Louis-Philippe (Paul) Pelletier is a distinguished pianist and educator born in Montreal on August 7, 1945. He earned a premier prix in piano from the Conservatoire de musique du Québec à Montréal (CMM) in 1968. His studies at the CMM spanned from 1961 to 1968, where he was mentored by notable instructors such as Lubka Kolessa (piano), Gilles Tremblay (analysis), Otto and Walter Joachim (chamber music), and Irving Heller (sight reading). Pelletier served as a teacher and accompanist at the CMM from 1970 to 1973.

From 1973 to 1976, he furthered his training in Paris under the guidance of Claude Helffer (piano) and Maurice Martenot and Christine Saïto (relaxation techniques). Pelletier taught piano and analysis at the University of Montreal from 1976 to 1980. In the summer of 1977, he studied piano with Aloys Kontarsky and Harald Boje in Aix-en-Provence, where he also collaborated with Karlheinz Stockhausen on Klavierstücke. Upon his return, he taught piano at Vanier College in St-Laurent, Montreal, from 1977 to 1979, and began teaching at McGill University in 1978.

Pelletier's concert career began with his victories in the Montreal Symphony Orchestra (MSO) Matinée auditions in 1962, 1964, and 1966. He performed in recitals in Quebec City in 1969 and 1970, and at the Canadian Cultural Centre in Paris in 1975 and 1976. He also toured Tunisia in 1976. For the Jeunesses Musicales du Canada (JMC, now YMC), he toured Quebec and Ontario from 1977 to 1978, followed by a cross-Canada tour in 1978-1979. His international performances include a concert at Canada House in London in 1980, with the Washington Music Ensemble in 1986, at the Montepulciano Festival in Italy in 1987, and at the Academy of Arts in Honolulu in 1988.

A passionate advocate for contemporary music, Pelletier has collaborated with the Société de musique contemporaine du Québec (SMCQ), performing as a soloist at the Canadian Pavilion during Expo 67. He participated in the North American premiere of André Boucourechliev's Archipel III in Montreal in 1972, performed at the 9th International Festival of Contemporary Art in Royan that same year, and took part in the North American premiere of Luc Ferrari’s Société II in Montreal in 1975. In 1976, his memory performance of the complete piano works of Schoenberg, Berg, and Webern was praised by critic Claude Gingras as a "total success" (Montreal La Presse, November 12, 1976). In 1979, he was awarded the grand prize at the fourth international piano competition of the Arnold Schoenberg Festival in Rotterdam.

Throughout his career, Pelletier has premiered several Canadian compositions, including Michel Vinet's Métamorphose, Raynald Arseneault's Sonata, Michel Gonneville's Contribution à l'étude de phénomènes musicaux (which he commissioned with support from the Canada Council), Claude Vivier's Shiraz, and Michel-Georges Brégent's Trad-sens Concertio with the MSO. In 1986, he also premiered Musique concertante pour l'embarquement de Cythère by Belgian composer Claude Ledoux. In addition to his work with the MSO, Pelletier has performed with the Quebec Symphony Orchestra, Nepean Symphony Orchestra (Ontario), Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony, Utrecht Symphony Orchestra (Netherlands), and the Orchestre métropolitain. His performances have been featured on CBC radio and television as well as on BBC London. In 1980, the Canadian Music Council recognized him as artist of the year (special mention). Following a recital at Pollack Hall, Eric McLean noted that Pelletier is "physically, emotionally, and intellectually, one of the most complete artists this country has produced" (Montreal Gazette, February 17, 1987).