Sophie Lavoie is a musician (fiddle player, pianist and singer) and ethnomusicologist from Lac-Saint-Jean, in Québec. She grew up in a family where traditional music and songs were to be heard often and she started learning music herself with classical piano at the age of 10. In 2004, Sophie graduated from the University of Montreal with a Batchelor degree in Classical Piano and in 2019 she submitted her thesis Les violoneux du Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean : style et répertoire des derniers de leur lignée and obtained a Master’s Degree in Ethnomusicology. Sophie has recorded on numerous albums acclaimed by critics, such as L’Attisée (2010), Sophie & Fiachra (2010), Rewind (2014), Un Canadien errant (2016), Au bout du rang (2016), Portraits (2019), Le bonhomme sept heures/The Bonesetter (2021) and Bleu bleu (2023). Notably, her latest album Bleu bleu « has captured the essence of quebecois music » (Fiddler Magazine). This work of entirely original, inspired by quebecois traditional songs, is « a gem » (Fiddler Magazine).
Sophie has also been described as a “sublime composer” (folkworld) and an “expert fiddler” (songlines magazine). She obtained three nominations (2016, 2019, 2022) at Canadian Folk Music Awards in the category Traditional Singer of the Year. She has given talks and workshops in most prestigious institutions, such as Université de Montréal and the world recognized Irish Word Academy of Music and Dance, in Ireland, where she taught for a full semester. Sophie is “one of the rising stars of Québécois music” (fRoots Magazine).
What the press say about Sophie
As a composer :
« One cannot be unmoved when hearing the soundscapes of this record. This is the soundtrack to 18th century French Canada » Fiddler Magazine (2024)
« Cette chanson folk, souvent en lien direct avec la musique traditionnelle dont elle est aussi une grande porteuse, est riche et plurielle, comme sa voix. Sophie est vraisemblablement une porteuse de beauté exceptionnelle, une frissonneuse qui me semble essentielle dans le paysage québécois. » Nicolas Boulerice, Le Vent du Nord (2023)
« Sophie Lavoie is also a sublime composer on Celtic/French terrain »
FolkWorld, Allemagne (2018)
“Lavoie also demonstrates her credentials as tunesmith and songwriter, including the two tunes which make up the album’s title track. Her piece de resistance is her haunting “À Grosse Isle” The Boston Irish Contributor (2021)
« A Lavoie composition, the catchy crooked tune Daniel » The Irish Magazine (2021)
« Rounding out the selections on the album are four fantastic tunes that are Sophie’s own compositions. »
Roots Music Canada, Canada (2019)
« a few modern composition in the traditional style, which sits perfectly with the others »
The Living Tradition, Royaume-Uni (2019)
« Her tune compositions are lithe and masterful, and her choice of songs is enough to captivate the most casual listener. »
The Irish Times, Irlande (2016)
« On trouve, sur ce disque, de pures merveilles, notamment le Reel des falaises de neige, un reel lent d’une rare beauté composé par Sophie »
L’Action, Louis Cornellier
As a musician and singer (violon, voix, piano) :
« Lavoie has captured the essence of Quebecois music with her fiddling » Fiddler Magazine (2024)
« the charm is her vocals hugging her emotional fiddling » Fiddler Magazine (2024)
The singing voices of Sophie and their guest, Michel Faubert, are stellar. » Roots Music Canada, Canada (2021)
« Trio qui est composé de la musicienne Sophie Lavoie, qui vient du Lac-St-Jean, qui est une formidable violoneuse. » Le 15-18, Radio-Canada (2021)
« lovely voice and expert fiddling »
Songlines magazine, Royaume-Uni (2019)
« Sophie’s rendition of La belle endormie is a mile away from other versions you might discover online. Sophie takes this song into a dark realm. »
The Irish Music Magazine , Irlande (2018)
« sweet and pleasant voice by Sophie Lavoie, who also storms through some impressive Irish and Québécois dance tunes on fiddle »
FolkWorld, Allemagne (2019)
« Lavoie’s vocal performance is especially impressive on the title-track»
Songlines magazine, Royaume-Uni (2017)
Albums Bleu bleu (2023), Le bonhomme sept heures (2021), Portraits (2019), Un Canadien errant (2016) and Bleu bleu (2023) :
« spectacular album » Fiddler Magazine (2024)
« a gem » Fiddler Magazine (2024)
« This album is nothing short of fantastic. It gives us history, tragedy and joy. It gives us the old and the new side by side, and it represents the musical best of two great cultures.» Roots Music Canada, Canada (2021)
« Grosse Isle pourrait bien devenir une référence en musique traditionnelle. » C’est jamais pareil, Radio-Canada (2021)
« This is another delightful album from the Quebec trio. I really like the freshness, musicality and fine production on this album and highly recommend you get hold of it, play it and enjoy the experience. »The living tradition (2021)
« one of the most downright enjoyable albums to come this way for a considerable time »
fRoots, Royaume-Uni (2019)
« It is hard not to tap your foot to the music on the disc – an enjoyable listen ! »
The Fiddler Magazine, USA (2019)
« Portraits is a giant and beautiful listen that combines the best from the folk traditions of both Québec and Ireland. It is a work of art in itself »
Roots Music Canada, Canada (2019)
« Portraits is a hugely enjoyable collection, a real treasure for those with ecclectic taste. […] sweet and pleasant voice by Sophie Lavoie, who also storms through some impressive Irish and Québécois dance tunes on fiddle »
FolkWorld, Alex Monaghan (2019)
« A trio of Québec-based traditional musicians revel in one anothers’ exceptional talents »
Penguin Eggs, Canada (2019)
« This is a lovely album with great musicianship and an overall gentle joi de vivre which effortlessly combines the music of both the Québecois and Irish traditions. Highly recommended. »
The living tradition, Royaume-Uni (2019)
« Really exceptional stuff »
Andy Nagy, Black Jack Davy Show, USA (2019)
« Absolutely amazing »
radio Clare FM, Irlande (2018)
« A lovely album, and one for my Quebecois collection »
The Irish Music Magazine, Ciaran O’Kane, Irlande (2018)
« The combination with Sophie & Fiachra is quite magical »
The Irish Music Magazine, Mark Lysaght, Irlande (2018)
« this is pretty splendid stuff […] Lavoie’s vocal performance is especially impressive on the title-track»
Songlines magazine, Royaume-Uni (2017)
« une expérience musicale saisissante, qui atteint son paroxysme avec une version magnifique et déchirante d’Un Canadien errant »
Le Devoir, Louis Cornellier, Canada (2016)