Painful goodbye to Lise Beauchamp

August 26, 2022 |

It was with the heaviest of hearts that, earlier this week, we lost one of the great ladies of music, an outstanding oboist, a valued colleague and a friend of the Orchestre Métropolitain: Lise Beauchamp.

Lise joined the OM in 1993 and until recently held the position of principal oboe. In the eyes of all who knew her, she was not only an accomplished musician lauded by critics for the sensitivity and expressiveness – not to mention the purity and ease – of her playing, but also an enthusiastic teacher and mentor whose generosity had no bounds. The entire Orchestre family is deeply moved by this loss.

Over the years, Lise became a close collaborator of our Artistic Director and Principal Conductor, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, who notes that “Lise was the soul of the Orchestre. She shared her love for music, her sense of giving oneself to music, with her students and OM colleagues. I think she was one of the very rare musicians in the world to have touched so many people through their playing and teaching as well as through how they embodied musical life.”

Considered one of Canada’s top oboists, Lise shared her passion for her instrument and for chamber music with the young musicians of the Conservatoire de musique de Montréal for more than 20 years. She also taught at the Faculté de musique of the Université de Montréal from 1995 to 2016. Beginning in 2015, she was a guest professor at Domaine Forget’s International Music and Dance Academy.

Born in Montreal, Lise Beauchamp discovered music when she was nine years old, first at Le Plateau school and then at Joseph-François Perrault high school. She continued her studies at the Conservatoire de musique et d’art dramatique du Québec under Bernard Jean, one of the OM’s founding members, who also served as principal oboe for many years, obtaining a bachelor’s degree and her first prizes in oboe and chamber music in 1985. She then studied under Elaine Douvas at the famous Juilliard School of Music in New York, earning her masters in 1990. Initially principal oboe with the Mexico City Philharmonic Orchestra in 1988, Lise then held the principal oboe position at the Orchestre symphonique de Laval (OSL) and the Orchestre Métropolitain (OM). As a concert soloist, she was invited to play with several music ensembles in Quebec and also took part in recording some 60 discs, several of which won Opus and Félix awards. Lise Beauchamp will leave an indelible mark on the local music community and will forever remain in our hearts. The world of music is in mourning today.

To honour the memory of our dear friend Lise, our warmest thoughts go out to her family and loved ones. We offer them our most sincere condolences. Rest in peace, Lise.