“Q” is for “QW4RTZ”
A Simply Fantastic and Homegrown A Capella Quartet!
By Phyllis Knox
This blog is part of a very special series created and written by Phyllis Knox, “Alphabetic Musings”, whereby she chooses a word starting with a particular letter from the alphabet and injects it with her storytelling magic.
Pronounced: “KWARTS” in French and “KWORTS” in English - this ‘play on words’ of the group’s name shows their sense of humour! Actual quartz is of course a gemstone; a hard crystalline mineral composed of silica (silicon dioxide) Si02. According to Wikipedia, it is used to make jewelry and carvings.
Just like quartz, this musical team works as hard as rock and composes sounds which can be compared to the sparkle and the exquisite high-class style of king-like jewelry as well as the beauty and the strength of QW4RTZ or quartz as representing the life-like carvings of the many characters which they play and depict during their many performances, “as they strut and fret their hour upon the stage”, as Shakespeare would have said.
And just to let you know: I have a lot to say about this group, because I just love them! Listen for yourself and I am sure you too will become a fan!
These home-grown Quebecois talents represent the best in all of us. QW4RTZ have their roots in the children’s choir Les Petits Chanteurs de Trois-Rivieres. From their website, you can read, in French, that “what was once a schoolyard activity quickly became a teen-ager’s creative outlet and, a few years later, a true artistic project. ….The band has performed hundreds of times in Canada, from Vancouver to Moncton and the five corners of Quebec (well four of them: Nujuvik, we’re still waiting for your call), several TV appearances, festival shows in front of crowds of tens of thousands, and a few European concerts later.” This is to quote a member of the group in the fall of 2016. Now, some seven years later, they are simply one of the most top-rated examples of what our province and its people stand for. They are clearly the most outstanding (musically-talented) citizens of our great city at the mouth of the fabulous St. Maurice River and on the banks of the mighty St. Lawrence...Trois-Rivieres. To tell the truth, Fa2 (as he has come to be known) is from nearby Montreal (the group kind of adopted him, he could be called a: Presque Trifluvien, EH?) Their combined generosity and honesty and high-quality characters make the group stand out from among so many others (from all others?). They are our pride and joy!
The quartet is composed of Louis Alexandre Beauchemin (tenor & beatboxer), Philippe Courchesne-Leboeuf (baritone), Francois (Fa2) Dube (bass) and Francois Pothier Bouchard (tenor). (See picture below showing the quartet with one of their most appreciative fans, EH!)
They presented their first show in March 2010. The show was called: Rendez-vous à quatre and was considered an enormous success at the time...they would go on to perform in Montreal and they would show their best on European tours and perform to the delight of the public in so many local Quebec shows (such as The Just for Laughs Festival) in between. They have put on shows in Ontario and the Maritimes as well as multiple locations (to mention just one, The Bell Centre) in their much-beloved home province of Quebec. There have been many changes over these almost 15 years...members have come and gone (Francois Pothier Bouchard and Louis Alexandre Beauchemin have remained steadfast in their roles within the quartet) but, the basic sound and feel of the group has only improved as the artists work their way to a finesse which can only be called: miraculous!
On November 11, 2016, their debut album, A Capella 101, was released. The critics gave great reviews of the Quebecois and French material: Edith Piaf, Charles Aznavour and our own Gilles Vigneault (The bilingual I Went to the Market is my favourite!) The quartet did a marvelous job of pleasing their audiences and their careers blossomed year after year.
In 2018, the group was asked to perform for the G7 Summit, and so they prepared for and worked hard to meet the challenge, as they always do. Can you imagine singing to and performing for the Prime Minister of Canada (Justin Trudeau) the heads of State of Germany (Angela Merkel), France (Emmanuel Macron), Japan (Shinzo Abe), Italy (Giuseppe Conte), the United Kingdom (Theresa May) and (must I mention him? – Oh, go ahead, Phyllis (sigh): the then-President of the United States of America whose name starts with a T.) They received a spontaneous standing ovation from these world leaders, on a truly world stage.
Patricia Rainville in les Coops de l’information, wrote an article that appeared in La Tribune in 2018, QW4RTZ: Quatre gars, quatre voix. This is my own translation: “Once upon a time there were four guys. And, above all, there were four voices. The quartet is on its way to perform in Sherbrooke and the evening promises brand new material. Strangely, there will be no instruments in this particular show. Performing without instruments, you say! But rest assured: there will be music and there will be rhythm. That we can promise you!” Ms. Rainville’s article goes on to tell the reader about the humour, the good vibes, and the terrific atmosphere perpetually present during the group’s time on stage – which I can personally vouch for. As mentioned earlier, three of the ‘boys’ have lived their lives right here in the St. Maurice Valley and have known each other since sitting side by side in grade four, no less. Only Fa 2, as he is known, is originally from Montreal. That bond is felt by all who are lucky enough to sit in a theatre and let themselves slide into a magical world of rhythm and sound and, of course, of laughter too.
I have been told that Francois (if I may call him and the three others by their first names) once said that if he could be and were a super hero, he would travel through time and space and he added that his super hero power would be that, if possible, he would converse in all the languages spoken on Planet Earth. Not surprising when you find out that Francois is now an airplane pilot...he told his parents, while still a very young boy, that someday, he would sing and he would fly...he had already zeroed in on where he fit into and what he could consequently accomplish with who he was and what talents he could use to get to where and what he wanted to be. As far as language is concerned, I, for one, can sit for a long time and listen to Francois being interviewed in French, and though I do not always understand each and every word nor the complete message, I am taken aback by the sound and the rhythm of his ‘pitch-perfect’ speaking voice. This young man grew up in a French-speaking family, in a French-speaking city, went to French-speaking neighbourhood schools, played with French-speaking children on the streets of his hometown. Later, he studied at French-speaking colleges and universities, went to music camps where French was the language of choice yet, his perfect-pitch-English-language-singing-voice is right there too, right below the surface ready to explode into wonderful sounds. It is quite phenomenal to me that these musicians pick up the most minute sounds and they are then able to express these sounds using their own vocal chords; it’s a mystery to one who has absolutely NO talent whatsoever in any kind of musical environment. That fact never stopped me from ‘loving’ music, I just could never have picked up an instrument and learned to play nor could I have used my vocal cords to make a living, EH? (Those who know me well or even just a little, know that I do use my vocal cords a lot... to talk though, hehehe!) Francois’ bandmate Phil would have also liked to have travelled in time, but his dream was to do so without having to sleep (I guess the plan would be to never have to stop...therefore, to always travel further and further into Outer Space). Fa2 says that he is ready for whatever life throws his way. Finally, Louis seems to be happy with his talent, his voice capacity, his vocals, his personal gift from him to us which is: a cappella ‘at its very, very best!’ (my words, not his!)
All four of these talented artists show different sides of themselves and open up to their public which is quite marvelous; each has his own clear personality onstage, where they delight audiences wherever they go. However, they also get involved behind the scenes with social development work, and have supported the organization Sopar-Bala Vikasa, which encourages sustainable development in India through various projects, including the digging of wells to make clean water available to local populations. QW4RTZ donates $1 from the sale of each Shkabedabedweebeshoobop album.
Another project saw QW4RTZ join forces with Culture 3R, and the four singers show a keen sense of understanding the problematic dropout rate in secondary schools here in Quebec and elsewhere. They have become spokespeople to students about the importance of persevering and completing high school. On October 25, 2022, the group performed here in Trois-Rivieres at the Salle J.A. Thompson. The 60-minute concert cost only 9$ per person – cheaper than a movie! The school kids were entertained with songs chosen for their age range. The students listened closely as each member of the quartet spoke, laughed, explained things, and sang to THEM. A young 14-year-old boy who I know very well was so impressed with QW4RTZ that he asked his mom to take him to the next show.
These geniuses are all over the map both literally and stylistically, as they say, EH! I suggest that you explore their music online; here are some Youtube links, and the 22 or so minutes you spend will be well worth it: Bohemian Rhapsody, Despacito, The Shape of You, Something Just Like You, Summer of ‘69/Sunglasses at Night, Le meilleur des Quatre, A CAPELLA 2012.
If you want to see the group in person, look here for their upcoming tour dates! Have fun, EH!
-Phyllis
P.S. And so, to summarize: the male quartet that goes by the name QW4RTZ is a mixture of talent, synchronization of voices and moves, smarts, humour, generosity, hard work and good will. Their diversity is outstanding. They touch on all musical styles and the joy and the pleasure they share with all their fans, regardless of their age, is absolutely outstanding.I hope that you too have discovered of will discover their unique sound and the message behind the music performed by these four amazing, artists, born and bred right here in the St. Maurice Valley. the sounds and the words and the messages presented to all of us by these four young ‘musicians’.
