French composer Julien Gauthier killed by a bear in Canada

He realized one of his dreams: to go down the Mackenzie River on a canoe-kayak, autonomously, through the great west of Canada, micro-stretched to capture the sounds of nature. Julien Gauthier was killed by a bear. The 44-year-old French-Canadian, who lives in Seine-Saint-Denis, was caught sleeping while camping on August 15th. A grizzly gripped him by the neck and shoulder and carried him into the forest. His body was found the next day, according to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

Camille Toscani, a friend who accompanied him on his 1,500-kilometer journey through these wild lands, alerted the relief workers. Attached to the phone by "Le Parisien / Aujourd'hui en France", she testifies:

"We were in Tulita along the Mackenzie River," she says."It was his dream to go there, to go to the North. He had proposed to participate in this adventure, it was three years that thought. " The canoe trip between Fort Providence and Inuvik was to last a month. The expedition had an artistic vocation, according to the project presented on the kisskissbankbank crowdfunding site: Camille Toscani is a naturalist photographer, while Julien Gauthier is a composer and sound recordist. For his creations, notably his "Southern Symphony" broadcast on France Musique, he used recorded sound recordings in the Kerguelen Islands, near Antarctica.

According to his website, he taught the history of music and analysis at the Departmental Radiation Conservatory of Gennevilliers and regularly spoke at the Philharmonie de Paris as part of the projects. Demos, Music Route and lectures at the Museum of Music.

Julien Gauthier was also welcomed in residence by the Orchester symphonique de Bretagne. Its administrator Marc Feldman, joined by France Musique, paid tribute to "His curious mind, humble before the vast power and beauty of nature".

"He wanted above all to convey through his music to the public his love and respect for nature. "