JEAN MOVED BYMUSIC AT CEREMONY
OTTAWA • A Quebec classic, Hymne à la Beauté du Monde, brought Michaëlle Jean to tears yesterday.
The song, which was added to the program of Ms. Jean’s investiture ceremony at the last minute, came as a surprise to her, and she sang along as she wept.
The title translates as Anthem to the Beauty of the World, and the lyrics are by Luc Plamondon, a Quebec songwriter who has written music for such stars as Celine Dion.
Montreal singers Lynda Thalie, 27, and Julie Massicotte, 33, sang the French song, which in English translation opens with the words “Let us not kill the beauty of the world/ Let us not kill the beauty of the world/ Let us not kill the beauty of the world/ Each flower, each tree that one kills/ Returns to kill us in his turn.”
Ms. Jean cried “from the first note until the end,” Ms. Massicotte said in an interview. “During the whole song she was crying. Even Paul Martin was red- eyed,” she added. “ It is one of the most beautiful songs in the world.”
Ms. Jean was particularly touched by the lyrics at the end of the song, which translate as “Let us not kill the beauty of the world/ Let us make a large garden/ For those who will come after us/ After us.”
At that point, she reached out to her six-year-old daughter, MarieEden. “ She grabbed her child, her little girl,” Ms. Massicotte said. “I will never forget that.”
The two women were called on Monday and asked to sing. They performed outside the Senate Chamber, just before the official ceremony.
The French song was the first of many performances for the new Governor- General, which prompted her to sing out loud, clap her hands and smile in joy.
During some of the entertainment yesterday, including the song How I Got Over by Sylvie Desgroseillers and the People’s Gospel Choir of Montreal, the Prime Minister joined Ms. Jean in clapping hands and moving to the music.
“She is going to change the image of a governor-general,” Ms. Massicotte said.
The two women, who do not usually sing duets, performed the same song for an event hosted by Ms. Dion for her ailing accountant.
Ms. Thalie had met Ms. Jean once before: They performed together at a women’s day event in Quebec. “She sang and danced. She was really amazing,” said Ms. Thalie, impressed that she had braved the stage alongside professional performers.