Jacques Lacombe receives Order of Canada
New Jersey Symphony Orchestra Music Director Jacques Lacombe has been invested into the Order of Canada. The centerpiece of Canada’s honors system, the Order of Canada recognizes a lifetime of outstanding achievement, dedication to the community and service to the nation.
Lacombe formally received the insignia of Member of the Order of Canada from Governor General of Canada David Johnston, who is Chancellor and Principal Companion of the Order, at an investiture ceremony on May 7 at Rideau Hall.
The NJSO music director garnered the honor for his international career and achievements, as well as his work within the country. Lacombe has been music director of his hometown orchestra, Orchestre Symphonique de Trois-Rivières, since 2006.
Lacombe—who in 2012 received the highest honor Québec’s government can bestow when he was knighted by the National Order of Québec—says he is proud to represent Canada in his work abroad: “I am proud to be a citizen of Canada, and I feel [that connection to my country] always. Canada fascinates Europeans, and I’ve found that Canadian artists are well respected for their creativity.”
This month, Inside Jersey includes Lacombe in “The 100+ Club” of the most influential people in New Jersey, writing: “As music director of the NJSO since 2010, Jacques Lacombe has led the orchestra on one fruitful adventure after another. Honored by Carnegie Hall for adventurous programming, he and the orchestra achieved a stunning success at the Spring for Music festival in 2012—their first appearance at the venue in six years. Lacombe has also initiated the New Jersey Roots Project, showcasing composers with local ties, including jazz artist Geri Allen; excelled in challenging and contemporary music; and celebrated the classical masterworks.”
RELATED: Jacques Lacombe in state’s ‘100+ Club’ of most influential
NJSO President & CEO James Roe says: “Jacques is not only a world-class conductor and artistic leader, but he is also a passionate ambassador for Canada and its wealth of musical talent. We are immensely proud that Canada has recognized him for his contributions to the cultural fabric of the country—and particularly his hometown, Trois-Rivières—and for his outstanding international career.”
Since becoming the NJSO’s Music Director in 2010, Lacombe has garnered praise from critics and audiences for his creative programming and his talents at the podium. He launched the acclaimed New Jersey Roots Project—an ambitious multi-year initiative through which the NJSO has performed the music of composers who were born in New Jersey or whose artistic identity was shaped by their time spent in the Garden State. The Orchestra has presented multiple premieres through the project, including works by Geri Allen, George Walker, Robert Aldridge and Edward T. Cone.
Under Lacombe’s leadership, the NJSO has augmented select concerts with multimedia elements and daring new programs. The music director has garnered acclaim for his adventurous programming; The Star-Ledger has praised the “bold, intelligent [program] choices” and “sure-handed performances” that led to the NJSO being selected to perform at the Spring for Music Festival at Carnegie Hall. Of that concert—Lacombe’s Carnegie Hall debut—The New York Times wrote, “It was an honor to be in the hall for the astonishing performance.”
In his address to the 45 recipients of the Order of Canada at the investiture ceremony, the Governor General said: “Each of you has desired stronger communities and a better Canada in which to live—indeed, a better world—for a very long time. Certainly, you have poured your respective hearts and souls into your work. You have achieved a level of focus that has enabled you to excel and to effect positive change, be it a new idea or innovation, an original song or story, or a new way of reaching out and helping others. You are thoughtful and introspective, and yet your actions are geared outwards to the world.”
Read a French-language feature on Lacombe’s investiture in the Order from Le Nouvelliste [IN FRENCH].
Pictured: NJSO Music Director Jacques Lacombe (left) receives the insignia of Member of the Order of Canada from Governor General of Canada David Johnston. Credit: MCpl Vincent Carbonneau, Rideau Hall, OSGG.