Claude is a workaholic. Although he never actualy studied on his instrument, no one would be able to tell because his 20 years of experience in concert bands at the Cercle Philharmonique de Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu and stage bands with the Orchestre Mélodium make up for it.

He came into Brass Kamarades from the beginning armed with nothing else than his strong will to succeed and his work ethics which are by far the best in the brass quintet. He rose to the challenge with determination and came up on top. He has a natural ability to put his finger on the problem during the rehearseals and he's always dead on target. And on top of it all, he does his homeworks.

He got a special connection with Denis Bellemare from the start and these two can make a rehearsal very interresting...in a demented kind of way!!!

Denis started out as a piano student in his hometown of St-Paul-de-Joliette. But he wised up during his college years in the renown private Collège de Joliette where he started the french horn just to have more fun with his friends who were all playing in the orchestra.

Attending that school, he was a member of the Quintette de Joliette and the Trio de Cuivres de Lanaudière. He was a natural and made the Conservatoire de Musique de Montréal his home for a few years where he studied under Joseph Masella. Ever since he left that school, he never looked back, playing in various orchestras such as Orchestre Symphonique des Jeunes de Joliette and the Orchestre du Conservatoire de Trois-Rivières, under conductors such as Yannick Nézet-Séguin at the Montreal International Music Camp and the Lanaudière Musical Camp.

His rich and full sound along with his good range and power earned him a place of choice into the french horn ensemble "Omnitonique" under the direction of Paul Marcotte who plays second horn at the Orchestre Métropolitain du Grand Montréal". Denis was the instigator of Brass Kamarades along with André Lessard on the trumpet.

The other Denis comes from a family of 9 musicians and singers so he was always surrounded by music. At 7 years old, he took piano lessons and again at age 12, he gave it another try with Réjean Poirier who is now dean and professor of the Music Faculty of the University of Montreal.

He started trumpet lessons at age 13 with Émile Rouiller, switched to alto horn the next year and made up his mind at age 15 when he started the trombone at the École Secondaire Beaulieu under Mr Gilles Roy. He also started euphonium the next school year and was a finalist at the soloist contest of the "Festival des Harmonies du Québec" in 1974 after playing the instrument for only 6 months.

In September 1974, he was accepted at the Conservatoire de Musique de Montréal into a special program for promissing young talents. He studied trombone without however completing his studies under Joseph Zuskin who was playing trombone at the OSM. Denis played trombone and euphonium for 30 years in numerous ensembles from town concert bands(St-Jean, Iberville, Lachine, Dorval, Kirkland, Laval, St-Bruno) to university bands(UQAM,UM), stage bands(Mélodium, UM stage band clinic), jazz and dixieland combos.

His tuba background is new. He started in 1999 at the Cercle Philharmonique de St-Jean to fill an empty chair whenever the electric bass player was absent and joined Brass Kamarades from the beginning. His best assets in music are the great intonations he can get from any of the three instruments he plays, his musical memory and his sense of musicality.

Born in the Saguenay region, Guylaine's musical career started with the violin at six years old. She studied for 3 years at the "École de Musique de Chicoutimi", she went on to the "Conservatoire de Musique de Chicoutimi" and the "Conservatoire de Musique de Québec".

At age 13, while continuing her violin studies, she got hooked on the trumpet and studied for 3 years under Mr Gilbert Blais. From 1985 to 1995, she played in a Big Band called "Contretemps"; from 1989 to 1992, she played music in the "Régiment du Saguenay" and for a bavarian orchestra; from 1992 to 1994, she went on to play for the "Fusilliers Mont-Royal" in Montreal; she also spent a few summers at the "Citadelle de Québec" for the Red Guard Music and was a violonist for the "Carnaval du Souvenir de Chicoutimi" in 1994.

She got transfered to St-Jean-sur-Richelieu and started playing trumpet at the "Cercle Philharmonique" in fall of 2002, joined the "Mélodium Orchestra" in January 2004 and joined Brass Kamarades in fall of the same year to replace Claude Jean. Guylaine is a good addition to the quintet and her work ethic and military discipline are welcomed, along with her good sense of humor (She needs it to work with 4 guys like us).

Born in Iberville QC, Michel started studying trumpet at 12 years old under Mario Charbonneau. He continued his studies at the Conservatoire de Musique de Montréal where he worked under the supervision of Mr Jacques Leconte. He then took private lessons with Mr James Thompson (formerly for the MSO), Mr Robert Gibson (McGill University) and Mr Charles Ellison (improvisation).

Multitalented, it is as classical, jazz and popular musician that he plays in many music formations of the Greater Montreal area. He also combined work and pleasure by using his vacation time to undertake numerous seminars and stages in the United States like a jazz seminar in Chicago under the well known professor Dominic Spera of Indiana University and an "Early Music" stage at Montclair State University NJ.

Since 2001, he has been collaborating to numerous shows and concerts in the Haut-Richelieu. After doing a combo gig with Denis D. for a common friend who was conducting a popular gospel choir named Voxapella, Denis immediately tought of him to replace André Lessard who just got transfered elsewhere.

Michel jumped on the occasion to get back in shape and fill the brass quintet's first chair. His gentle giant manners combined with his mellow sound, his musicianship and his sense of humor got him accepted in an instant.