FAMEQ

FAMEQ

FAMEQ (Fédération des associations de musiciens éducateurs du Québec). Founded 12 Mar 1966 in Drummondville during a conference organized by Georges Little. The federation received a provincial charter in 1968. Its objectives have been to co-ordinate the work of regional professional associations of French-language music educators, to promote meetings between music teachers, to safeguard professional ethics, to democratize musical education in Quebec, and to contribute to the intellectual, social, and emotional development of the Quebec child.

The member associations are grouped in 11 regions: Quebec City, Saguenay, Lac St-Jean, Eastern Townships, Montreal, Montérégie, Laval-Laurentides-Lanaudière, Ottawa Valley, Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Bois-Francs-Quebec Centre and Quebec North-East Shore. Presidents have been Gilles Fortin (Drummondville), Roger Mongeon (Montreal), Jean Patenaude (Chambly), Normand Laprise (Lac St-Jean), Constance Mainville (Hull), Louise Cloutier (Montreal), Jean Genest (Quebec City), Marielle Therrien-Cyr (Abitibi-Témiscamingue) and Berthe Sylvain Dufresne (Quebec City).

FAMEQ regularly holds a congress, and among the invited speakers have been Jacques Chailley, Marcel Corneloup, and Maurice Martenot (see Martenot method), all of France; Erzsébet Szönyi of Hungary (see Kodály method); Marcel Rioux (see Rapport de la Commission royale d'enquête sur l'enseignement des arts dans la province de Québec), Gloria Richard, and Jean-Claude Picard. FAMEQ published Le Musicien Éducateur du Québec1967-74, a Bulletin de liaison(1971-81), À la ronde (1981-7) and À la une (begun in 1986).

FAMEQ has defended the interests of the music-teaching profession, and has occupied itself with such long-term projects as the FAMEQ Band, which is selected from among the best young players from bands in the 11 regions and was first conducted by Armand Ferland, and then after 1972, by Michel Perrault. FAMEQ is a member of the Conseil pédagogique interdisciplinaire du Québec. It collaborates with the CMEA, the JMC(Youth and Music Canada), the QMEA, the Canadian Music Centre and the Centrale de l'enseignement du Québec. It was represented on the Quebec Ministry of Education's two consultative committees for the teaching of the arts.

At the 1987 congress, FAMEQ launched the project of a provincial summit on musical training. That same year an independent corporation, headed by Marielle Therrien-Cyr, was formed under the name Summit on the Future of Musical Training in Quebec. A planning committee, presided by Jean-Claude Picard and made up of representatives from musical associations and from the school system, first organized a colloquy in FAMEQ's 11 regions, followed by a provincial forum to combine the recommendations submitted to the appropriate ministries. The main recommendation dealt with compulsory musical training from pre-school to secondary school levels. The summit was held in November 1988 in Quebec City in the presence of Claude Ryan (then Minister of Education and Science) and of Lise Bacon (Minister of Cultural Affairs). The responsibility for following up on the recommendations of the summit was given to a committee formed by FAMEQ. The transactions of the summit were published in May 1989.