Elinor is the artistic director of Accademia de’ Dissonanti, an ensemble devoted to musical interpretation and research. She has performed throughout the Americas and in Europe in recital and with numerous chamber ensembles and orchestras (Australian Brandenburg Orchestra, Rosa Barocca, Constantinople, Il Gardellino, Tafelmusik, Pacific Baroque Orchestra, etc.). As a guest leader, conducting Galant and early-Classical ensemble repertoire from the cello, she has worked with London Symphonia (Ontario), Kingston Baroque Consort, Dorian Baroque, Siren Baroque, and others. Elinor has recently performed concertos with Australian Brandenburg Orchestra, Mercury Chamber Orchestra (Houston), and the Telemann Suite for viola da gamba and orchestra with Symphony Nova Scotia.

Recipient of grants and prizes supporting performance and research, including the US-Italy Fulbright Fellowship, a research residency at the Orpheus Institute in Ghent, she will collaborate in 2025 on a research project with musicologist Nicholas Baragwanath working on using hexachordal solfeggio in practice.

Elinor holds degrees from McGill, Mannes, and Juilliard. She teaches Baroque cello and performance practice at McGill University and the Université de Montréal and was a Visiting Fellow in Music (2020–2023) at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford University. Frey was awarded Québec’s Opus Prize for “Performer of the Year” in 2021.

Samantha Louis-Jean, soprano

Vincent Lauzer, recorder

Camille Paquette-Roy, baroque cello

*Mélisande McNabney, harpsichord

*Mélisande McNabney is replaced by Luc Beausejour for the Debut Atlantic tour.

Les Songes

Ensemble Les Songes consists of soprano Samantha Louis­‐Jean, recorder player Vincent Lauzer, baroque cellist Camille Paquette­‐Roy and harpsichordist Mélisande McNabney. These four dynamic young performers were brought together by friendship and their common passion for the baroque repertoire. In 2015 and 2016, Les Songes were on the road across Canada performing their program Alma Innamorata, with two tours presented by the Jeunesses Musicales Canada.

With this program, they were nominated at the Prix Opus in the Concert of the Year – medieval, Renaissance, baroque music category. Les Songes have performed in the Clavecin en Concert and La Dauphine concert series, at the Bourgie Hall and the Chapelle historique du Bon­‐Pasteur, as well as the International Baroque Music Festival in Lamèque. Their concert Agitata was recorded and broadcast by CBC ICI Musique.

Samantha Louis-Jean, soprano

The Canadian and French soprano Samantha Louis‐Jean received her vocal training at the Maîtrise de Radio-­France, the University of Montreal, then with Marie Daveluy and Yolande Parent. She made her professional debut singing Euridice (Monteverdi, L’Orfeo)
with the Montreal Baroque Festical and Lauretta (Puccini, Gianni Schicchi) with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra.

Since then, she has performed with the Portland Trinity Consort, the Orford Festival, the Ensemble Caprice, the Lamèque International Baroque Festival, Clavecin en Concert, the Ensemble Masques, Les Violons du Roy and the Quebec Opera Festival.

In 2015-2016, Samantha was selected for the Handel Residency at the Festival Internation d’Aix-en-Provence conducted by Emmanuelle Haïm. She then performed at the Montpellier Opera, the Festival des Lumières de Sorèze and the Nuits Musicales d’Uzès with Ensemble les Ombres; and sang the role of Elvira (Rossini, L’Italiana in Algeri) at the Tourcoing Lyric Atelier and the Champs­‐Élysées Theatre, conducted by Jean-Claude Malgoire.

In 2016-2017, she will perform at the Comédie de St-­Étienne, the Aix-­en-­Provence Festival, the Tourcoing Lyric Atelier and the Champs-­Élysées Theatre.

Samantha Louis­‐Jean is a winner of the Froville International Baroque Competition, the Prix d’Europe Competition, the Lyndon-­Woodside Oratorio Society of New York Competition and the Jacqueline Desmarais Foundation. She is a grant recipient of the Conseildes Arts et des Lettres du Québec, the Canada Council of the Arts and the Jeunesses Musicales du Canada.

Vincent Lauzer, Recorder

Révélation Radio­‐Canada 2013-­‐2014 and Breakthrough Artist of the Year at the 2012 Opus Awards, recorder player Vincent Lauzer is the artistic director of the Lamèque Internation Baroque Festival in New Brunswick. Winner of several prizes in nation and international competitions, he has recently been awarded the Fernand Lindsay Career Award, a scholarship given to a young promising Canadian musician for the development of an international career.

A versatile performer, he plays with Flûte Alors!, Les Songes, the Pacific Baroque Orchestra, Les Violons du Roy, La Bande Montréal Baroque, Les Idées Heureuses, Arion Baroque Orchestra and La Cigale. Vincent has also performed for various series and festivals in Canada and the United States, as well as in Mexico, France, Germany, Spain and Belgium.

Mélisande McNabney, harpsichord

Mélisande McNabney performs keyboard music of all periods, on harpsichord, piano and fortepiano.In August 2015, she recieved the third prize at the International Competition Musica Antiqua in Bruges, Belgium. A Graduate of McGill University and the Conservatoire de musique de Montréal, Mélisande was granted her Master’s degree from the Amsterdam Conservatory in June 2010, where she studied harpsichord, continuo and fortepiano in the classes of Bob van Asperen and Richard Egarr. She is now pursuing her Doctorate degree at McGill University under the guidance of Hank Knox and Tom Beghin, thanks to the support of the Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarships Program.

Currently based in Montréal, Mélisande is regularly invited to play with ensembles such as Les Violons du Roy, Arion Orchestre Baroque, Les Idées Heureuses, the Theatre of Early Music and Ensembles Caprice. She is also a member of Pallade Musica and ensemble Les Songes, which will be on tour with Jeunesses Musicales Canada in the 2015-2016 and 2016-2017 seasons.

Mélisande has received scholarships from the Canada Council for the Arts, the Banff Centre, the FQRSC and the CALQ.  She is replaced on this tour by Luc Beausejour.

Camille Paquette-Roy, baroque cello

Having shown an interest and talent for music at a very early age, cellist Camille Paquette-Roy was admitted to the Music Conservatory of Trois‐Rivières in 1999, where she studied under Jean-Christophe Guelpa for ten years. In 2009, she graduated from the conservatory of Trois­‐Rivières with a Diplôme d’Études Supérieures. In the same year, she began her Master’s degree at McGill University under Brian Manker, which she completed in 2011.

A versatile artist, Paquette-Roy works frequently with a variety of ensembles, including Les Songes, l’Orchestre Baroque Avion, Caprice Ensemble and Quatuor esca. In addition to her activities in the Classical and baroque realms, Paquette-Roy is an active performer in Montréal’s pop music scene with artists such as Ingrid St-Pierre, Jean Leloup and Half Moon Run.

Luc Beausejour, harpsichord

Luc Beauséjour leads a very active concertizing career. He has performed as soloist in North and South America as well as in Europe. He was named “2003 Performer of the Year” by the Conseil Québécois de la Musique and has won Félix awards for two different recordings at the Gala de l’ADISQ. His love of Bach’s music has led him to perform the Cantor’s works for harpsichord and for organ almost in their entirety.

Beauséjour has carried out over 35 recording projects, either as soloist or as musical director. Since 1994, he has been the artistic director of Clavecin en Concert. He teaches at Le Conservatoire de Montréal and at the l’Université de Montréal where he also completed a Doctorate degree. He is pleased to be appearing with Les Songes on their Debut Atlantic tour.

-VISIT LES SONGES’ EDUCATION & ENGAGEMENT PAGE – 

Pallade Musica brings together four of Montreal’s most promising Early Music performers. Grand Prize winners at the Early Music America Baroque Performance Competition in New York, October 2012, the quartet consists of Tanya LaPerrière, Baroque violon, Elinor Frey, Baroque cello, Esteban La Rotta, theorbo, and Mark Edwards, harpsichord. Based on dedicated research and continuous exploration, Pallade Musica’s performances are acclaimed for

their expressive and elegant interpretations, earning praise for their “spectacular virtuosity” (Tom Strini Blog) and “tremendous ensemble sense” (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel).

The ensemble has performed throughout Canada including at the Ottawa Chamber Music Festival, Festival Montréal Baroque, Festival Alexandria, Toronto Music Garden, Early Music Vancouver, Early Music Society of the Islands (Victoria), and in the United States at Early Music Now (Milwaukee), the Chicago Cultural Center, and will soon perform at Renaissance and Barouqe (Pittsburgh), Early Music Societies of Seattle, San Francisco, San Diego, and Arizona, at the Connecticut and Indianapolis Early Music Festivals, and in Bogotà, Colombia. The members of Pallade Musica regularly appear with leading early music ensembles all over the world, while also pursuing careers as soloists and teachers. Pallade Musica recorded “Verso Venezia,” its first CD on the ATMA label. The CD features music of Castello, Legrenzi, and Merula was released in April 2014.

We asked the artists of Pallade Musica a few questions.
Check out what they had to say by watching these fun videos!

For more performance videos click the links below:

Dario Castello – Sonata Secunda

Francois Couperin – L’et Coetera Minuet

 CLICK FOR FRENCH BIOGRAPHY

Margaret Barstow, baroque cello
Susan Graves, baroque bassoon
Kenneth Solway, baroque oboe
Valerie Weeks, harpsichord