Oscar O'Brien
Encyclopedia
Oscar O'Brien was a Canadian folklorist, composer
, pianist
, organist
, music educator, and Roman Catholic priest
. A large portion of his compositions were based in folklore
and he also arranged and harmonized roughly 400 French and Canadian folksongs; many of which were written for his collaborations with Charles Marchand and the Alouette Vocal Quartet. He worked as an arranger or accompanist on numerous 78 rpm recordings for such labels as Bluebird
, Brunswick
, Columbia
, Starr
, and Victor
. He contributed numerous articles on folklore to publications like Le Canada français and was a frequent lecturer on folklore subjects. In 1978 CBC Radio
recognized O'Brien in a series of six broadcasts featuring his harmonizations.
, O'Brien was a pupil of Amédée Tremblay
with whom he began studying both the piano and the organ as a young teenager. At the age of 16 he was appointed Tremblay's deputy organist at the Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica, Ottawa. He continued to study with Tremblay while taking courses as De La Salle Academy and the University of Ottawa
. In 1917 he moved to Montreal where he lived and worked for the rest of his life as a teacher, orchestral pianist, and accompanist. Among his pupils were Joseph Beaulieu
, Lionel Daunais
, Hector Gratton
, Jacques Labrecque, Allan McIver
, Lucien Sicotte, and Albert Viau
.
In 1915 O'Brien became Charles Marchand's accompanist and arranger
, a partnership which lasted until Marchand's death in 1930. Marchand instilled a love for folk music
in O'Brien and that genre of music made up much of their concert repertoire. The two men toured throughout North America together in concerts and recitals. They also made a number of recordings. In 1927 they performed music composed and arranged by O'Brien at the first CPR Festivals in Quebec. They also performed in the 1928 CPR Festivals and in 1930 O'Brien became the assistant music director of the Festivals for its final year.
From 1930-1945 O'Brien worked as the artistic director of the Alouette Vocal Quartet (AVQ) which included singers Roger Filiatrault (baritone), André Trottier (bass), Jules Jacob (tenor), and Émile Lamarre (bass). He wrote many of the group's arrangements of French and Canadian folksongs and the group also performed some of his original compositions. The ensemble made several recordings for Victor Records and Bluebird Records
and performed on hundreds of radio broadcasts. The quartet gave regular concert tours in the United States, mainly performing in New York City, Washington D.C., Detroit, Cleveland, Chicago, and Philadelphia. In 1934 the AVQ was selected as Canada's official delegate to France for the celebrations marking the fourth centenary of the discovery of Canada. In 1937 the quartet gave 35 concerts on a tour of France and Belgium. In 1945 the quartet toured to Brazil after which O'Brien left the group.
A devout Roman Catholic, O'Brien became interested in pursuing a religious life and entered the Benedictine monastery at Saint Benedict Abbey, Quebec
as a novitiate in 1945. He took his vows in 1947 and was later ordained a priest in 1952 at which time he became known as Dom Oscar O'Brien.
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...
, pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
, organist
Organist
An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ. An organist may play solo organ works, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumental soloists...
, music educator, and Roman Catholic priest
Priesthood (Catholic Church)
The ministerial orders of the Catholic Church include the orders of bishops, deacons and presbyters, which in Latin is sacerdos. The ordained priesthood and common priesthood are different in function and essence....
. A large portion of his compositions were based in folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
and he also arranged and harmonized roughly 400 French and Canadian folksongs; many of which were written for his collaborations with Charles Marchand and the Alouette Vocal Quartet. He worked as an arranger or accompanist on numerous 78 rpm recordings for such labels as Bluebird
Bluebird Records
Bluebird Records is a sub-label of RCA Victor Records originally created in 1932 to counter the American Record Company in the "3 records for a dollar" market. Along with ARC's Perfect Records, Melotone Records and Romeo Records, and the independent US Decca label, Bluebird became one of the best...
, Brunswick
Brunswick Records
Brunswick Records is a United States based record label. The label is currently distributed by E1 Entertainment.-From 1916:Records under the "Brunswick" label were first produced by the Brunswick-Balke-Collender Company...
, Columbia
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
, Starr
Starr Records
Starr Records was a record label manufactured by the Starr Piano Company of Richmond, Indiana, which was also the parent company of the better known Gennett Records....
, and Victor
Victor Talking Machine Company
The Victor Talking Machine Company was an American corporation, the leading American producer of phonographs and phonograph records and one of the leading phonograph companies in the world at the time. It was headquartered in Camden, New Jersey....
. He contributed numerous articles on folklore to publications like Le Canada français and was a frequent lecturer on folklore subjects. In 1978 CBC Radio
CBC Radio
CBC Radio generally refers to the English-language radio operations of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The CBC operates a number of radio networks serving different audiences and programming niches, all of which are outlined below.-English:CBC Radio operates three English language...
recognized O'Brien in a series of six broadcasts featuring his harmonizations.
Life and career
Born in OttawaOttawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
, O'Brien was a pupil of Amédée Tremblay
Amédée Tremblay
Pierre-Joseph Amédée Tremblay was a Canadian organist, composer, and music educator. A largely self-taught composer, his output includes several motets, two masses, a few patriotic songs, works for solo organ, and the operetta L'Intransigeant...
with whom he began studying both the piano and the organ as a young teenager. At the age of 16 he was appointed Tremblay's deputy organist at the Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica, Ottawa. He continued to study with Tremblay while taking courses as De La Salle Academy and the University of Ottawa
University of Ottawa
The University of Ottawa is a bilingual, research-intensive, non-denominational, international university in Ottawa, Ontario. It is one of the oldest universities in Canada. It was originally established as the College of Bytown in 1848 by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate...
. In 1917 he moved to Montreal where he lived and worked for the rest of his life as a teacher, orchestral pianist, and accompanist. Among his pupils were Joseph Beaulieu
Joseph Beaulieu
Joseph Beaulieu was a Canadian composer, folklorist, and music educator. He traveled extensively throughout Canada collecting folk songs, which he compiled in several published books. As a composer, his works reflect his strong interest in folk music in there structure and melody. He wrote over...
, Lionel Daunais
Lionel Daunais
Noël Ferdinand Lionel Daunais, was a French Canadian baritone and composer.Born in Montreal, Quebec, Daunais studied singing with Céline Marier and harmony and composition with Oscar O'Brien. In 1923 he won first prize at the Montreal Musical Festival...
, Hector Gratton
Hector Gratton
Joseph Thomas Hector Gratton was a Canadian composer, arranger, conductor, pianist, and music educator. As a composer his music is written in an essentially folkloric and popular style which avoids harmonic sophistication. His compositional output includes several orchestral works, chamber workss,...
, Jacques Labrecque, Allan McIver
Allan McIver
Joseph Allan McIver was a Canadian composer, arranger, pianist, and conductor. As a pianist he performed with orchestras in the Quebec region in his early career and was the longtime accompanist and arranger for Trio lyrique...
, Lucien Sicotte, and Albert Viau
Albert Viau
Albert Viau was a Canadian baritone, folksinger, composer, and music educator. After beginning his career as a musician in the classical repertoire, he specialized in folk music and traditional songs. He released about 50 78 rpm records during his career, mostly for La Bonne Chanson...
.
In 1915 O'Brien became Charles Marchand's accompanist and arranger
Arranger
In investment banking, an arranger is a provider of funds in the syndication of a debt. They are entitled to syndicate the loan or bond issue, and may be referred to as the "lead underwriter". This is because this entity bears the risk of being able to sell the underlying securities/debt or the...
, a partnership which lasted until Marchand's death in 1930. Marchand instilled a love for folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
in O'Brien and that genre of music made up much of their concert repertoire. The two men toured throughout North America together in concerts and recitals. They also made a number of recordings. In 1927 they performed music composed and arranged by O'Brien at the first CPR Festivals in Quebec. They also performed in the 1928 CPR Festivals and in 1930 O'Brien became the assistant music director of the Festivals for its final year.
From 1930-1945 O'Brien worked as the artistic director of the Alouette Vocal Quartet (AVQ) which included singers Roger Filiatrault (baritone), André Trottier (bass), Jules Jacob (tenor), and Émile Lamarre (bass). He wrote many of the group's arrangements of French and Canadian folksongs and the group also performed some of his original compositions. The ensemble made several recordings for Victor Records and Bluebird Records
Bluebird Records
Bluebird Records is a sub-label of RCA Victor Records originally created in 1932 to counter the American Record Company in the "3 records for a dollar" market. Along with ARC's Perfect Records, Melotone Records and Romeo Records, and the independent US Decca label, Bluebird became one of the best...
and performed on hundreds of radio broadcasts. The quartet gave regular concert tours in the United States, mainly performing in New York City, Washington D.C., Detroit, Cleveland, Chicago, and Philadelphia. In 1934 the AVQ was selected as Canada's official delegate to France for the celebrations marking the fourth centenary of the discovery of Canada. In 1937 the quartet gave 35 concerts on a tour of France and Belgium. In 1945 the quartet toured to Brazil after which O'Brien left the group.
A devout Roman Catholic, O'Brien became interested in pursuing a religious life and entered the Benedictine monastery at Saint Benedict Abbey, Quebec
Saint Benedict Abbey, Quebec
Saint Benedict Abbey, in an Abbey in Saint-Benoît-du-Lac, Quebec, Canada, and was founded in 1912 by the exiled of St. Wandrille, France under Abbot Dom Joseph Pothier, liturgist and scholar who reconstituted the Gregorian chant...
as a novitiate in 1945. He took his vows in 1947 and was later ordained a priest in 1952 at which time he became known as Dom Oscar O'Brien.