On August 14 in the village of Ferme-Neuve in the Laurentian Highlands region of Quebec, 260 kilometers (160.5 miles) north-west of Montreal, a unique musical event took place: Daniel Lavoie performed his most popular songs accompanied by the chamber orchestra I Musici de Montreal. The concert was organized as part of the 12th annual Laurentian Highlands Festival of Classical Music. This large-scale festival took place from July through August in 10 different venues and included 31 concerts in which 300 performers took part. The uniqueness and charm of this celebration of music lie in the fact that audiences are given the opportunity to enjoy classical (and not only) music in close proximity to the beautiful and majestic natural landscapes of the Quebec mountains. The tourism infrastructure in the Laurentian Highlands is so thoughtfully constructed that it creates ideal conditions for enjoyment of the open spaces, silence and tranquility of the mountains, lakes and forests, where one often has a sense of being the only human being in the whole world. The idea of listening to classical music in this environment can seem paradoxical, but only at first. In some very natural way the landscapes that bring to mind things eternal also are very conducive to an appreciation of high art.  
The 15-member string ensemble I Musici de Montreal was founded in 1983 by the outstanding cellist and graduate of the Moscow State Chaikovsky Conservatory, Yuli Turovsky. It is one of the world’s most respected classical music ensembles.
How a chamber ensemble famous for its Hayden interpretations and one of the most popular performers of the chanson quebecoise would be able to make harmony on stage – was a question which I suspect intrigued not only me. A feeling of magic about to happen was in the air.
And the magic did happen. This is the only word to describe the main impression from what we saw and heard. What a delight it was to witness the complete mutual understanding, trust and almost visible sparks flying between the singer and the musicians!
The concert consisted of 3 instrumental pieces and 12 songs. I Musici performed music selected by Daniel Lavoie himself: Dvorak’s Serenade opus 22 (finale) and Borodin’s Quartet no 2 (scherzo, at the beginning of the first part of the concert) and Debussy’s Quartet opus 10 (1st part, at the beginning of the second part).
As for the songs by Daniel Lavoie, they received string arrangements composed with great love and imagination. Without any exaggeration one can say that Monsieur Lavoie at the piano visibly enjoyed the new sound of his works. Among the surprising discoveries I would mention the ending of the song Sauvez. As we know, this song is a heartfelt plea to save the environment from destruction. After the final words the instruments suddenly “scattered” and the emerging cacophony “showed” the chaos in such a vivid manner that the listeners got goose bumps from hearing this shocking musical effect. Another musical surprise was the interpretation of Lavoie’s concerts’ trademark final song, Boule qui roule. Usually the singer gives the audience the chance to sing along the recurring refrain of this simple but touching song. This time it was the instruments that “sang along.” Different groups of instruments “talked” to the piano and that conversation was conducted in such a tender and harmonious fashion that it took the audience’s breath away.
I think that all the people who were lucky enough to be present in the audience on that hot summer evening in the middle of the Laurentians had the feeling that the concert was over much too quickly, like a flash of inspiration.

Anna None