About
Monique Poirier first received training as a musician and pianist: a Bachelor of Music in piano performance from the École Vincent-d'Indy and a Master in Music Education from Université Laval, in Quebec City. Constantly seeking to deepen her vision of music and in search of new teaching methods, she discovered improvisation in the early 1990s through Music for People*. She then completed the Music for People Teacher Training Program, becoming a certified teacher in 1996. She is also an active member of the Quebec Music Teacher's Association. (APMQ)
Career and Experience
Participation in various workshops:​
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- Vancouver Creative Music Institute, with Paul Plimley, François Houle, among others
- Intensive workshop with cellist and improviser Eugene Friesen
- Latin percussion lessons with Richard Gingras
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Interested in the psychophysical aspect of instrumental performance, she explored various approaches such as:
- The F.M. Alexander Technique
- The Feldenkrais Method
- Eutonie Gerda Alexander, with Ursula Stuber (Université Laval, in Quebec City)
- The Rio Abierto System, which led her to Buenos Aires, as part of the international workshop "El sistema - Rio Abierto en las terapias Psico-corporales"
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With the richness of these trainings and choosing to go beyond traditional teaching frameworks, she opened her teaching studio Le Piano autrement and created the improvisation workshops La Musique au cœur de Soi in 1994. She also taught in various musical institutions, including Cégep de Saint-Laurent, in Montreal, for 20 years. She has led improvisation workshops in diverse settings: private piano classes, École de musique Vincent-d'Indy, Harpissimo Québec, a Rehabilitation Center: Centre de réadaptation Lucie-Bruneau in Montreal, and the international workshop "Culture et handicap."
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In 2018, she presented, along with cellist Josée Campeau, a concert titled “Free Expressions” at the Sérénité Sonore concert Hall in Montreal. The concert featured a program of improvised music and original creations. Among her original achievements, she recorded three piano pieces by Quebec composer Jean Patenaude. She also composed music for a poetic text by Yves Lanthier, Flûtes.
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* In 1985, two professional American musicians, David Darling and Bonnie Insull, founded Music for People, a musical movement that has continued to grow in the United States, Canada, and Europe. In addition to bringing together a network of improvisers, Music for People offers a structured and unique pedagogical training in improvisation.
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