A disc comprising a melody entitled Potatoes can’t be fundamentally bad! Publishers Atma and Centrediscs (project led by pianist Marc Bourdeau) are interested in Montreal baritone composer and lyricist Lionel Daunais (1901-1982). Prix d’Europe 1926, Daunais went to study in Paris. Back in Quebec in 1930, he was a pillar of the Canadian Operetta Society, then founded the Variétés lyriques. A great promoter of operetta, he was also a radio man and director. The 30 tracks recorded by baritone Dominique Côté and pianist Esther Gonthier in April 2021 at Domaine Forget (excellent voice-piano balance) are divided between learned melodies (on poems by Paul Éluard, Paul Fort; superb Love song by Éloi de Grandmont) and songs for which Daunais wrote the lyrics (Folklore, Fantasy in all tones, Songs for children). The art of Francis Poulenc immediately comes to mind when listening to this pleasant text CD in which Dominique Côté finds the right tone.
Click here for an excerpt.
To see in video