Kenneth Howard Peacock (7 April 1922 – 22 November 2000) was a Canadian ethnomusicologist,

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

, and

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...

. He was a leading authority in Canadian enthnomusicology, and his research and publications in that field had a profound impact on the folk music revival in Canada of the mid to late 20th century. He was an associate of the

Canadian Music Centre The Canadian Music Centre was founded in 1959 by a group of Canadian composers who saw a need to create a repository for Canadian music. It now holds Canada's largest collection of Canadian concert music, and works to promote the music of its As ...

, a founding member of the Canadian Music Council, and a member of the

Canadian League of Composers The Canadian League of Composers is an organization formed in 1951 of Canadian composers primarily interested in raising awareness and acceptance of Canadian music. Its activities are overseen and directed by an executive, and by a National Counci ...

. In 1982 he was named a Member of the Order of Canada, and in 1998 was awarded the Marius Barbeau Medal by the Folklore Studies Association of Canada.

Life and career

Born 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 ...

, Peacock earned as associate diploma from 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 ...

(TCM) in 1937 where he was a piano student of Alma Cockburn. From 1937 to 1946 he was active as a private tutor in piano and music theory in Toronto. In 1939-1940 he pursued further piano studies privately with Mona Bates. In 1941 he entered the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

where he studied music theory with

Healey Willan James Healey Willan (12 October 1880 – 16 February 1968) was an Anglo-Canadian organist and composer. He composed more than 800 works including operas, symphonies, chamber music, a concerto, and pieces for band, orchestra, organ, and ...

and Leo Smith. After earning a

Bachelor of Music Bachelor of Music (BM or BMus) is an academic degree awarded by a college, university, or conservatory upon completion of a program of study in music. In the United States, it is a professional degree, and the majority of work consists of pre ...

in 1943, he continued with graduate studies in composition at the UT with

John Weinzweig John Jacob Weinzweig, (March 11, 1913 – August 24, 2006) was a Canadian composer of classical music. Weinzweig was born in Toronto. He went to Harbord Collegiate Institute, and studied music at the university. In 1937, he left for the United St ...

from 1944 to 1946. Peacock returned to the TCM for further piano studies under Reginald Godden in 1948–1949. In early 1950 he moved to Montreal to study the piano with

Michel Hirvy Michel may refer to: * Michel (name), a given name or surname of French origin (and list of people with the name) * Míchel (nickname), a nickname (a list of people with the nickname, mainly Spanish footballers) * Míchel (footballer, born 1963), ...

. He moved to Boston the following autumn to study composition with

Francis Judd Cooke Francis Judd Cooke (December 28, 1910 – May 18, 1995) was an American composer, organist, cellist, pianist, conductor, choir director, and professor. Life Cooke was born December 28, 1910 in Honolulu, Hawaii, to a family of New England mi ...

at the New England Conservatory. From 1947 to 1954 he was active as teacher in Ottawa. He worked on the staff of the

Canadian Museum of Civilization The Canadian Museum of History (french: Musée canadien de l’histoire) is a national museum on anthropology, Canadian history, cultural studies, and ethnology in Gatineau, Quebec, Canada. The purpose of the museum is to promote the heritage of C ...

from 1951 to 1972 as an ethnomusicologist and research fellow. He wrote many articles for a variety of musical periodicals during his career, in addition to having work published through the Museum of Civilization. He was also active as a pianist in several Canadian cities.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Peacock, Kenneth 1922 births 2000 deaths Canadian classical pianists Male classical pianists Canadian male composers Canadian musicologists Members of the Order of Canada Canadian music educators New England Conservatory alumni The Royal Conservatory of Music alumni University of Toronto alumni Musicians from Toronto 20th-century classical pianists 20th-century Canadian composers 20th-century Canadian pianists 20th-century musicologists Canadian male pianists 20th-century Canadian male musicians