Orchestre de la francophonie opens 25th-anniversary season with free Parc La Fontaine concert
The Théâtre de Verdure hosts the opening concert of OF's 2026 season featuring young musicians from around the world, ages 18–30, under conductor Julien Proulx.
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The Orchestre de la francophonie marked its 25th anniversary with a free opening concert July 4 at the Théâtre de Verdure in Parc La Fontaine, drawing a packed crowd for an evening of classical music under conductor Julien Proulx.
Proulx, now the OF's artistic director, leads an orchestra of talented young musicians aged 18 to 30 from around the world, chosen for a six-week residency. The program, titled Kaléidoscope symphonique, ranged from Bizet's Carmen and Stravinsky's Firebird to works by Québécois composer Pierre Mercure and contemporary pieces by young local composers.
The concert closed with Dvořák's New World Symphony, each movement painting a different portrait of the composer's journey from Bohemia to America. Proulx sees the orchestra's work as creating "a unit, a common sound, a common vision"—translating Dvořák's story into the musicians' own. The OF is presenting five concerts across Montréal this summer, three of which are free.
