Keywords Music Schools and Conservatories Musicology/Reference

The Catholic School Commission of Sherbrooke was a pioneer in this field with the opening of the Sacré-Coeur primary school in 1972 and then the Mitchell School, Secondary I (1978), and the Montcalm School, Secondary II (1980). Each year, new school commissions offer a vocational public music school at the primary level and then at the secondary level. It is interesting to note that each new school adopts a particular tone, either by the type of students or instruments selected, or by the spectrum of musical activities chosen or even the main goal (to prepare music lovers, concert artists, to enrich programs, etc).

Besides Sherbrooke, there exist at the Catholic School Commission of Montreal the Le Plateau primary school (begun in 1973) and the Joseph-François-Perrault secondary school (1978); at the Ste-Croix School Commission, the Pierre Laporte Secondary School (1980) which offers a concentration program of music and dance following an agreement with the École Vincent-d'Indy and the École supérieure de danse du Québec; at the Thousand-Islands School Commission, the Alpha School (1982); at the Ste-Thérèse School Commission, the Mgr Philippe-Labelle primary school (1984) and the Ste-Thérèse comprehensive school (1987); at the Jacques-Cartier School Commission, the Félix-Leclerc primary school (1989) and the Mgr Parent comprehensive school (1990).

Although schools specializing in the teaching of the arts (dance, theatre, musique and visual arts) are found elsewhere in Canada, notably in Toronto (Claude Watson School for the Arts, Etobicoke School of the Arts), in Mississauga (Cawthra Park Secondary School) and in Langley, BC (Langley Fine Arts Elementary School), the vocational public music schools in Quebec attract much interest, owing to the important fact that musical teaching is integrated into the general academic program. They also constitute unique cases in Canada in the area of completely subsidized educational institutions. They prepare a considerable number of students for the collegiate and university levels, while allowing students to flourish in their own environment. Thus, at Pierre-Laporte School, 204 students were granted their certificate between 1985 and 1990 and about half of them continued their musical studies. The schools are also important as sites for pedagogical research. Several of the schools are affiliated with the Preparatory School of Music of UQAM, which monitors the content and the level of the program.

Author Marcelle Corneille