Montreal Jubilation Gospel Choir - Musical Career

Musical Career

The choir was founded and directed by Trevor W. Payne in 1982 and gave its first performance at the St. James United Church in Montreal. The first members primarily came from The Montreal Black Community Youth Choir, which existed between 1974-1981. The two other founding members were the Reverend Frank Gabourel and Daisy Peterson Sweeney, the sister of Oscar Peterson, who taught both her brother Oscar Peterson and Oliver Jones to play the piano. The choir was founded to commemorate the 75th anniversary of Montreal's oldest black community church, Union United Church up the street from the Atwater Market on the corner of Delisle and Atwater, which borders the St. Henri and Little Burgundy neighborhoods. The Reverend Frank B. Gabourel was the minister of the Union United Church from 1968 to 1981.

The Montreal Jubilation Gospel Choir, one of the world's finest choirs, performs at gospel celebrations in Montreal and across Canada, the United States, and Europe. The choir's repertoire focuses on traditional and contemporary gospel music but has added a mix of music ranging from Gregorian chant to Sebastian Bach chorals, traditional Zulu music and a modern Jazz: the oratorio.

They have performed with such entertainers as Celine Dion, Oliver Jones, Martine St-Clair, as well as The New Kids on the Block, Salome Bey, and Ray Charles. They have performed at many festivals, including the Montreal International Jazz Festival, the Stratford Festival of Canada, and Toronto's Harbourfront and International choral festival.

They have recorded a total of eleven CDs, some of which have won Juno Awards. In 1993 the MJGC performed on the Klaus König oratorio Song of Songs. In 1995 their album Jubilation V: Joy to the World won a Juno. They won the outstanding recording artist in 1987 by The Association of Gospel Music Ministries, and in 1989 they were named the best choral ensemble, and also won for best gospel album. In the years 1993 to 1995 they were named vocal group of the year by the Canadian magazine Jazz Report. The choir released a twenty-five year retrospective album in 2007, Jubilation XI - Looking Back, Vol. 2.