Joseph Allard (fiddler) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Joseph Allard
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Joseph Allard in 1927
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| Born | February 1, 1873 |
| Died | November 14, 1947 (aged 74) |
| Occupation | Canadian fiddler and composer. |
Joseph Allard (born February 1, 1873 – died November 14, 1947) was a talented Canadian fiddler and composer. He was known for his amazing fiddle playing and wrote many songs. Sometimes, he used a different name, Maxime Toupin, for his recordings.
Joseph Allard made many popular songs like Reel de l'Aveugle, Reel de Chateauguay, Reel de Jacques Cartier, and Reel du voyageur. For a long time, he was a fisherman and not very famous. But after his music became popular, people called him The Prince of Fiddlers.
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Early Life and Learning Music
Joseph Allard was born on February 1, 1873. Some say he was born in Woodland, Maine, which is now called Lery, Quebec. Others say he was born in Châteauguay, Quebec. His family lived in Quebec when he was very young.
Joseph's father was also a fiddler. When Joseph was nine years old, his father taught him how to play the fiddle. Joseph stayed in Quebec until he was sixteen. Then, he moved to the United States. There, he started to enter fiddle playing contests.
Becoming a Fiddling Champion
When Joseph Allard moved to the United States, he started entering many fiddling contests. He won competitions in places like Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. These states are all part of a region called New England.
While he was in the United States, Joseph met and married Alexina Couillard. He also met many Scottish and Irish musicians. They taught him different types of traditional dances and tunes, like Reels and Gigues.
Joseph continued to travel and play music in the United States until 1917. That year, he moved back to Canada and settled near Montreal, Quebec.
Recording His Music
In 1926, Joseph Allard was chosen to represent Quebec at a big worldwide fiddling competition. This event was held in Lewiston, Maine. He was one of five fiddlers from Quebec to attend. The others were Johnny Boivin, A. S. Lavallée, Médard Bourgie, and Ferdinand Boivin.
Two years later, in 1928, a record company called Victor's Bluebird label signed him. This meant he could make recordings of his music. Joseph Allard recorded 75 songs on special records called 78s. He also recorded six more songs using his other name, Maxime Toupin.
Joseph Allard was one of the first French Canadian fiddlers to record his music for people to buy. Besides playing traditional songs, he also wrote about sixty of his own original songs.
Joseph Allard's Lasting Impact
Joseph Allard's music and style continued to inspire others. In 1976, a famous fiddler named Jean Carignan released a special album. It was called Jean Carignan rend hommage à Joseph Allard, which means "Jean Carignan pays tribute to Joseph Allard."
Jean Carignan had started learning from Joseph Allard in 1926. He learned almost all of Allard's songs and playing techniques.
In 1997, it was 50 years since Joseph Allard had passed away. To honor him, the town of Châteauguay named a new room in its public library after him. They also named a street in a part of town known for musicians after Joseph Allard.
