Voyageur Suite

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The voyageurs were French-Canadian men who guided and paddled the canoes of explorers and fur traders from Quebec and Montreal to the regions bordering the Great Lakes and on to the Mackenzie and Columbia Rivers during the 17th, 18th and early 19th centuries. While they paddled hour after hour in their cramped canoes, the voyageurs sang of their canoes, their country, their life and their loves. This suite is based on melodies of their songs. At least two of my ancestors, both named Antoine Pepin, were voyageurs. This suite is dedicated to my nephew, Alexander Pepin Gilbert, on the occasion of his Bar Mitzvah. Voyageur Suite was commissioned by Dr. Gary Powell Nash of Fisk University. The Alaska Brass of the United States Air Force Band of the Pacific presented the world premiere at a concert sponsored by the Canadian Consulate at the Loussac Library's Wilda Maston Theater in Anchorage, Alaska, on February 15, 2007. The demonstration recording heard here was generated by computer with Garritan Personal Orchestra. The Seattle performance was recorded on Friday, February 8, 2008, at the Pleasure for the Ear concert by Brian Chin & Matt Swihart, trumpets, Becky Miller, horn, Kevin Raichart, trombone, and Kevin Pih, tuba. Performance History Premiered February 15, 2007, by the Alaska Brass, Anchorage, Alaska March 7, 2007, by the Black Mountain Brass, Canberra, Austrailia April 21, 2007, by the Menlo Brass, Campbell, California April 22, 2007, by the Menlo Brass, Menlo Park, California February 8, 2008, by Brian Chin, Matt Swihart, Becky Miller, Kevin Raichart and Kevin Pih, Seattle April 18, 2008, by the Raven Brass, Huntsville, Texas Return to Instrumental Works www.gregbartholomew.com