Montréal, February 2019 — The Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame is proud to announce that Pauline Julien’s and François Dompierre’s song “L’Âme à la tendresse” will be inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame, live onstage at the Outremont Theatre before the presentation of the show La Renarde, sur les traces de Pauline Julien, in Montréal on Feb. 21.
“For a second consecutive year, the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame is partnering with events that share a connection with the songs and songwriters that we’re inducting,” said Vanessa Thomas, Executive Director of the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame. “We’re honoured to celebrate Pauline Julien’s and François Dompierre’s timeless classic here, in Montréal, and to salute the immense impact they had on Québec culture.”
For more information on La Renarde, sur les traces de Pauline Julien
Pauline Julien (1928–1998) recorded 24 albums throughout a career that started in 1962. She penned the lyrics to “L’Âme à la tendresse” in 1972, alongside pianist François Dompierre, who wrote the irresistible melody of this iconic song. It appeared on Julien’s thirteenth album, Allez voir vous avez des ailes, released in 1973. Now inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame, “L’Âme à la tendresse” has endured the test of time, leaving deep impressions on so many Québécois. A soft and unifying piece about love and friendship, this heartfelt song expresses emotions that are authentic and true.
Flashback to December 1972, when Radio-Canada’s TV show Femme d’aujourd’hui showed Julien and her pianist Gaston Brisson fine-tuning the song, while listening to Dompierre first-draft demo recording. “Once we’ve rehearsed it enough, we’ll build the arrangements and record it in the studio,” she said. François Dompierre remembers that day in 1972: “Pauline gave me the lyrics, and I wrote the music in an hour! She fine-tuned a few of the words to fix the meter, but we had no clue this song would be a hit. When you hear only the song’s music, you also hear the words, and if you simply read the lyrics, you hear the music. That’s the sign of a great song. The osmosis between what Pauline is singing and the melody is perfect. There was no point in over-thinking it. We trusted each other. And although, in the studio, Pauline was both self-assured and insecure, onstageshe was fully able to express her feelings.”
Pauline Julien was made Chevalier des arts et des lettres (France) in 1994, Chevalier de l’Ordre national du Québec in 1997 and also won the Grand Prix du disque Charles-Cros in 1970 and 1985
François Dompierre was born in Ottawa on July 1, 1943. He worked as an orchestrator and musical director for the likes of Pauline Julien, Monique Leyrac, Renée Claude, and Félix Leclerc. This prolific composer also has an impressive track record as a screen composer. He’s a Member of the Order of Canada (2014) and of the Ordre national du Québec (2014).
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