André Laplante

André Laplante, (born November 12, 1949) is a Canadian pianist. He received a 2004 Juno Award for the 2003 recording Concertos: Music of Jacques Hétu. He is considered to be a Franz Liszt specialist and is much associated with the music of Maurice Ravel.Born in Rimouski, Quebec, Canada, Laplante was awarded 3rd prizes at the inaugural edition of the Sydney Competition and the XV Long-Thibaud Competition. He shared second place with French pianist Pascal Devoyon at the 1978 International Tchaikovsky Competition. Laplante made his debut at Carnegie Hall on October 21, 1978.He has received two Felix Awards for his recordings. At the award ceremonies of 2004, Laplante received a Juno Award in the category Classical Album of the Year – Large Ensemble or Soloist(s) with Large Ensemble Accompaniment for the recording Concertos: Music of Jacques Hétu. He was awarded the Order of Canada on October 29, 2004 and invested to the Order on June 10, 2005.