Gilles Vigneault

Gilles Vigneault

Born: October 27, 1928
in Natashquan, Québec, Canada
Gilles Vigneault (born 27 October 1928) is a Canadian poet, publisher, singer-songwriter, and Quebec nationalist and sovereigntist. Two of his songs are considered by many to be Quebec's unofficial anthems: "Mon pays" and "Gens du pays", and his line Mon pays ce n'est pas un pays, c'est l'hiver (My country is not a country, it is winter, from "Mon Pays") became a proverb in Quebec. Vigneault is a Grand Officer of the National Order of Quebec, Knight of the Legion of Honour, and Officer of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres.

Vigneault was born in Natashquan, in the Côte-Nord region of Quebec.

He started writing poetry during his studies at the seminary in Rimouski, and by the 1950s was publishing poems and writing songs for other performers. In 1959, he founded the publishing house Les Éditions de l'Arc to distribute his publications. His first collection, Étraves, was published in 1959.

In 1960, Vigneault made his singing debut at the L'Arlequin club in Quebec City, followed by a successful Montreal concert later that year. In 1962, he recorded his first album, Gilles Vigneault, and received the Grand Prix du Disque from Montreal radio station CKAC. His reputation grew in Quebec and beyond with the success of his song "Mon Pays", from the soundtrack of the NFB film The Snow Has Melted on the Manicouagan (La neige a fondu sur la Manicouagan) in 1965.

Vigneault's reputation as a songwriter and performer continued to spread and he became popular not only in Quebec, but also in English Canada and Europe. He performed in major Canadian concert halls, including Montreal's Place des Arts, the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, and at Toronto's Massey Hall. In Europe, he toured in France, Switzerland, Poland, Belgium, and Luxembourg.

The mid-1970s saw Vigneault's participation in several major events. On 13 August 1974, 130,000 spectators came together on the Plains of Abraham for the Superfrancofête, where Vigneault participated in a historic concert alongside Félix Leclerc and Robert Charlebois. The concert was recorded and released as the album J'ai vu le loup, le renard, le lion. At the Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day concert "Les 5 Jean-Baptistes" on Montreal's Mount Royal on 24 June 1976, Gilles Vigneault performed together with Robert Charlebois, Claude Léveillée, Jean-Pierre Ferland, and Yvon Deschamps. This concert was recorded and released as 1 fois 5, which later received the Grand Prix du Disque (the Charles Cros award).

Vigneault's political views have remained strongly in favour of national sovereignty for Quebec. During the 2014 Quebec general election campaign, he supported the Parti Québécois.

The main subjects of Vigneault's writing are Quebec and its people, as well as human relationships, love, and everyday life. Vigneault is also concerned with environmental issues and has written songs and tales for children.

His childhood reminiscences about his upbringing were filmed by Michel Moreau for the 1993 documentary film A Childhood in Natashquan (Une enfance à Natashquan).

Gilles Vigneault has seven children: Michel, Louis, François (a poet and lyricist), Pascale, Guillaume (a novelist), Jessica (a pianist and singer), and Benjamin (a percussionist).

Source: Article "Gilles Vigneault" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.

Movies for Gilles Vigneault...

Band of Exile
Title: Band of Exile
Character: Self
Released: January 18, 2023
Type: Movie
Here in Toronto, four young Somali refugees are finishing high school. What did they bring with them? What did they find in Canada? Their testimonies, about us and about themselves, interspersed with newsreel footage and sequences of a theatrical creation in which they put all their soul, make them immediately endearing and overturn many prejudices held against refugees. A film that makes you want to get to know them better.
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The Rose Family
Title: The Rose Family
Character: Self (archival footage)
Released: August 14, 2020
Type: Movie
In October 1970, members of the Front de Libération du Québec (FLQ) kidnapped Minister Pierre Laporte, triggering an unprecedented crisis in Quebec. Fifty years later, Félix Rose tries to understand what could have led his father and uncle to commit such acts. Thanks to the confidences of his uncle Jacques, who agrees for the first time to speak on the subject, and to the precious traces left by his father Paul, he revives the rich heritage of a Quebec working family and gives back to the October crisis its social dimension. The fruit of ten years of research, Les Rose allows us to revive moments and characters that we only knew through a few clichés, and gives a glimpse of the social blockage experienced by a rebellious youth and the upheavals that followed.
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Une chance qu'on s'a
Title: Une chance qu'on s'a
Character: Self - Guest Artist
Released: May 10, 2020
Type: Movie
A tribute to the Quebec population who are fighting against the COVID-19 epidemic. Several artists are participating in this outpouring of solidarity to recognize the essential work of our guardian angels and to encourage people to give back.
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Title: 1res fois
Character: Self - Guest
Released: January 18, 2018
Type: TV
Two Quebec personalities candidly discuss the “firsts” that have marked their professional lives and shaped who they are both on and off camera. Our guests will also experience other unique “firsts” on the show. Emotions will run high as guests share personal secrets, reunite with long-lost friends, watch surprise variety numbers.
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Le goût d'un pays
Title: Le goût d'un pays
Character: Self
Released: December 2, 2016
Type: Movie
Focused on an inspiring and touching dialogue between Gilles Vigneault and Fred Pellerin, the documentary tells the story of Quebec by digging deep into an ancestral tradition etched into our cultural DNA: the production of maple syrup.
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Deschampsons
Title: Deschampsons
Character: Self
Released: January 19, 2015
Type: Movie
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Title: En direct de l'univers
Character: Self
Released: September 19, 2009
Type: TV
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Les outils
Title: Les outils
Character: (voice)
Released: January 1, 2009
Type: Movie
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Jean-Pierre Ferland - La dernière tournée
Title: Jean-Pierre Ferland - La dernière tournée
Character: Self
Released: July 7, 2007
Type: Movie
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Tinamer
Title: Tinamer
Character: Father
Released: January 1, 1987
Type: Movie
Tinamer is 27 years old when her mother dies. The funeral of this last one makes her relive certain events of her childhood which marked her forever.
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Title: La Chance aux chansons
Character: Self
Released: March 26, 1984
Type: TV
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Title: Champs-Elysées
Character: Self
Released: January 16, 1982
Type: TV
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Cordélia
Title: Cordélia
Character: Judge Hall
Released: February 7, 1980
Type: Movie
In a little village at the end of the 1890's, a young woman offends all the 'right-thinking' villagers by allowing men in her house in the absence of her husband. When he is found dead, all of the suspicion is directed towards the liberal woman. She is judged more for her morality then for the crime she is accused of. Her culpability is still a subject of debate today.
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Title: Numéro un
Character: Self
Released: April 5, 1975
Type: TV
A French variety show.
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Title: Les Rendez-vous du dimanche
Character: Self
Released: January 12, 1975
Type: TV
A talk show presented by Michel Drucker
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Title: Midi trente
Character: Self
Released: March 6, 1972
Type: TV
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Title: Le Grand Échiquier
Character: Self
Released: January 12, 1972
Type: TV
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Title: Le Grand Échiquier
Character: Self - Main Guest
Released: January 12, 1972
Type: TV
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Act of the Heart
Title: Act of the Heart
Character: Coach Ti-Jo
Released: September 24, 1970
Type: Movie
A woman's peculiar religious convictions lead her on a self-destructive path.
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Title: À bout portant
Character: Self
Released: December 16, 1968
Type: TV
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The Snow Has Melted on the Manicouagan
Title: The Snow Has Melted on the Manicouagan
Released: August 1, 1965
Type: Movie
An atmospheric mood piece photographed in the winter at the giant dam built by Hydro Quebec in the northern wilds of the province. The story concerns a worker's wife, who is bored with her dreary existence in the wilderness. She walks around in the snow recalling how she met her husband, then goes to the landing field to catch a departing plane. But she remains when her husband tells her how much his work means to him. This moving and very humanistic tale represents the NFB at its best.
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Title: Discorama
Character: Self
Released: February 4, 1959
Type: TV
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Title: Le Grand spectacle de la Fête nationale à Montréal
Character: Self
Released: December 31, 1969
Type: TV