Karine Bétournay is a pianist and composer from Quebec. Her openness and versatility have led her to work in fields as diverse as jazz, film music, concert music, and ballet music, and to perform with artists from a wide range of artistic disciplines.
She began studying classical piano at the age of ten and continued her studies at McGill University where she completed a Bachelor’s degree in jazz performance after receiving a scholarship for excellence from the Schulich School of Music. In 2011, she performed at the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal with her quartet and was a finalist at the Jazz en Rafale competition the same year.
In 2017, she accompanied soprano Magali Simard-Galdès on an 18-concert tour with Jeunesses Musicales in Eastern Canada. Karine has participated in several creative projects combining music and poetry, including the album Victor with poet Benjamin Goron. Since 2015, she has been a piano accompanist for Les Grands Ballets Canadiens and has also accompanied Ballets Jazz Montréal since 2018.
Besides the piano, Karine Bétournay also pursues a career as a composer of concert music and music for the screen. She has written soundtracks for several Quebec films as well as contemporary music pieces created by prestigious ensembles such as the OSM Soloists, the ECM+, the Molinari Quartet, and the Paramirabo Ensemble. Her compositions have also been danced by dancers from Les Grands Ballets Canadiens and the Nationaltheater Mannheim in Germany. Karine Bétournay is an Associate Composer at the Canadian Music Centre.