Des critiques et public
"Tardif showed every sign of being a first-rate artist… His playing of Wieniawsky's Scherzo-Tarentella invited an awed response from the audience." - Chronicle Herald, Halifax.

"Guillaume Tardif’s technique in the Brahms Concerto is solid and allows refinement and beauty." - El Comero, Lima, Peru

"It was a mesmerizing virtuoso performance of the Paganini Concerto " - Cultural review, Charlottetown, PEI

"Just absolutely stunning. it was an all out 100% tour de force ! Monday's performance by violinist Guillaume Tardif gave all in attendance a lovely shock. The twenty-eight-year-old Tardif is a master of his craft both technically and emotionally. It is unique to find a master quite so young and also quite so objective in his playing style. Tardif kept the audience enthralled by his cool removal from the music. It is not that Tardif doesn't care about the music he plays, the opposite is quite evident, rather he is one with the music he creates in a seemingly Zen state of being. When such a dazzling performance is rendered by a soloist, the accompanist must make every effort to dissolve into the background and still be heard by both the soloist and the audience... The work is mostly on the violinist in this finale, and once again, Tardif moved through the high-speed frenzy admirably. An excited intermission followed. Why? Because the last half of the recital featured the Violin Concerto No. 1 in D by none other than Niccolo Paganini. . The performance of this concerto was absolutely riveting. It was almost unbelievable; it was earth-shattering. All this incredibly difficult music... Talent like this rarely is seen in Sackville. Once again, the expression "tour de force" seems appropriate. This was one standing ovation that was really deserved, for both performers..." - Argosy Arts and Entertainment, Sackville, NB

"The recital was such a success that Tardif was already asked for encores at the end of the first half. He proceeded to perform with ease the terribly difficult 24th Caprice by Paganini" - Cultural Review, Miskolc, Hungary

"Guillaume Tardif’s violin masterful; virtuoso technique, superb ringing tone and imaginative programming made Tardif’s ‘Evening of Solo Violin’ a Sunday evening to remember… Tardif played with extreme musicality and intelligence, presenting his program with warmth and humility, endearing himself to his audience who left not only loving music even more, but being wiser as well. In the Bach E major partita, he emphasized the dance aspect, a pleasing departure from the usual performances, and the Chaconne was a vehicle for his stunning technique, as a well as a very intelligent and musical presentation of the complex work. Tardif's compositional skill was displayed in the delightful La Commedia dell'Arte, a set of variations on a theme by Corelli, in which he paints sound pictures of seven characters. The audience chuckled as it recognized the pomposity of the doctor, the flirtatious lover and the braggart captain. The Devil's Trill Sonata by Tartini received a reworking in a solo arrangement by Tardif in which he added a pizzicato 'lute' accompaniment to the already demanding violin part. The encores underscored the high comfort level between performer and audience in this exceptional recital. He took requests and performed Paganini Caprices and an excerpt from Ysaye's Ballade. THese are highly demanding works which we would normally feel privileged to hear in a highly rehearsed body of a program. Here they were performed casually, off the cuff and brilliantly. " - Cultural Review, Kamloops Daily News

"Tardif’s bow danced across the strings throughout this exciting and inventive program. He has put together a thought-provoking program, casting himself as a modern day Kreisler" - T. P. Carrabré, composer-in-residence, Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra

En tant que premier violon solo
"The orchestra, led for the first time by concertmaster Guillaume Tardif, played the opening movement of the Elgar Serenade with good attention to the edgier aspects of the music. Pleasing it was, but the recurring violin ostinato work had an engaging bite as well. The second two movements more of the warm, lyrical the late Romantic English composer is best known for... Because of Tardif's leadership in the violin section, the higher strings had a unified sound that attacked the dynamics of the music with a vigour that was lacking in the lower end." Bill Rankin, Edmonton Journal.

Des organisateurs de concerts et collegues
"Thank you for a wonderful recital. We have heard nothing but rave reviews from everyone that attended the concert (Paganini Caprices, Op.1). Thank you again, it was a pleasure working with you!" GPRC

“Your performance was much appreciated by all, both your talent and your communication with the audience. You are definitely on our list to bring back at a later date.” NCS

"The response from all regarding your performance here was all good...everyone enjoyed your personality, and were touched by your talent. Also, we appreciated your accompanist and her superb accomplishments on the piano. We will follow up with you in a couple of seasons to explore having you back. Thank you again for an evening we will all remember." BCS

“A quick email congratulating you on tonight’s concert.  What a feat! Your stamina and technical fireworks were amazing! And the piano arrangement was definitely unique and worth presenting.  Bravo again on a job well done!”

“Thanks for the concert tonight… it was truly amazing! Not only was I awed by your fabulous technique, but so much music also. I am sorry missed your lecture on Wednesday night, I heard that it was really interesting, eye-opening.”

“A friend of our teacher here told me about you and saw your performance. She loved it so much that she encouraged me to get in touch with you.”

“Thank you very much for thinking of me when organizing the concert. I had a wonderful time and a great experience.  Actually, I find it hard to believe it happened so easily on stage yesterday.  We’ll have hopefully lots more to play together in the future.”

CD
"We have been introduced to great music and a great musician. What a wonderful CD (Szigeti). All 22 selections are stunning, beautiful. All are to be listened to many times, and we intend to do this with our little children soon. We are thankful for this in our life, it is a spell-like experience each time we listen to you. Bravo again and again!'

“My mother and I were offered the CD Virtuoso Encores. It is a delight. Each time I go visit my mother, the CD is playing as I come in. My congratulations.”

"Thanks for sending the CD. This will be the second one for me. I heard you in concert two years ago and absolutely loved your performance. That is when I got your CD the first time. I really enjoy listening to it, and so do my teenage boys. They have borrowed it and it has gone missing. I really wanted to replace it. Thank you."

"You are to do another CD (maybe Mozart?) because since I have started listening to your CD, I have been fixing things that never have been fixed, remembering things I hadn’t remembered in a long time... Now my office mate and I listen to it each morning to get started (actually she is a big classical music fan). Anyway, you are WAY BETTER than the opera I have been listening to at home.  Cheers!"

"We have received and listened to your Virtuoso Encores with much pleasure. What a good idea you had to record these short pieces and dances for our enjoyment. Last night we sat by the fire with a glass of wine while listening to the recording and fondly recalled your visit to the Kings Theatre in Annapolis Royal. It's a delightful CD which I am sure we will enjoy again many times in the future."

"We love the new Szigeti CD and in the future if ever you have another be sure to keep us updated. Wonderful artist "

"Tres belle presentation. Du tres beau violon, serieux d'une part, assez facile a ecouter d'autre part. Leger et precis a la fois, certaines pieces de facture plus moderne, d'autres plus traditionelles, de la tres belle musique. Bravo!"

"Le choix d'oeuvres très variées m'a d'abord sauté aux  yeux... .mais c'est la qualité des interprétations que GT en fait qui m'a impressionné (mais pas surpris, car je connaissais déjà son talent). J'ai  apprécié tout autant les pièces exigeant plus de technique (et les effets sonores) et les plus mélodiques, comme les Aubade, Berceuses et Arabesque... La qualité technique du disque nous pernet de respirer en même temps que les artistes, ce qui est precieu. Merci pour un disque de decouvertes, mille bravos"

"Nous avons écouté un grand musicien, quel beau disque! Les 22 selections sont de toute beauté, à écouter plusieurs fois... A faire entendre a nos enfants et petits-enfants... Merci beaucoup d'être là dans notre vie. Non pas seulement encourager le bel oeuvre, c'est toujours un enchantement que d'écouter Guillaume Tardif"

De la part de professeurs/étudiants/parents/festival
Zvi Zeitlin, Eastman School: "I know GT as a highly committed, serious and dedicated musician, a very fine violinist of truly high caliber and individuality, and a very excellent teacher who has been instructing a number of students at the Eastman School to their total benefit and advantage. I recommend Guillaume Tardif with complete confidence in his ability and integrity."

Jean Angers, Conservatoire: "Guillaume's musical maturity and chamber music experience would be a significant part of his contribution to your school as a performer and teacher. His enjoyable character, integrity, good analytical and musical sense makes him a very valuable candidate for any teaching position. He has a very keen ability to quickly ascertain and find solutions to problems of violin students. Thus, I am convinced that his students would learn much and take pleasure in studying music."

Miskolc University:" In the name of the Music Society of the University of Miskolc, we would like to thank you for the wonderful masterclass you have given to our students. As your experienced, in Hungary there is a different way of string education and your visit was for us a great opportunity to get familiar with a new system which, as we saw, worked very well. Not only our students, but we also heard new ideas about the technique of playing classical and baroque music. We will work at having you again in Miskolc."

"Having heard that Mr. Tardif was a fine performer and excellent teacher, we brought him to the Vernon Music School for a concert/workshop weekend. Little did we know what consummate delight we were in for. From the outset, at the evening concert, Guillaume established an indefinable link with his audience, an air of dignified informality, The audience was not only awed by his mastery of the violin and his choice of repertoire, but also drawn in by his gentleness and the gracious manner in which he attributes dignity to his listeners. We we left with the distinct impression that this man is only beginning. His own variations on a Corelli theme and his solo rendition of the Devil's Trill, where the piano accompaniment was played pizzicato in addition to the violin score, were thrilling. The spirit of Paganini lived. Then throughout the the following day workshop, that same sense of grace and ease prevailed. He is approachable, aware, open, resourceful and unpretentious with students, regardless of their age or expertise. This realizes them physically and opens them to learning. The atmosphere he creates is positive, focused, empowering, and eminently enjoyable. He is the most productive, life-giving clinician i have every worked with. Guillaume is a very effective teacher. Throughout the day, at the end of the day, as in the concert, we were left wanting to hear him play... just one more time. Guillaume Tardif is a brilliant violinist, a master teacher, and a gentleman."

"Thanks a lot for the cadenzas. I love to play Mozart's 4th, and your ideas are great. A full year after your visit, people still comment positively about your performances and classes here. It should be just fantastic to play with you again. Let's start making plans. I am sure authorities here will be very excited in bringing you again next year''

"It was an exciting weekend, extremely well organized by Alison Minkus. Guillaume Tardif delighted his audience with his music, much of which was arranger by himself. He made the most difficult and intricate passages seem easy and won the crowd over with his delightful manner and entertaining anecdotes about the composers and their music. We were all entertained by a presentation projected during the concert, students who attended the concert were completely star-struck, as we all were. Mr Tardif connected with the students immediately and they worked hard to please him the following day. He has a gentle, non-threatening manner, conducive to learning, and was able to quickly focus on specific points to work on during the short lessons. His regular students are telling us that he is a dedicated teacher who expects excellence from his students. They, in turn, clamour to spend extra time with him. he encourages his students to promote themselves and is willing to assist them in any way to make the most of the school year. As i have heard: 'having a lesson with Guillaume makes my day".

“I saw your video and was impressed with your clarity and intelligence and a great sound and soul! Congratulations!... A friend of our teacher here told me about you and saw your performance. She loved it so much that she warned me that I should get in touch with you”

“I keep forgetting to tell you what a great job you did with this new student on the Tchaikovsky. I have never heard her play with such passion. It was really exciting!”

"I just wanted to forward to you how much Valerie learned from your comments during the Festival especially the extra time you spent with the students after the concerto class.  So often, adjudicators write a few comments down on the papers and issue out the places, and that’s it. Thank you for taking the time to give Valerie a few tips for improving her playing.”

“Lessons and Studio Classes are going well, and I wish we had more time to play the violin! I have improved a lot since I came to learn from you”

"It was my privilege to hear violinist Guillaume Tardif perform 'An evening of solo violin'. Over the years i have been blessed with opportunities to hear live performances given by some of today's finest violinists. I count Tardif's performance among the most memorable. Mr Tardif engaged his audience right away. Even before he came to the stage, we were drawn in by a lovely computerized slide presentation which gave background information and pictures of works to be performed. Once on stage, we were treated to further verbal explanations on each work, giving us a glimpse into a brilliant, thoughtful, analytical mind complete with a patently fertile imagination. Nowhere was this creative, musical mind evident more than in some of the more extraordinary musical effects written into his own compositions. These included playing a melody and at the same time accompanying himself with left-hand pizzicato, and some of the more contemporary sounds in this variations. The Ricci arrangement of Tarrega's Alhambra demanded disciplined concentration in imitating the guitar. We were all quite dazzled by the ease and mastery of Tardif's flawless virtuoso violin technique which perfectly realized his musical intentions. Tardif is a gifted pedagogue as well. he conducted a two-hour workshop for my students during which he heard repertoire from Bach to Ysaye. His personal experience with the violin literature proved very deep and was always 'at his fingertips'. All analyzes of and suggestions made to the students were based on sound musical and pedagogical principles. Students felt he was genuinely interested in them. Each felt they had received valuable help and encouragement from him. Tardif's performance took me back in a kind of 'deja-vu' moment to the concert hall in Warsaw Poland, where i first heard Gidon Kremer. Tardif reminded me a lot of Kremer. I am convinced that Western Canada's best kept musical secret will be out of the bag soon. Like kremer, the international community is already calling on him."

"I enjoy the professionalism displayed at all lessons and studio classes.  Students are never made to feel bad, comments are always constructive and helpful.  Excellent teaching!”

"I think Dr. Tardif is a really good teacher. I learned a lot from him, and wish the lessons were longer! The studio classes are helpful in making me used to play in front of an audience and take suggestions from everyone. I really like your teaching, although I am sometimes scared that my mistakes would offend you.  Despite the mistakes, you are always patient and teach me well.”

“Great teacher I have learned a lot about my bow and arm that I had never been taught about. He gets straight to the point when teaching technique, and is easy to follow. He helped me a lot in relaxing when playing the violin, something I needed and still need to work on. I definitely notice improvement since working with GT.”

"Studio class has been very helpful. Lessons have been awesome.”

“I have learned a lot by attending your studio classes. I think the rapport with your students is really good and you have a good combination of leadership ability and nurturing attitude towards your students.  You are encouraging but don’t let them get away with much! You have an amazing ability to analyze technically exactly what the problem is.”

8-year old Felicity: “Thank you so much for showing me how to play better with my violin! I really enjoy your playing because you are able to use the bow in order to play very smoothly! Thanks a billion times!”

En tant que coordinateur
“I have heard glowing reports of the masterclasses from Jeanne, Christina and Pat (Tafelmusik, Toronto). Thank you so much for hosting them. We well know the hard work and myriad of details that go into planning these events, and we are appreciative indeed.”

En tant que chef d'orchestre
"Prof. Tardif was able to prepare the ensemble for two concerts with some very challenging repertoire. I attended one of these concerts and was struck by the rich and full sound of the ensemble and the overall convincing musicality of each work."