de Mestral, Charles

Charles de Mestral was born in Montreal in 1944. He obtained a B.A. Philosophy and English Literature, University of Toronto in 1996; an M.A. University of Montreal in 1970; a McGill B.Mus. (composition studies with Allan Heard, Mario Bertoncini, Harry Freedman) in 1976 and a Ph.D. University of Montreal (thesis on the particularity of the aesthetic of Georg Lukacs) in 1981. In 2007-08, he studied language and ancient Chinese thought at the Asian Studies Centre of the East, University of Montreal.
Charles de Mestral was an active member of the Montreal band Sonde as composer, performer, sound sculptor, and designer of electronic systems from 1975-2010. Sonde produced more than a hundred public events (concerts, performance accompaniments, sound installations, emissions, film music) and more than a hundred electroacoustic compositions for execution (usually) live in Quebec, Ontario and in Paris, London, Berlin, Lyon, and Bristol.
From 1987 to 1990, Charles was Secretary of the Canadian Electroacoustic Community (CEC).
Charles has held several teaching positions in Montreal at the Cégep du Vieux Montreal. From 1968 to 2007, Charles was Professor of Philosophy and coordinator of the Philosophy department from 1990 to 2000. From 1997 to 2007, Charles was Professor of Arts and Letters in the Communications Program and coordinator of the program from 2001 to 2006. Retired since June 2007, he lectures as part of the People's University Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, the Montreal UPOP (the People's University of Montreal) and the University of the Third Age.
Charles de Mestral currently (2016) resides in Montreal.