rêve de mettre en contact des
gens de tous les milieux et professions par la musique; il se
joignit à ce projet avec une grande passion. Pas seulement la
musique était importante: l’heure silencieuse et le baseball
sans bruit, l’horaire des collations, les carnavals, la fin de semaine de ratissage des feuilles, la préparation des enveloppes
et l’Action de Grâces jouaient tous un rôle important.
La passion de Jan s’exprimait de plusieurs façons. La plupart de vous avez probablement été témoins de (ou avez été
soumis à) Jan mettant en vigueur les règlements du camp avec
un enthousiasme sûr, souvent au moyen d’un SHHHHH bien
soutenu durant l’heure silencieuse, ou avec une version entraînante de la chanson “La collation est terminée”. Il pouvait
confronter avec fermeté ceux qui ne suivaient pas les règlements, mais toujours en s’efforçant de créer un environnement
accueillant et agréable pour tous les autres participants.
Durant la période hors-saison, Jan offrit beaucoup de son
temps à aider dans l’organisation des cours d’Orff et de flûte à
bec à Montréal, et tenait plusieurs rencontres dans notre maison à planifier les activités d’été ainsi que les stratégies pour
les levées de fonds. Il passa plusieurs longues soirées concentré sur de grandes feuilles écrites au crayon pour trouver des
solutions pour l’affectation des chambres et les professeurs
pour chaque semaine. Ce même enthousiasme inébranlable
l’amena à accomplir des tâches, à bien y penser, que l’on
ne s’attendrait pas à ce qu’elles incombent à un directeur
général; par exemple, “Je vais transporter un voyage” est une
phrase que nous entendions 4 ou 5 fois à chaque printemps
et automne pendant plusieurs années. Cela signifiait que Jan
remplissait la minibus VW d’objets CAMMAC comme le
vieux jeu de timbales, le matériel d’artisanat, les instruments
Orff, de même que tout le bureau de CAMMAC (incluant le
Gestetner), lequel logeait auparavant dans notre sous-sol.
Nous avons toujours senti que la plus grande passion de Jan
était destinée au bien-être de la famille, de même que son appui enthousiaste concernant toutes nos aventures. Jan trouvait
aussi le temps de partager ses passions avec chacun de nous:
l’observation des oiseaux, le camping, la musique, l’art, les
sports, pour n’en nommer que quelques unes. Notre propre
participation à CAMMAC a profondément façonné chacune
de nos vies, et cela nous comble de joie de voir une nouvelle
génération incluant les petits-enfants de Jan et Scottie commencer à goûter à toutes les richesses offertes par CAMMAC.
Durant les dernières semaines, nous avons entendu plusieurs
CAMMACois chanter les louanges de Jan. Toutefois, il vous
convaincrait des motivations le poussant à agir plutôt que les
actions elles-mêmes: sa croyance inébranlable en les raisons
d’exister de CAMMAC.
Merci de prendre une si grande part dans la vie de Jan. Merci
d’avoir rendu possible la réalisation d’un rêve. Et merci de
vous joindre à nous pour rire des blagues de Jan, que vous les
ayiez déjà entendues ou non.
La famille Simons
Scottie & Mark,1962
Jan, 1952
- 27 -
July/Juillet 2006
National Music Festival
Canada’s competitive festival of classical music
Le Festival national de musique
Le festival compétitif canadien de musique classique
A memorial scholarship will be established for this year’s National Music Festival, entitled, “The Jan Simons Memorial Scholarship 2006”. All donations will receive a charitable receipt for income tax purposes. Any donations to this fund can be sent to:
Une bourse commémorative, la “Jan Simons Memorial Scholarship 2006”, sera offerte pour la première fois cette année au Festival national de musique. Vous recevrez un reçu pour fins d’impôt pour tous les dons envoyés pour cette bourse. Vous pouvez
envoyer vos dons à:
Dianne Johnstone
Box 44
Provost, Alberta T0B 3S0
Photo : Louise Boyer
- 28 -

Éditorial

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