Honourable senators, it is with deep emotion that I rise today to bid farewell to a Quebec music icon, a poet of the soul, Serge Fiori.

There is something incredibly meaningful about his death occurring yesterday, June 24, on Quebec’s national holiday. It is as though fate had intended that this son of Montreal, this builder of our cultural identity, should take his leave of this world on the very day that Quebecers celebrate their pride, their language and their roots.

Serge Fiori left his mark on much more than the music scene; he shaped Quebec’s collective imagination. With Harmonium, he created music that was grounded and universal, sincere and daring, music that spoke to both the heart and mind. He sang of striving, doubt and wonder, and he touched the hearts of Quebecers in a uniquely unassuming way. Very few artists have reached so many generations.

Songs like “Pour un instant,” Un musicien parmi tant d’autres,” “Histoires sans paroles” and “Comme un fou” were not just hits. They are a part of our history, refrains that unite hearts across the province and far beyond. Discovering “Si on avait besoin d’une cinquième saison” for the first time is to experience a profoundly innovative album that sets poetry to music.

His work is a cultural monument. It transcends fads and generations. Like Félix Leclerc and Gilles Vigneault before him, Serge Fiori belongs to that select circle of creators whose songs become part of our heritage.

Today we mourn a pillar of our culture, but his legacy lives on. For many of us, the opening notes of Harmonium songs remain etched in our memories. His melodies still resonate and his lyrics continue to touch our hearts — both those who grew up with his music and those discovering it, in awe, to this day.

Honourable senators, on this day after Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day, let us pay tribute to this man who the people of Quebec loved so deeply. Even after he retired from show business, Serge Fiori lived on in our lives, in our living rooms, on the roads we travel and at our parties. As he said in one of his songs, he saw himself as “just another musician,” but for Quebec, he was, and will forever remain, one of the greatest.