The former director of the Castelsarrasin music school (Tarn-et-Garonne), Marcel Just, died at the age of 91 on Monday May 4, 2026. Nine days later, his funeral was celebrated in Montauban like a concert, given by his alumni students and colleagues. A huge moment of emotion for his family and loved ones.
Obviously it couldn’t be otherwise. For his funeral, Marcel Just was entitled, as a spectator this time, to a final concert on Wednesday May 13, 2026.
The former director of the municipal music school of Castelsarrasin (Tarn-et-Garonne), who died at the age of 91 on May 4, attended surrounded by his family and his closest friends, in Montauban.
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“We all feel a little orphaned”: the death of the former director of the Castelsarrasin music school, Marcel Just, causes immense emotion
“Not everyone is lucky enough to have a musician father,” said Élisabeth, one of his two daughters, from the podium when paying a final tribute to the former music master.
“You worked to bring music to life”
“I remember the first music school, the prison, where you gave lessons in a cell with barely more than ten students, she continued. And then there were the concerts of the Lyre, the big band, the cadet orchestra. You were one of those who did not seek the honors of the spotlight. You worked to keep alive you transmitted it with seriousness and passion, without restraint and with open arms,” continued his daughter.
“You passed on to me a taste for music when I accompanied you to the Halle aux Grains in Toulouse,” pointed out Pascale. She was not the only one, as many of her former students were present in the orchestra set up for this celebration under the baton of Jean-Luz Lézin and David Galasso.
From retired musician to gardener
There were also “tours in the region, he lived at a hundred miles an hour with a whole happy gang”, smiles Pascale, who recalled her father’s passion for rugby and his love of Stade Toulousain.
“You, the musician, transformed yourself into a gardener when you retired. The vegetable garden was your refuge. Your garden too, you leave it orphaned. Even if the song of the blackbird came to dry our tears”, Élisabeth beautifully imagined.
Guadeloupe, “paradise island”
Guadeloupe, “the paradise island” as the latter mentioned it, had a special place in the life of Marcel Just. “It’s our other family, our overseas cousins.”
Their voice was also expressed in two recorded messages, which brought a few smiles from misty eyes, retracing the Caribbean excursions or in Quercy, between Montauban, Bruniquel, Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val and Moissac.
“Your discretion, your modesty, overflowed with love”
The hearts of the members of the audience sank a little more when his granddaughter spoke in front of “[son] dear Papi.” “I have no pretension of paying you homage to the height of everything you have given me. You were a kind figure, you knew how to reassure me. Your discretion, your modesty, overflowed with love. It is through your actions that you made the choice to love, with your conductor figure.”Â
Extending the musical metaphor, Argi declared: “You are our reason, our rock, our metronome. Today, you left without a fuss. I have no words strong enough to express how much we will miss you.”
From Bécaud to Brassens, via Nougaro
His students and colleagues therefore expressed themselves through music. From Bécaud to Brassens, via Nougaro, the members of the orchestra wondered what they were going to do with all this time, now that Marcel Just is gone. Now that he has found Armstrong, in trumpeter’s paradise, to avoid brooding without his company.
Marcel Just fell asleep, with the feeling of duty accomplished. Surrounded by his family first and his friends too. All that remains is to say goodbye and thank you.
