Member of the Order of Canada

Maestro Jacques Lacombe was appointed as a Member of the Order of Canada, one of the highest civilian honors in the country. The insignia of the Order of Canada recognizes a lifetime of distinguished service to the community, group or field of activity. The prestigious award will be presented by His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada , during a ceremony to be held at a later date.

Born in Trois-Rivières, Québec, Jacques Lacombe has conquered the international scene thanks to his remarkable versatility and ability to communicate the spirit of works allowing him to excel in symphonic, opera and ballet repertoire.

Artistic Director of the Orchestre symphonique de Trois-Rivières since 2006, Maestro Lacombe is the first Québecois conductor to become the music director of an American orchestra: the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra. He previously served as principal guest conductor of the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal from 2002 to 2006, musical and artistic director of the Philharmonie de Lorraine, and conductor and music director of Les Grands Ballets Canadiens.

Invited by many orchestras and opera houses of prestige, Maestro Lacombe has also performed at Carnegie Hall and the Metropolitan Opera in New York, Covent Garden, Deutsche Oper Berlin and the Bavarian State Opera. He has had the opportunity to work with many renowned artists such as Yo-Yo Ma, Yefim Bronfman, Marc-Andre Hamelin, Lang Lang, Andre Watts, Joshua Bell, Gil Shaham, Renee Fleming, Angela Gheorghiu, Frederica Von Stade, Roberto Alagna and Bryn Terfel.  In addition, he has several recordings under the CPO and Analekta labels and has been broadcast on PBS, CBC, Mezzo TV in Europe and Arte TV in France.

Jacques Lacombe received his musical training at the Conservatoire de Musique de Trois-Rivières and Montréal and at the Hochschule für Musik in Vienna. He received Québec’s highest civilian honor in 2012, when he was named a Knight of the National Order of Québec.  Later that same year, Jacques Lacombe received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal.