Noel Edison (born November 16, 1958) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

conductor. He is currently the conductor of the Edison Singers. 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 anch ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

, the son of George and Marian Clarissa (Frost), Edison graduated from Jarvis Collegiate in 1978 and

Wilfrid Laurier University Wilfrid Laurier University (commonly referred to as WLU or simply Laurier) is a public university in Ontario, Canada, with campuses in Waterloo, Brantford and Milton. The newer Brantford and Milton campuses are not considered satellite campuses ...

in 1985. He then moved to

Elora, Ontario Elora is a community in the township of Centre Wellington, Wellington County, Ontario, Canada. It is well known for its 19th-century limestone architecture and the geographically significant Elora Gorge. Elora is no longer an independent enti ...

to study piano with Victor Martins. He studied conducting with Robert Shaw,

Helmuth Rilling Helmuth Rilling (born 29 May 1933) is a German choral conductor and an academic teacher. He is the founder of the Gächinger Kantorei (1954), the Bach-Collegium Stuttgart (1965), the Oregon Bach Festival (1970), the Internationale Bachakademie ...

, Sir

David Willcocks Sir David Valentine Willcocks, (30 December 1919 – 17 September 2015) was a British choral conductor, organist, composer and music administrator. He was particularly well known for his association with the Choir of King's College, Cambr ...

, Wayne Riddle and John Alldis. In 1997, he was appointed conductor of the

Toronto Mendelssohn Choir The Toronto Mendelssohn Choir is a Canadian large vocal ensemble based in Toronto, Ontario. It was co-founded in 1894 by Augustus S. Vogt and W. H. Hewlett to celebrate the opening of the Massey Hall. The ensemble was originally an extension of ...

. In 2002, Edison was awarded an honorary Doctor of Music by the University of Guelph. In 2009, Edison was made a member of the

Order of Ontario The Order of Ontario () is the most prestigious official Award, honour in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. Instituted in 1986 by Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, Lieutenant Governor Lincoln Alexander, on the A ...

. Allegations of sexual misconduct against Edison surfaced in February 2018, prompting both the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir and the Elora Singers to place him on leave pending investigation. Results of a third-party investigation ended in Edison's being relieved of his leadership duties of both The Elora Festival and The Elora Singers, in mid-April 2018. The Toronto Mendelssohn Choir and St. John's Elora also chose to let Edison go based on their own investigation during the spring of 2018. In March, 2019, Edison announced auditions for a new professional choral ensemble called The Edison Singers. For the first three seasons, he plans three concerts (nine performances) and two recordings with Naxos.Noel Edison Launches New Choir
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References

Male conductors (music) Members of the Order of Ontario Musicians from Toronto Wilfrid Laurier University alumni 1958 births Living people 21st-century Canadian conductors (music) 21st-century Canadian male musicians {{Canada-musician-stub