{"id":205,"date":"2014-02-14T20:04:29","date_gmt":"2014-02-14T20:04:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jirehgospelchoir.com\/?page_id=205"},"modified":"2026-03-12T14:26:39","modified_gmt":"2026-03-12T19:26:39","slug":"biography","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/jirehgospelchoir.com\/en\/biography\/","title":{"rendered":"Biography"},"content":{"rendered":"
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JIREH GOSPEL CHOIR<\/h2>\n

Winner of the GOSPEL ALBUM\u00a0OF THE YEAR (Gospel Music Association Canada)<\/small><\/h3>\n

JIREH Gospel Choir, based in Montreal and directed by Carol Bernard, has carved out quite a name for itself in the music industry in Canada and Europe. Composed of about fifteen singers plus musicians, JIREH members have travelled throughout the province of Quebec, to the rest of Canada, to the United States, and all the way to France and Italy to share their love for gospel music and spread its contagious energy. Whether performing outdoors or in an intimate setting, the choir delivers a powerful punch that leaves no one unmoved. From timeless classics to original compositions, JIREH perfectly combines traditional and contemporary gospel sounds.<\/p>\n

Recent Highlights:<\/p>\n

NFB documentary <\/strong>“JIREH GOSPEL, Hearts in chorus” 2025
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\nMontreal International Jazz Festival<\/strong> 2022\u00a0 <\/em>(headliner, main outdoor stage, prime time)<\/em><\/p>\n

Montreal Symphony Orchestra<\/strong> – Christmas concert broadcast on ICI Radio-Canada T\u00e9l\u00e9
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Bobby McFerrin<\/strong> – Montreal Jazz Festival <\/em>closing concert
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Bell Centre<\/em><\/strong> – opening (45 minutes) for 20 time Grammy Award winner Kirk Franklin<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\"about\"\n

A testament to the choir\u2019s dedication and unique brand of gospel music, JIREH Gospel Choir won the prestigious Gospel Album of the Year<\/em><\/strong> award in 2015 from the Gospel Music Association of Canada for their album “Get Up”. In 2012, the group won Gospel Song of the Year<\/em> for their song \u201cQuoi qu\u2019il arrive\u201d. <\/span><\/p>\n

Dedicated to delivering authentic yet creative music, JIREH\u2019s singers and artists push the musical boundaries of gospel by infusing their sound with their unique brand of joyful and reflective music all the while respecting the heart and soul, and traditions, of the music they love.<\/p>\n

JIREH Gospel Choir\u2019s foot-stomping beats will transform even bystanders into active participants while the music\u2019s uplifting message will raise your spirit for days to come!<\/p>\n

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Concert highlights include:<\/h4>\n

Bell Centre
\nMontreal International Jazz Festival
\nMontreal Symphony Orchestra
\nToronto Jazz Festival
\nDiscover Jazz Festival, USA
\nMontreux Jazz Festival, Switzerland
\nCirque du Soleil
\nTh\u00e9\u00e2tre T\u00e9l\u00e9bec, Val d’Or
\nSalle Desjardins-Telus, Rimouski
\nFestival Jazz et Blues de Saguenay
\nTremblant International Blues Festival
\n8-concert Quebec tour with Mario Pelchat<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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TV and Radio appearances include:<\/h4>\n

Radio-Canada – Tout peut arriver<\/em>
\nT\u00e9l\u00e9-Qu\u00e9bec – Belle & Bum<\/em>
\nICI Radio-Canada T\u00e9l\u00e9 – Great Voices of Quebec Sing Christmas<\/span><\/em>
\nRadio 98.5 FM – Le Qu\u00e9bec Maintenant<\/em>
\nCJAD 800 AM
\nCTV
\nCBC \/ SRC (radio)
\nCity TV – Breakfast Television
\nRadio-Canada TV \u2013 Cap sur l’\u00e9t\u00e9 with Marc Hervieux<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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CAROL BERNARD<\/h2>\n

Director<\/h3>\n\"\"\n

Carol Bernard has built an impressive music career as choir director, entrepreneur, singer, and producer.\u00a0 She founded Jireh Gospel Choir and Montreal Gospel Choir, was a judge for the JUNO awards, juror for FACTOR, and was also the director of the music department of a French-speaking church with more than 2,000 members. In February 2013, her contribution to Quebec society was recognized when she was named a Black History Month<\/em> laureate. In addition, her workshops are received with great enthusiasm, both in Canada and in Europe.<\/p>\n

Born in Montreal to Jamaican parents, Carol was encouraged to start classical piano lessons when she was 8 years old. Not too many years later she started directing the choir at her small church.\u00a0 However, it wouldn\u2019t be until many years later that she would leave a senior management position at CN Rail to pursue music full time. Bernard returned to university and completed a degree in music at the Universit\u00e9 de Montr\u00e9al, adding to her existing degree in mathematics and computer science from McGill University.<\/p>\n

Carol is married to Ted Dettweiler and lives in Montreal, Canada.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

JIREH GOSPEL CHOIR Winner of the GOSPEL ALBUM\u00a0OF THE YEAR (Gospel Music Association Canada) JIREH Gospel Choir, based in Montreal and directed by Carol Bernard, has carved out quite a name for itself in the music industry in Canada and Europe. Composed of about fifteen singers plus musicians, JIREH members have travelled throughout the province… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"home-page.php","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-205","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jirehgospelchoir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/205","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jirehgospelchoir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jirehgospelchoir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jirehgospelchoir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jirehgospelchoir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=205"}],"version-history":[{"count":40,"href":"https:\/\/jirehgospelchoir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/205\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3350,"href":"https:\/\/jirehgospelchoir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/205\/revisions\/3350"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jirehgospelchoir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=205"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}