Canadian Violinist Angèle Dubeau Steps Back From Performing

Dubeau has retired from violin playing long term due to a chronic nerve condition

In a career spanning over 45 years, violinist Angèle Dubeau has performed all over the world. Recording exclusively on the Canadian label, Analekta, her 48 albums have sold over 650,000 copies and been streamed 195 million times.

Recently, the 62-year-old announced her retirement from violin playing, explaining that her right index finger “has lost its sensitivity and is in a permanent state of numbness.” 

“For as long as I can remember, music has been part of my life,” Dubeau posted on Facebook. “With it, I have expressed myself, with it I have traveled, and always with it, I am nourished by it daily. My violin has been a faithful friend since the age of four. It has colored my life and was, even better than words, my means of expressing myself. 

“But from now on, I will have to learn to flourish without my violin,” she added. “It is with a broken heart that I find myself faced with the physical inability to play it. My right hand, more precisely my index finger, master of the bow, has lost its sensitivity and is in a permanent state of numbness. You have to understand that I have pressed, with pressure and precision, in the same place for 58 years. The nerve is therefore frayed and well crushed.”

Dubeau attended the Conservatoire de Musique de Montréal, where she received a master's degree in violin at age 15, studying with Raymond Dssaisnts. She later moved to New York City to study with Dorothy DeLay at The Juilliard School. 

She also studied with Stefan Gheorghiu in Romania from 1981 to 1984 and won numerous international competitions. She has since performed solo all over the world, plus appeared on televised music programs for young audiences, at popular concerts, and music festivals. 

Additionally, she formed the Fête de la Musique de Tremblant festival over 25 years ago, which features Canadian artists and their works and attracts over 40,000 music lovers annually. She is also the founder of the all-female string ensemble La Pietà. 

“I hope with all my heart that my violin will continue to move you through my 48 albums,” Dubeau continued in her post. “Because ultimately, what soothes me in this difficult stage is knowing that my music will continue to accompany you in your lives, in your small and big moments. For my part, I will always remain this woman of passion, this craftsman of beauty, and will try to continue to bring hearts and people together. I will put my creative spirit, my energy and my wealth of knowledge into my future projects and I leave you here with what I have always thought deeply and which remains my motto: ‘Music is the good of all!’”

“Mrs. Dubeau, your music has deeply touched so many lives,” commented Orchestre symphonique de Montréal. “Your talent will continue to resonate through your works. The entire OSM team thanks you for your contribution to classical music and wishes you all the best for the future.”

Our best wishes to Ms. Dubeau for all her future endeavors!