In 1963 he was named Chevalier of the Order of Malta and in 1966 he received the Bene merenti de patria from the Saint-Jean-Baptiste Society.
[1] Born in Montreal, Lapierre received his earliest musical education at Saint Brigid's Church in his native city where he was a pupil of choirmaster Lucien Perreault.
He went on to earn a diploma in journalism and Doctor of Music (1930) from the Université de Montréal, after which he worked as a journalist for La Patrie.
[1] During the 1920s and 1930s Lapierre served as organist for several churches in Montreal, including Saint-Philomène de Rosemont, Saint-Denis, and Saint-Jacques (1922-4 and 1928–36).
Among his notable pupils are Gaston Allaire, Émilien Allard, Françoise Aubut, Pierre Brabant, Albertine Caron-Legris, Alfred Mignault, Colombe Pelletier, and Édouard Woolley.