Charles Jordan (3 April 191527 June 1986) was a Canadian

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...

and

voice teacher A voice teacher or singing teacher is a musical instructor who assists adults and children in the development of their abilities in singing. Typical work A voice teacher works with a student singer to improve the various skills involved in singi ...

. As a performer he was mainly active on Canadian radio.

Early life and education

Jordan was born in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

. He first studied singing with Adrienne Bourassa in Montreal during the 1930s, and later was a pupil of Albert Whitehead at the

Toronto Conservatory of Music The Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM), branded as The Royal Conservatory, is a non-profit music education institution and performance venue headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded in 1886 by Edward Fisher as The Toronto Con ...

from 1941 to 1943.

Career

Jordan made his professional debut singing French chassons on

CKAC CKAC is a French-language radio station located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Owned by Cogeco, the station operates as a commercial traffic information service branded as ''Radio Circulation 730''. Its studios are located at Place Bonaventure in ...

in 1937."Ten Jewish Giants"
''The Canadian Jewish news'', October 2, 1986, page 11 He performed regularly on CKAC and with various

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...

orchestras in Montreal through 1940. From 1941 to 1943 he recorded several

oratorio An oratorio () is a large musical composition for orchestra, choir, and soloists. Like most operas, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias. However, opera is mus ...

s and

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

s by Purcell and Handel for the CBC, including Polyphemus in '' Acis and Galatea''. He also sang on the show ''Air Band'' in 1943. From 1944 to 1950 Jordan worked as a radio singer for both the CBC in Toronto, and for the American radio programs ''Sweetwood Serenade'' (NBC) and ''Sunday Night Serenade'' (MBS) in New York City. After 1950, Jordan divided his time between performing and teaching singing in Toronto. Several well-known actors studied singing with him, including

Susan Clark Susan Clark (born Nora Golding; March 8, 1943) is a Canadian actress, known for her movie roles such as ''Coogan's Bluff'' and '' Colossus: The Forbin Project'', and for her role as Katherine Papadopolis on the American television sitcom '' Web ...

Lorne Greene Lorne Hyman Greene (born Lyon Himan Green; 12 February 1915 – 11 September 1987) was a Canadian actor, musician, singer and radio personality. His notable television roles include Ben Cartwright on the Western ''Bonanza'' and Commander Ada ...

, and

William Shatner William Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor. In a career spanning seven decades, he is best known for his portrayal of James T. Kirk in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, from his 1965 debut as the captain of the starship USS Enterpri ...

. He also made several albums during the 1950s of Canadian classical music and Canadian folk songs, including ''Folk Songs of Canada'', based on

Edith Fowke Edith Fowke, ''(née'' Margaret Fulton; 30 April 1913 Lumsden, Saskatchewan – 28 Mar 1996 Toronto) was a Canadian folklorist.Nygaard King, Betty and Ruth Pincoe. Fowke was educated at the University of Saskatchewan. She hosted the CBC Radio ...

's book of the same name. It was recorded with singer Joyce Sullivan and released on the Hallmark label. Critics praised the quality of the singing, but pointed out the lack of authenticity involved in having classically trained singing for folk songs. He is the father of Canadian singer-songwriter

Marc Jordan Marc or MARC may refer to: People * Marc (given name), people with the first name * Marc (surname), people with the family name Acronyms * MARC standards, a data format used for library cataloging, * MARC Train, a regional commuter rail system of ...

. Jordan died 27 June 1986 in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jordan, Charles 1915 births 1986 deaths Anglophone Quebec people Canadian operatic baritones Jewish Canadian musicians Singers from Montreal 20th-century Canadian male opera singers