“That can’t be. I think it’s unfair. We would all like to live the rest, the next 15 or 20 years.
• Also read: “A privilege to have been your friend and to have held your hand until your last breath” – Jean-François Pauzé in homage to Karl Tremblay
• Also read: TO WATCH: The CH pays a touching tribute to Karl Tremblay
• Also read: Homage to Karl Tremblay: Thousands of fans at the foot of Mount Royal
As a privileged witness to Karl Tremblay’s last great moments on stage, singer Sara Dufour cannot come to terms with the thought that the man with whom she sang in the Merchant Marine duet in front of 90,000 people on the Plains of Abraham last summer is no longer with him is U.S.
“I don’t think I’m 100% sure yet,” she told the Journal on Thursday, 24 hours after she was shocked to learn of the death of the man she was friends with.
She was about to sing as part of Cégep en spectacles at the Théâtre Banque Nationale in Saguenay when the sad news became known.
“I opened with a minute’s silence. I had never done that in my life. I couldn’t start any other way. Then I sang Pub Royal in his honor.”
“Chosen”
Almost three weeks ago, Sara Dufour sang the same song to Karl at the Vieux Palais de L’Assomption on the occasion of his 47th birthday.
The singer, weakened, went on stage to hug her, a touching image that was immortalized on video and streamed online.
Last summer, the Lac-Saint-Jean artist opened for Cowboys Fringants at three major festivals, including the Plains of Abraham.
Today she feels it is a privilege to be able to experience these magical moments. “I feel elected,” Sara Dufour even says.
“I rewatched the video of his party and I think it was the last show he saw in his life. It touches me a lot, especially because I didn’t even think that he would stay until the end.
Under her wing
Sara Dufour is grateful that the Cowboys Fringants took her under their wing in some capacity.
“When Marie-Annick shared the video, she wrote that I was a great singer. How do you think I receive this? […] I’m touched that I got the accommodation I had,” she said, recalling an anecdote from Quebec.
“After my show, I thanked them for giving me the opportunity to open for them. Jean-François Pauzé told me: You don’t need the rest of us. It struck me that he said that. For me it was a compliment.”