Sam Gesser

Gesser was born in Montreal on January 7, 1930, and grew up in the colourful Plateau Mont-Royal neighbourhood. Growing up, he would sneak into His Majesty’s Theatre to watch the shows and to study the intricacies of scriptwriting. As an adult, his true vocation, in the impresario field, developed almost by chance. While in Chicago in the late 1940s, Gesser happened to purchase a Folkways recording of celebrated blues guitarist Leadbelly. On the back of the album was a listing of other records available from Folkways, none of which were available in Canada, as the record company had no distributor north of the border at that point.

After a meeting in New York with Folkways founder Moses Asch, Gesser signed on as the Canadian representative, and also took on the challenge of tracking down and producing Canadian folk music for the label. From 1950-1964, Gesser produced more than 100 original records for Folkways from songs of First Nations to the music of notable musicians such as Alan Mills, Jean Carignan and Hélène Baillargeon. In addition to this work, Gesser produced records for the Pye, Vox and Premier record labels, as well as writing countless radio and television scripts for CFCF and CBC. While producing records, Gesser got the idea that presenting the artists to live audiences was an excellent way to promote the music.

In 1950, Gesser arranged a concert date for Folkways artist Pete Seeger in Montreal at the L’Érmitage Hall located on Côte-des- Neiges Road, and impresario history was born. Over the ensuing years, Gesser presented over 3,000 performances to local, national and international audiences. His productions brought an immense range of artistry to Montreal; from folk to popular, classical to jazz, international music and dance to Broadway musicals and plays. The success of the Seeger show launched a 50+ year odyssey of showcasing Canadian and international talent to Montreal audiences. In addition to his local shows, Gesser also took on touring challenges for artists such as Harry Belafonte, Tony Bennett and Nana Mouskouri, bringing the live experience to Western Canada, regions of the United States, the Maritimes and small-town Quebec. Gesser helped to found Les Feux-Follets, a music and dance troupe that put Canadian heritage and artistry centre stage.

Gesser also contributed to arts and entertainment through writing. His play “Fineman’s Dictionary,” starring Fyvush Finkel, was presented in 2000 at the Saidye Bronfman Centre, in addition to a staged reading at the Jewish Public Library. “Dancing to Beethoven,” a play written for and acted by blind actors, was presented in 2003 at Place des Arts. In 2006, the cast and the play itself were also the subject of a National Film Board documentary.

Gesser’s dedication to his craft included making a donation of his substantial album collection to the Marvin Duchow Music Library, McGill University. In 2005, he donated his professional archives to the Jewish Public Library Archives. These archives not only document Gesser’s long career and his achievements, but also the history of Canadian culture and entertainment. For making major contributions to the field of arts and entertainment, Gesser was awarded the Order of Canada.

Special thank you to the Jewish Public Library Archives.