| Carre, Jean-Sebastien
St-Raphael de Bellechasse, Canada
Violin
A newcomer to Celine’s lineup, Jean-Sébastien arrives with a blossoming
solo career as one of Canada’s premier young violinists. Since his album
debuted in April 2002, he has played before festival crowds of over 30,000 fans
and shot four music videos. Carre formed his first band in ninth grade, and was
soon playing in local bars. By the time he was 16, he devoted himself to full-time
study, working on voice, violin and jazz. By 1998, at age 21, Carré was
touring Québec with Mario Chenart, one of the province’s greatest
cabaret singers; a European tour followed. By 2001, Carré had earned a
record deal, and the public acclaim that followed eventually landed him a role
in Céline’s band for A NEW DAY…
Coutu, Andre
Chicoutimi, Canada
Guitar
After a four-year run playing guitar on a daily Canadian television show, Coutu
became Céline’s guitarist in 1992, making him one of the longest-tenured
members of Celine’s band. Since then, he’s toured the world with
Céline several times over and recorded with most of Quebec’s top
stars. During Celine’s brief retirement, Coutu returned to television to
play guitar on Le Grand Blond avec un show sournois from 2000 to 2002 under the
musical direction of Claude “Mégo” Lemay. Coutu, who studied
guitar at the University of Montreal, also writes music.
Frulla, Yves
Montreal, Canada
Keyboards
For Yves Frulla, music has always been a passion. Frulla studied his way to
dual career opportunities, completing serious study of the piano and the pharmacy.
While completing the pharmacy program at the University of Montreal, Frulla toured
with Sass Jordan, building a music career that ultimately led him to Celine Dion’s
band. He toured with Céline from 1994 to 2000. During Celine’s temporary
retirement of 200-2002, he worked on music for films and television, and continued
to perform live. When Celine’s band started getting back together for A
NEW DAY…, Frulla knew it was worth the move to Las Vegas.
Langis, Marc
Trois-Rivieres, Canada
Bass
In the early 1990s, Langis played alongside drummer Dominique Messier on the
daily Canadian talk show Benezra. A native Quebecois, Langis has a Master’s
degree in Jazz from the University of Miami, and has also taught university music
courses and played in Quebec productions of Cirque du Soleil. He has broad musical
interests, from jazz to funk to pop, R&B and beyond. He’s been playing
with Céline’s band since 1995.
Messier, Dominique
Montreal, Canada
Drums
Messier has been touring with Celine since August 1995. In the course of his
25-year career in music, Messier has been a composer, arranger, sound engineer,
producer, studio owner and of course, drummer. Messier considers studio work
his specialty: in 1977, his family established Studio Piccolo in Montreal, and
he began his work there while studying music at CEGEP Saint-Laurent in Quebec.
During his student years, Messier brought his talents to numerous shows and recording
sessions, and by 1979 he had played on his first album. Later, he played club
dates, recorded for albums and jingles. In the 1980s, he learned to use the drum
machine, and soon began to diversify his efforts in other ways: he learned sound
engineering, began writing music and learned to play bass, keyboards and guitar.
Picard, Paul
Montreal, Canada
Percussion
Picard trained under Louis Charbonneau at the Quebec Music Conservatory and won
the Conservatory’s Premier Prix in Percussion in 1974. In the years that
followed, he explored virtually every ethnic, traditional and popular form of
percussion. He has performed with symphony orchestras and Canadian bands with
styles ranging from pop to Latin. For over 20 years, Picard has also performed
with house bands on TV broadcasts; he has also done a tremendous amount of studio
work, recording with many of Quebec’s top artists, playing film music and
providing percussion on hundreds of jingles. In 1981, Picard won a grant from
the National Art Council of Canada to continue his exploration of ethnic and
Latin percussion, and his studies eventually earned him a college teaching post,
which he still holds. From 1984 to 1986, he played with legendary jazz percussionist
Don Alias’ band. After touring with Canadian star Roch Voisine in the early
1990s, Picard joined Celine’s band in 1995. Picard also writes music, and
has composed 10 theater scores and one film score.
Duguay, Elise
Quebec, Canada
Background Vocals and Cello
Born into a musical family, Élise Duguay studied music through childhood
and in 1985 earned her degree in music, voice and cello from Laval University
in Quebec. She went on to sing with some of Quebec’s top voices, including
René Simard, Véronique Béliveau, Isabelle Boulay and Garou.
She’s been performing with Céline since 1994, accompanying her on
her world tours, as well as numerous TV broadcasts such as the Grammy Awards,
the American Music Awards, The Today Show, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and
Late Night with David Letterman.
Gauthier, Mary-Lou
Montreal, Canada
Background Vocals
By the age of 9, Mary-Lou was soloing at St.Patrick’s Basilica in Montreal,
and she hasn’t stopped singing since. At 10, she made her first radio appearance;
by 16, she had won a nationally televised talent competition. Gauthier continued
to explore her vocal gifts and soon discovered a lasting love for R&B and
gospel music. Her voice has taken her from gospel music in her teens to rock’n’roll
in her 20s to singing and recording with the Prague Symphony Orchestra. She has
brought her talents to stages and studios around the world, bringing a powerful
soprano R&B voice to albums, film music, commercials and live shows. Gauthier
is also an acclaimed songwriter; among her credits is “In the Summertime,” a
major hit from the summer of 1973.
Valsaint, Barnev
Montreal, Canada
Background Vocals
From 1996 to 1998, Valsaint was lead singer of the platinum-selling hip-hop band
Dubmatique. In 1998, he became lead singer for the R&B group Nodeja. Meanwhile,
he had joined Celine’s band for the “Let’s Talk About Love” tour,
while he continued his solo work and also launched a career as a record producer.
Valsaint loves performing with Celine’s band; the members, he says, share “great
energy and passion onstage”.
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