Joseph Allard (fiddler)
Encyclopedia
Joseph Allard was a Canadian fiddler
and composer
. He occasionally recorded under the pseudonym Maxime Toupin. Allard made many popular recordings, including Reel de l'Aveugle, Reel de Chateauguay, Reel de Jacques Cartier, and Reel du voyageur. During most of his life he was rarely in the public eye, and worked much of his life as a fisherman
. After his recordings became popular, he was known as The Prince of Fiddlers.
, Maine
and as 1 July 1873 in Châteauguay, Quebec
. His family was living in Quebec
when he was quite young. Allard's father was a violoneux, and when Allard reached the age of nine he was instructed in fiddling. Allard remained in Quebec until the age of sixteen, when he moved back to the United States, where he began to enter fiddling competitions.
, winning competitions in Massachusetts
, New Hampshire
, Rhode Island
and Connecticut
. While in the United States, he met and married Alexina Couillard. Scottish
and Irish
musicians he met there taught him a number of Real
s and Gigue
s. He continued to travel and play in the United States until 1917, when he returned to Canada and settled near Montreal
. Allard was one of five fiddlers to represent Quebec at a worldwide competition held in Lewiston
, Maine
in 1926, alongside Johnny Boivin, A. S. Lavallée, Médard Bourgie and Ferdinand Boivin. In 1928, Victor's Bluebird label contracted him to make recordings for them, and he produced 75 78
s in his career. He would record six more under the pseudonym Maxime Toupin. Allard was one of the first French Canadian
s fiddlers to record commercially. Apart from traditional songs, Allard wrote around sixty songs of his own.
released Jean Carignan rend hommage à Joseph Allard, a tribute album to Allard. Carignan began studying with Allard in 1926, and eventually learnt most of Allard's repertoire.
In 1997, on the fiftieth anniversary of Allard's death, Châteauguay named both a new room in the public library and a street in its musician's district after Allard.
Fiddler
A fiddler is a person who plays a fiddle or violin.Fiddler may also refer to:*Fabrangen Fiddlers, an American musical group founded in 1971*Tupolev Tu-28 "Fiddler", a fighter aircraft*Fiddler , a DC Comics villain...
and composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
. He occasionally recorded under the pseudonym Maxime Toupin. Allard made many popular recordings, including Reel de l'Aveugle, Reel de Chateauguay, Reel de Jacques Cartier, and Reel du voyageur. During most of his life he was rarely in the public eye, and worked much of his life as a fisherman
Fisherman
A fisherman or fisher is someone who captures fish and other animals from a body of water, or gathers shellfish. Worldwide, there are about 38 million commercial and subsistence fishermen and fish farmers. The term can also be applied to recreational fishermen and may be used to describe both men...
. After his recordings became popular, he was known as The Prince of Fiddlers.
Childhood
Allard's birthplace is reported both as 1 February 1873 in WoodlandWoodland, Aroostook County, Maine
Woodland is a town in Aroostook County, Maine, United States. The population was 1,403 at the 2000 census. Because the state of Maine has a law stating that no two towns may share the same name, Woodland of Aroostook County and Woodland of Washington County found themselves before the Maine State...
, Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
and as 1 July 1873 in Châteauguay, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. His family was living in Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
when he was quite young. Allard's father was a violoneux, and when Allard reached the age of nine he was instructed in fiddling. Allard remained in Quebec until the age of sixteen, when he moved back to the United States, where he began to enter fiddling competitions.
Fiddling
Allard entered fiddling competitions through-out the New EnglandNew England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
, winning competitions in Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
, Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
and Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
. While in the United States, he met and married Alexina Couillard. Scottish
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
and Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
musicians he met there taught him a number of Real
Reel (dance)
The reel is a folk dance type as well as the accompanying dance tune type. In Scottish country dancing, the reel is one of the four traditional dances, the others being the jig, the strathspey and the waltz, and is also the name of a dance figure ....
s and Gigue
Gigue
The gigue or giga is a lively baroque dance originating from the British jig. It was imported into France in the mid-17th century and usually appears at the end of a suite...
s. He continued to travel and play in the United States until 1917, when he returned to Canada and settled near Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
. Allard was one of five fiddlers to represent Quebec at a worldwide competition held in Lewiston
Lewiston, Maine
Lewiston is a city in Androscoggin County in Maine, and the second-largest city in the state. The population was 41,592 at the 2010 census. It is one of two principal cities of and included within the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan New England city and town area and the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine...
, Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
in 1926, alongside Johnny Boivin, A. S. Lavallée, Médard Bourgie and Ferdinand Boivin. In 1928, Victor's Bluebird label contracted him to make recordings for them, and he produced 75 78
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
s in his career. He would record six more under the pseudonym Maxime Toupin. Allard was one of the first French Canadian
French Canadian
French Canadian or Francophone Canadian, , generally refers to the descendents of French colonists who arrived in New France in the 17th and 18th centuries...
s fiddlers to record commercially. Apart from traditional songs, Allard wrote around sixty songs of his own.
Legacy
In 1976, a former student of Allard's, Jean CarignanJean Carignan
Jean Carignan, was a Canadian fiddler.Born in Lévis, Québec on December 7, 1916. He was a well-known fiddler from Quebec. Joseph Allard, Michael Coleman, and J. Scott Skinner are all brilliant traditional fiddlers whose music Carignan studied. Carignan was a friend of famous violinist and...
released Jean Carignan rend hommage à Joseph Allard, a tribute album to Allard. Carignan began studying with Allard in 1926, and eventually learnt most of Allard's repertoire.
In 1997, on the fiftieth anniversary of Allard's death, Châteauguay named both a new room in the public library and a street in its musician's district after Allard.