Famous Conductors from Canada

Reference
Updated October 14, 2018

List of notable or famous conductors from Canada, with bios and photos, including the top conductors born in Canada and even some popular conductors who immigrated to Canada. If you're trying to find out the names of famous Canadian conductors then this list is the perfect resource for you. These conductors are among the most prominent in their field, and information about each well-known conductor from Canada is included when available.

The list you're viewing has a variety of people, like Howard Shore and Eugene Kash, in it.

This historic conductors from Canada list can help answer the questions "Who are some Canadian conductors of note?" and "Who are the most famous conductors from Canada?" These prominent conductors of Canada may or may not be currently alive, but what they all have in common is that they're all respected Canadian conductors.

Use this list of renowned Canadian conductors to discover some new conductors that you aren't familiar with. Don't forget to share this list by clicking one of the social media icons at the top or bottom of the page. {#nodes}
  • Alain Trudel

    Alain Trudel

    Age: 57
    Alain Trudel (born 13 June 1966) is a Canadian conductor, trombonist and composer.
  • Alexander Brott
    Dec. at 90 (1915-2005)
    Alexander Brott, , born Joรซl Brod (March 14, 1915 โ€“ April 1, 2005), was a Canadian conductor, composer, violinist and music teacher.
  • Boris Brott, (born March 14, 1944) is a Canadian conductor and motivational speaker. He is one of the most internationally recognized Canadian conductors, having conducted on stages around the world, including Carnegie Hall and Covent Garden. He is known for his innovative methods of introducing classical music to new audiences. Over his career, he has commissioned, performed and recorded a wide variety of Canadian works. Brott is the founder and artistic director of the National Academy Orchestra of Canada and the Brott Music Festival, both based in Hamilton, Ontario. He is the founding Music Director and Conductor Laureate of the New West Symphony in Los Angeles, and Artistic Director and Conductor of the McGill Chamber Orchestra in Montreal. He is a former Principal Youth and Family conductor with the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa, where he continues to conduct family and education concerts.
  • Brian Ellard

    Brian Ellard

    Age: 84
    Brian Joseph Ellard, M.A., Ph.D., (born January 15, 1940) is a Canadian educator, musicologist, arranger, and conductor.
  • Bruce Holder

    Bruce Holder

    Dec. at 82 (1905-1987)
    Bruce Edward Holder Sr. (January 8, 1905 โ€“ August 27, 1987) was a Canadian composer, conductor, and violinist. He helped to conduct, teach, and found many music groups, including Symphony New Brunswick, the New Brunswick Youth Orchestra, and the Third Field Artillery Band, which earned him his nickname, Mr. Music of Saint John.
  • Carleton Elliott
    Dec. at 75 (1928-2003)
    Carleton Weir Elliott (15 March 1928, Welland, Ontario - 24 August 2003, Fredericton, New Brunswick) was a Canadian composer, music theorist, choir conductor and music educator.
  • Clayton Hare

    Clayton Hare

    Dec. at 92 (1909-2001)
    Clayton Hare (July 13, 1909 โ€“ December 11, 2001) was a Canadian music teacher, conductor, and violinist. He was the third principal conductor of the New Brunswick Youth Orchestra and taught at a number of universities including Mount Allison University, the University of Portland, and Mount Royal College.
  • David Richard Campbell (born February 7, 1948) is a Canadian arranger, composer and conductor. He has worked on over 450 gold and platinum albums including 21 (Adele), Futuresex/Lovesounds (Justin Timberlake), The 2nd Law (Muse), Invincible (Michael Jackson), Spirit (Leona Lewis), Aaliyah (Aaliyah), Fallen and The Open Door (Evanescence), Meteora (Linkin Park), B'Day (Beyoncรฉ), Bangerz (Miley Cyrus), The Astonishing (Dream Theater), and various albums by his son Beck.
  • David Currie

    David Currie

    David Currie is a Canadian conductor who was the music director and conductor for the Ottawa Symphony Orchestra from 1992 until 2016. Currie is also an assistant professor at the University of Ottawa, where he teaches double bass and conducting, and conducts the university orchestra.
  • David Hoyt

    David Hoyt

    David Hoyt is a Canadian horn player and conductor. He studied piano (with Boris Roubakine, Karl Engel, and Alexandra Munn), French horn (with Philip Farkas, Pierre del Vescovo, and Eugene Rittich), and conducting (with Franco Mannino, Kurt Sanderling, and Pierre Boulez). In 1975, while a student at the University of Alberta, he became Principal Horn of the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra.Hoyt began conducting professionally in 1982, and in 1985 became resident guest conductor of the Edmonton Symphony. In 2002-2003, he served as the orchestraโ€™s Artistic Director. Hoyt has taught at festivals and schools across Canada. He was Artistic Director/Executive Director of Music & Sound at the Banff Centre in 2004-2005.
  • Denys Bouliane is a Canadian composer and conductor.
  • Eugene Kash
    Dec. at 91 (1912-2004)
    Eugene Kash was a violinist and conductor.
  • Francis Coleman
    Dec. at 84 (1924-2008)
    Francis Coleman (12 January 1924 โ€“ 10 April 2008) was a conductor and television producer and director. Born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, Coleman began working in an office at the age of fourteen while studying music at evening classes. He continued his musical education at McGill University, the Conservatoire de musique et d'art dramatique du Quรฉbec and then the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York, before conducting under Pierre Monteux.Coleman conducted a range of ensembles, including the Royal Canadian Air Force band, and was appointed the first musical director of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet. This led him to become the editor of Dance Magazine. He also conducted concerts broadcast for CBC Radio, and it was this which attracted him to work on CBFT, the first television station in Canada, when it launched in September 1952. He initially worked on the bilingual news programme, and had produced more than 500 shows by 1958, including coverage of Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom's coronation. Coleman was invited to work at Granada Television in England by Sidney Bernstein. He produced a variety of programmes, including Spot the Tune, Shadow Squad and Chelsea at Nine. He soon moved to London where he worked for ATV, for whom he directed twenty-six schools programmes entitled Iรงi la France. This led on to other French language documentary work, for which he was created a Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. Also for ATV, he produced John Betjeman's Steam and Stained Glass; the UK's first hidden camera show, Bob Boothby's Dinner Party; and the country's first consumer programme, On The Braden Beat.In 1964, Coleman was appointed Senior Producer, Music and Arts at the newly launched BBC 2. He produced a wide range of specials and series, including Shakespeare and Music, Solti on Conducting and Peter Ustinov on Peter Ustinov. He recorded II Trovatore in Rome which was shown as live, an original idea at the time, and later applied the same treatment to Monteverdi's Vespers from Venice.Coleman moved to become Head of Religious, Children's and Education Programmes at London Weekend Television in 1968, during which time he won the first Japan Prize for education. Next, he went to Thames Television, first as Head of Schools Programmes, then Head of Arts. He produced the Saint Nicholas Cantata by Benjamin Britten, for which he won the UK's first Prix Italia.In his spare time, Coleman wrote the Bluffers Guides to ballet and opera, was a community activist in Highgate and Muswell Hill and was a Buddhist who appeared on BBC Radio 4's Thought for the Day.After retiring from television, Coleman led a campaign to save the Phoenix Cinema in East Finchley, and following its success, ran it for a time. He then moved into lecturing, both at the London International Film School and at City University.Coleman's two daughters both became actors: Charlotte (who died in 2001) and Lisa.
  • Franz-Paul Decker
    Dec. at 90 (1923-2014)
    Franz-Paul Decker (June 22, 1923 โ€“ May 19, 2014) was a German-born conductor.
  • George Crum
    Dec. at 80 (1926-2007)
    For American composer George Henry Crumb, see George Crumb.George Francis Crum (26 October 1926 in Providence, Rhode Island, USA โ€“ 8 September 2007 in Newmarket, Ontario, Canada) was the first conductor of the National Ballet of Canada and an accomplished pianist, vocal coach and musical arranger.
  • Gerald Fagan

    Gerald Fagan

    Age: 84
    Gerald Richard Fagan, , (born September 19, 1939) is considered one of Canada's premier choral conductors. He is the former Conductor and Artistic Director of Fanshawe Chorus London, The Gerald Fagan Singers, and the Concert Players Orchestra. He has been married to Marlene Fagan since 1961. They have five children; Leslie, Louise, Judy, Jennifer and Jonathon.
  • Gino Vannelli (born June 16, 1952) is a Canadian rock singer and songwriter who had several hit songs in the 1970s and 1980s. His best-known singles included "I Just Wanna Stop" (1978) and "Living Inside Myself" (1981).
  • Howard Dyck

    Howard Dyck

    Age: 81
    Howard Dyck, CM (born November 17, 1942) is a Canadian conductor and broadcaster. He was born in Winkler, Manitoba. Based in Waterloo, Ontario, he has had a long and distinguished career in classical music. He is the Artistic Director Emeritus of the Grand Philharmonic Choir (formerly known as the Kitchener Waterloo Philharmonic Choir) and chamber singers and is the Conductor Emeritus of the Bach Elgar Choir of Hamilton. He currently serves as the Artistic Director of Consort Caritatis Choir and Orchestra.
  • Howard Leslie Shore (born October 18, 1946) is a Canadian composer who is notable for his film scores. He has composed the scores for over 80 films, most notably the scores for The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit film trilogies. He won three Academy Awards for his work on the first trilogy, with one being for the original song "Into the West", an award he shared with Eurythmics lead vocalist Annie Lennox and writer/producer Fran Walsh, who wrote the lyrics. He is also a consistent collaborator with director David Cronenberg, having scored all but one of his films since 1979. Shore has also composed a few concert works including one opera, The Fly, based on the plot of Cronenberg's 1986 film premiered at the Thรฉรขtre du Chรขtelet in Paris on July 2, 2008, a short piece Fanfare for the Wanamaker Organ and the Philadelphia Orchestra, and a short overture for the Swiss 21st Century Symphony Orchestra. In addition to his three Academy Awards, Shore has also won three Golden Globe Awards and four Grammy Awards.
  • Hummie Mann (born October 29, 1955 in Montreal, Quebec) is an American film score composer. His credits include the Mel Brooks films Robin Hood: Men in Tights and Dracula: Dead and Loving It. Mann was awarded an Emmy for arranging Billy Crystal's opening number for the 1992 Academy Awards and another Emmy in 1996 for an episode of Showtime's miniseries Picture Windows called "Language of the Heart". He was nominated for two more for arrangements on the series Moonlighting.
  • Iwan Edwards, CM (born October 5, 1937), is a celebrated Canadian choral conductor. Over a forty-year span he has founded and conducted several notable choirs and thrilled audiences. For his outstanding work he has been appointed a Member of the Order of Canada.
  • Dr. James Mark is an American-born conductor, clarinetist, saxophonist, arranger and educator based in Canada. He is Conductor of Musica Viva New Brunswick, Conductor Emeritus of the Prince Edward Island Symphony Orchestra and appears frequently as guest conductor with a number of orchestras and wind ensembles. Additionally, he was Principal Conductor of the New Brunswick Youth Orchestra from 1982โ€“83 and again from 1994โ€“2010, making it "one of the best youth orchestras in Canada". James Mark is Professor Emeritus of Music at Mount Allison University, where he taught clarinet, saxophone, instrumental conducting and secondary music education for more than twenty years. He was also director of the Mount Allison Symphonic Band and mentor to the CMEA award-winning Saxville Quartet. He continues to be in demand as an adjudicator and clinician. He performs regularly on clarinet and saxophone and has appeared across Canada and the United States with numerous regional, national and international broadcasts. Dr. Mark holds the Bachelor of Music from the Eastman School of Music (1961), the Master of Music from Hartt College of Music (1969) and the Doctor of Musical Arts from the University of Michigan (1978). He is also an Associate of the Royal College of Music, London, where he was twice awarded (1962, 1963) the Arthur Somervell Prize for Wind Instruments by HRH Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother. Dr. Mark has been a member of the U.S. Air Force Band in Washington, D.C. and taught music at the high school level in Massachusetts. He and his wife, pianist and harpsichordist Penelope Mark, recorded an album, Canadian Music for Clarinet, which was nominated for an East Coast Music Award. The New Brunswick Youth Orchestra also recorded three albums under his direction, namely Premiรจre, Virtuoso Italia 2005 (recorded in Italy), and Forbidden City Tour (recorded in China), which won an East Coast Music Award for Best Classical Recording in 2008. Dr. Mark also conducted the NBYO for their performances at Carnegie Hall (NY, NY, USA), Auditorio Paganini (Parma, Italy) and for their performance before HRH Queen Elizabeth II.
  • John Avison
    Dec. at 68 (1915-1983)
    John Henry Patrick Avison, (April 25, 1915 โ€“ November 30, 1983) was a Canadian conductor and pianist. From 1938 to 1980, he was the founding conductor of the CBC Vancouver Chamber Orchestra. He was a longtime member of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra (VSO) and was married to VSO violinist Angelina Avison. In 1978 he was made a Member of the Order of Canada, Canada's highest civilian honour, and in 1980 he was awarded the Canadian Music Council Medal. Born in Vancouver, Avison earned an Associates diploma from the Toronto Conservatory of Music in 1929. During the early 1930s he studied in his native city with J.D.A. Tripp (piano) and Allard de Ridder (conducting). He earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of British Columbia in 1935 and a Bachelor of Music from the University of Washington in 1936. During World War II he served in the Canadian Army, after which he pursued further music studies at the Juilliard School (1946), Columbia University (1946-1947), and Yale University (1947). At the latter school he was a pupil of Paul Hindemith.
  • Julia Davids nรฉe Olson (born March 17, 1972) is a founding member and Artistic Director of the Canadian Chamber Choir. She is the Music Director of the North Shore Choral Society.
  • Kenneth Elloway

    Kenneth Elloway

    Dec. at 64 (1916-1980)
    Captain Kenneth Albert Elloway (17 January 1916 โ€“ 22 September 1980) was a British teacher, trombonist, double-bassist, cornetist, and conductor of many orchestras.
  • Keri-Lynn Wilson (born May 17, 1967, in Winnipeg, Manitoba) is a Canadian flute player and conductor. She is the daughter of Lynn Sharples, a professor of English at the Universitรฉ de Toulon, and Carlisle Wilson, a musician and retired music consultant to the Winnipeg Public Schools.As a youth, Wilson studied flute, piano and violin. She attended the Juilliard School, where her teachers included Julius Baker (flute) and Otto-Werner Mueller (conducting). During her student years at Juilliard, she first appeared at Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall in May 1989. She graduated from Juilliard in 1994 with a bachelor's and two master's degrees in conducting and in flute performance. From 1994 to 1998, she was associate conductor of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. Wilson became chief conductor of the Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra in 2013, the first female chief conductor in the orchestra's history. She held the post through the 2014โ€“2015 season.On July 30, 2003, in Villasimius, Italy, Wilson married Peter Gelb, then the president of Sony Classical and later general manager of the Metropolitan Opera. She has conducted a commercial recording with the Simรณn Bolรญvar Symphony Orchestra for the Dorian label. Wilson is exceptionally tall at 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m). In a feature article about her in the April 2004 American edition of Vogue magazine she says it was during her time at Juilliard that she came to feel her height was an asset rather than a liability, saying. "I loved being tall in New York. I came into my own."
  • Leรณn Zuckert

    Leรณn Zuckert

    Dec. at 87 (1904-1992)
    Leรณn Zuckert (4 May 1904 โ€“ 29 May 1992) was a Canadian composer, conductor, arranger, violinist, violist and radio pioneer of Ukrainian descent. He was married to the poet Ella Bobrow, with whom he collaborated on many songs.
  • Linda Bouchard (born 21 May 1957) is a Canadian composer and conductor. She is also an active conductor, teacher and producer.
  • Louis Applebaum
    Dec. at 82 (1918-2000)
    Louis Applebaum, (April 3, 1918 โ€“ April 19, 2000) was a Canadian film score composer, administrator, and conductor.
  • Lucio Agostini
    Dec. at 82 (1913-1996)
    Lucio Agostini (Fano, Italy, 30 December 1913 โ€“ Toronto, 15 February 1996) was an Italian-born composer, arranger, and conductor who established his career in Canada.