Alain Bédard Auguste Quartet – Particules Sonores

For over a quarter of a century, Effendi Records and here in particular, Alain Bédard’s Auguste Quartet have been thrilling us with each new creation. Fougue, determination and commitment are the hallmarks of these “Particules Sonores”, collected in this powerfully inspired new opus.

The Auguste Quartet is back again this year with a creative album with a very distinct aesthetic. Can we speak (strictly speaking) of a Quebécers aesthetic? In any case, Effendi and Alain Bédard‘s Auguste Quartet is the image of a distinctive jazz sound, modern, rich and personal.

For Effendi Records and its leader-bassist, it’s a quarter-century of embodying Quebec jazz in all its diversity and dynamism: in 25 years, it’s 171 albums, 2025 concerts, 124 tours, in Canada, the USA, Europe and Asia, nearly 200 nominations and 89 distinctions.

In these stylish Particules Sonores, the Auguste Quartet‘s sixth album, the strong personalities of the quartet’s individual members stand out, as do their complicity and individual virtuosity. They deliver intense music, as deep as an account that transports you to forests and lakes, by the fireside.

Mario Allard, on saxophone, produces a velvety, colorful sound, backed by a top-class rhythm section: the fiery Michel Lambert on drums and the implacable front line Alain Bédard on double bass. They are the foundation of the Auguste Quartet. Then, on piano, the revelation of this group, the excellent Marie-Fatima Rudolf, a real discovery.

En me remémorant le concert de l’Auguste Quartet sur la scène du Studio de l’Ermitage à Paris, le 14 novembre dernier, je me rappelle les mots.. de Jean-Paul Sartre (ils ne figurent pas dans son célèbre roman)

« ce petit sens obscur qui habite les sons, gaité légère, timide tristesse, qui leur demeure immanent ou tremble autour d’eux comme une brume de chaleur. » Jean-Paul ajouta à une autre occasion, ” Le Jazz c’est comme les bananes. Ca se consomme sur place “.

En effet, le Jazz et celui de l’Auguste Quartet en particulier, n’est jamais aussi bon qu’en live.

Les Particules Sonores sont à déguster également en CD, sans modération.

Recalling the Auguste Quartet’s concert at the Studio de l’Ermitage in Paris on November 14, I’m reminded of the words… of Jean-Paul Sartre (they don’t appear in his famous novel) “that little obscure sense that inhabits sounds, light gaiety, timid sadness, that remains immanent to them or trembles around them like a mist of warmth.” Jean-Paul added on another occasion, “Jazz is like bananas. You eat it on the spot.

Indeed, Jazz, and that of the Auguste Quartet in particular, is never as good as live.

The Particules Sonores can also be enjoyed on CD, without moderation.