Guitarist, director and composer, Michel Cusson is a multi-talented musician, whose works are performed in ten languages, or so, across the globe; from French to Chinese as well as Hawaiian, by famous solo artists as much as in lavish productions. Renowned for his repeatedly rewarded outstanding movies and television series soundtracks, he is constantly and mostly searching for new avenues in music creation and exploration. It is by being on the look-outs for innovative ideas and experiences that makes it possible for someone to suddenly breakdown all barriers.

 

Michel Cusson is in great demand for his movies and television soundtracks. He has contributed to Quebec ‘s hits such as Aurore (Luc Dionne), Maurice Richard and Séraphin – Un Homme et son Péché (Charles Binamé), for which his soundtrack was awarded a Jutra in 2003, eventually becoming the best seller in the history of Quebec with 75 000 copies. He also participated in many international projects such as Père et fils (Michel Boujenah), with France and Metallic Blues (Danny Verete), with Israel. His work is also very much in demand for documentaries, especially since he has produced the soundtrack of Riopelle which earned him a Hot-Docs award. Recently, he created the original music for a television series on aviation created by CBC, Canada, Above and Beyond, as well as many IMAX documentaries with the use of symphonic orchestra: Legends of Flight, Ultimate Wave Tahiti, Dinosaurs Alive, Fighter Pilot: Operation Red Flag, Volcanoes of the Deep Sea and Wolves, for which he was inspired to use traditional elements of the music of the First Nations as a backdrop and for which he was awarded a prize at the Native American Music Awards and at the International Wildlife Film Festival.

 

His work, though, was brought to light with 14 Felix Awards, 7 SOCAN Awards, 1 Jutra Award, 6 Gémeaux Awards and a Gemini. In 2003, the Canadian Academy of Cinema & Television honored him with one of its highest award, Le Prix des Immortels de la télé, for the original soundtrack of the three-time award-winning television series Omertà. In 2006, he was given the Chevalier de la Pléiade distinction, which highlights the career of outstanding artists from the French-speaking world.

 

Even though Michel’s talent as a composer benefited many large scale projects, he was first noticed for his contribution as a guitarist in the famous jazz-fusion band UZEB and with Wild Unit. However, his transition from guitarist to composer was predictable since he began composing at the age of 15, four years before founding UZEB. The instant success of the band, which performed in 20 countries and released 10 award-winning albums, was an early great achievement for the young musician who grew up in Drummondville, a small town in Quebec which counted very few musicians and no jazz school. Michel says he learned almost all about jazz on his own, even though he later studied music at both McGill University in Montreal and Berklee College of music in Boston. While touring with UZEB, his passion and talent for composing remained constant. “Whenever I had a minute, I had to write” he remembers. When the members of the group decided to go their separate ways in 1991, he already knew he would be composing, and not only jazz. “From the beginning, I didn’t want to focus on only one style, like jazz, but on music as a whole“.

Highly sought for large scale productions, Michel Cusson also worked on a dozen mega-shows all around the world. He was always interested by the international aspect of music; therefore, he mostly wanted to blend his own style to the traditional music he encountered, in tune with its history and the local cultures. It is with this state of mind that he composed the music of many shows that have the same impact, year after year, each night, during a live performance of his compositions. Kaleido, his most recent work, is a new mega-show that just started at the Gong Theater in Shanghai featuring young acrobats. Ulalena, a Hawaiian production, has been presented daily for the last twelve years. Also, Era-Intersection of Time, a multimedia performance, is still on after six years at the Shanghai Circus World, and added to that, the sumptuous Cavalia is still shown everywhere for about seven years in Europe and America and its soundtrack, as well as Ulalena’s, have sold more than 70 000 copies.

 

Michel is currently working on two IMAX movies, one Musical called Le Petit Roy and on the new mega-show Cavalia II.

Having created the music of 24 movies, 9 mega-shows, 19 television series and 30 albums is “only the beginning “for Michel Cusson.