Auguste Quartet

For over twenty years, Alain Bédard has enjoyed a prolific career with his Auguste Quartet, touring the four corners of the globe. Remaining faithful to his original compositions, the ensemble has performed in dozens of countries across four continents, presenting hundreds of concerts throughout Asia, Europe, Russia, Africa, and North America — including Mexico and the United States — and especially in Canada and his native Quebec.

With six albums to their name — Auguste, Sphère Réflexion, Bluesy Lunedi (finalist at the ADISQ Gala and the JUNO Awards in 2010), Homo Pugnax, Circum Continum and Exalta Calma (praised by Couleurs Jazz, France) — the group continues its journey with a new opus, Particules sonores (also hailed by Couleurs Jazz as “best album”), a project both elusive and timeless.

This collective embodies a singular voice in modern jazz: a music that tells a story, that breathes, that evolves. The group explores notions of time and space with intelligence and sensitivity. The production showcases individual strengths while reinforcing a strong sense of cohesion. Faithful to its acoustic roots, this new incarnation of the Auguste Quartet reveals a rare musical complicity among exceptional artists, where origins dissolve into the raw power of collective creation. The exchange is lively, the inspiration flows freely — spontaneous, without borders.

Following the death in 2025 of their colleague and friend, the saxophonist Mario Allard, the Auguste Quarter continues its journey with a new line-up. Erik Hove (alto sax, composition), Marie-Fatima Rudolf (piano, composition), Alain Bédard (double bass, composition), and Michel Lambert (drums, composition).

Alain Bédard was artist in residence at the Studio du Québec in Rome, thanks to a grant from the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec. In 2024, he was awarded the Prix OPUS du Rayonnement à l'étranger by the Conseil québécois de la musique.

The NAC would like to acknowledge the generous support of John and Pina Sicard.