Monsieur Pointu

Paul Cormier (10 May 1922 – 7 June 2006) was a violinist from Quebec, Canada, known by his stage name Monsieur Pointu.[1]

Early life

Cormier was born in Les Escoumins, North Shore, Quebec, into a family of traveling musicians.[2] He began learning to play the fiddle at the age of nine.[3] He served in the military during World War II.[4]

Career

As a young man, Cormier played violin on CBJ radio in Chicoutimi, and later in dance clubs and hotels in Montreal.[2] He performed with musicians Willie Lamothe, Marcel Martel, Roger Miron and Paul Brunelle,[4][5] and also as an opening solo act at concerts. In the 1970s he toured in Europe and Africa with singer Gilbert Bécaud, taking on the stage name Monsieur Pointu,[6][7] and also hosted a television folk music series on Télé-Métropole.[2]

Cormier played the sound track for an animated film about his music, Monsieur Pointu, which was nominated for an Academy Award in 1976.[8][3][9] In 1977 he performed at the Fete Nationale in Montreal's Olympic Stadium to a crowd of 40,000.[10]

Cormier died June 6, 2006 in Blainville, Quebec.[6] After his death, Cormier's violin was donated to the Jules Saint-Michel violin museum.[11]

References
  1. "A violinmaker practices his timeless craft in the heart of Montreal". Apr 21, 2012, Hamilton Spectator
  2. "Mort de Monsieur Pointu". Radio Canada, June 8, 2006.
  3. "Monsieur Pointu". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Historica-Dominion. Retrieved 18 January 2011.
  4. "Il y a 11 ans, la Beauce accueillait «Monsieur Pointu»". Beauce Magazine, Yvon Thibodeau
  5. "Qui est Monsieur Pointu?". Le Jornal de Quebec, 11 September 2014.
  6. "Monsieur Pointu meurt à l'âge de 84 ans". TVA Nouvelles, 7 June 2006.
  7. Michel Venne; Miriam Fahmy (2006). L'annuaire du Québec 2007: le Québec en panne ou en marche ?. Les Editions Fides. p. 186. ISBN 978-2-7621-2746-1.
  8. "Monsieur Pointu". Collections page. National Film Board of Canada.
  9. "The Choices ". March 27, 1976, The Ottawa Journal Section 3, Page 37
  10. "Celebration explodes as Fete Nationale opens". Medicine Hat News, June 24, 1977, Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada
  11. "Dans l'atelier de Jules Saint-Michel, luthier". 24 Montreal, 08/03/2012. Jean-François Villeneuve
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