The Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM), branded as The Royal Conservatory, is a
non-profit
A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
music education institution and performance venue headquartered 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 ...
,
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 Ca ...
, Canada. It was founded in 1886 by Edward Fisher as The Toronto Conservatory of Music. In 1947, King
George VI
George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952. ...
incorporated the organization through
royal charter
A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, bu ...
. Its Toronto home was designated a
National Historic Site of Canada
National Historic Sites of Canada (french: Lieux historiques nationaux du Canada) are places that have been designated by the federal Minister of the Environment
An environment minister (sometimes minister of the environment or secretary of t ...
in 1995, in recognition of the institution's influence on music education in Canada. Tim Price is the current Chair of the Board, and Peter Simon is the President.
History
Early history
The conservatory was founded in 1886 as The Toronto Conservatory of Music and opened in September 1887, located on two floors above a music store at the corner of Dundas Street (Wilton Street) and
Yonge Street
Yonge Street (; pronounced "young") is a major arterial route in the Canadian province of Ontario connecting the shores of Lake Ontario in Toronto to Lake Simcoe, a gateway to the Upper Great Lakes.
Once the southernmost leg of provincial Hi ...
(at today's
Yonge Dundas Square Yonge is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Charles Duke Yonge (1812–1891), English historian and translator of Philo of Alexandria
* Charles Maurice Yonge (1899–1986), British marine biologist
* Charlotte Mary Yonge (1823 ...
). Its founder Edward Fisher was a young organist born in the United States. The conservatory became the first institution of its kind in Canada: a school dedicated to the training of singers and musicians, and also to instilling a love of music in young children. In its first year, it hired Italian musician and composer Francesco D'Auria to teach at the conservatory.
The conservatory's initial intake was just over 100, and by its second quarter this number had grown to nearly 300 as its reputation quickly spread. In 1897, the organization purchased a new property at College Street and
University Avenue
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...
(now site of the
Intact Centre
The Intact Centre is an office building located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada that serves as the head offices of Ontario Power Generation and Intact Financial. It was originally built in 1975 for Ontario Hydro (of which OPG is a successor company) ...
) to accommodate its rapid expansion. From its earliest days, it was affiliated with 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 ...
with the purpose of preparing students for degree examinations and shared its premises with the
University of Toronto, Faculty of Music
The Faculty of Music at the University of Toronto is one of several professional faculties at the University of Toronto. The Faculty of Music is located at the Edward Johnson Building, just south of the Royal Ontario Museum and north of Queen's ...
from 1919.
In 1906,
Frank Welsman
Frank Squire Welsman (20 December 1873 – 2 July 1952) was a Canadian conductor, pianist, composer and music educator. He began his career as a concert pianist, but ultimately earned his place in Canadian history for establishing Toronto's fir ...
– who became the principal of the conservatory – founded and directed the Toronto Conservatory Orchestra, which became the
Toronto Symphony Orchestra
The Toronto Symphony Orchestra (TSO) is a Canadian orchestra based in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in 1906, the TSO gave regular concerts at Massey Hall until 1982, and since then has performed at Roy Thomson Hall. The TSO also manages the Toronto ...
two years later.
Toronto College of Music and Canadian Academy of Music
The period between 1918 and 1924 witnessed a series of mergers among music conservatories in Toronto. The Toronto College of Music was founded in 1888 by conductor F.H. Torrington, and became the first music conservatory affiliated with the University of Toronto. After Torrington's death in 1917, the school merged with the Canadian Academy of Music in 1918. The Academy itself had been founded in 1911 by
Albert Gooderham
Colonel Sir Albert Edward Gooderham, KCMGGlenn Gould
Glenn Herbert Gould (; né Gold; September 25, 1932October 4, 1982) was a Canadian classical pianist. He was one of the most famous and celebrated pianists of the 20th century, and was renowned as an interpreter of the keyboard works of Johann ...
– arguably the conservatory's most outstanding pupil – studied theory, organ, and piano, graduating at the age of 12 in 1946 with an ARCT diploma of the highest honours.
In 1947,
King George VI
George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of Ind ...
awarded the conservatory its
royal charter
A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, bu ...
in recognition of its status as one of
the Commonwealth
The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the ...
's greatest music schools. The Toronto Conservatory of Music became The Royal Conservatory of Music.
During
Ettore Mazzoleni
Ettore Mazzoleni (18 June 1905 – 1 June 1968) was a Canadian conductor, music educator, writer, and Arts administration, arts administrator of Swiss birth. He was one of the Canadian Opera Company's principal conductors during its early years, w ...
's term as principal (1945–68), the conservatory grew rapidly. Mazzoleni had been director of the Conservatory Orchestra since 1934. Two other prominent figures who contributed to the achievements of this period were chairman of the board Edward Johnson (who served from 1947 to 1959) and Arnold Walter, who was appointed director of the new Senior School in 1946. The Senior School offered a two-year program with professional performance training combined with related courses in theory and history. The initial success of the project gave rise to a three-year program leading to an Artist Diploma, as well as the conservatory's Opera School (begun in 1946), which provided training in all aspects of opera production. These developments led to the creation of the Royal Conservatory Opera Company, which went on to become the
Canadian Opera Company
The Canadian Opera Company (COC) is an opera company in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the largest opera company in Canada and one of the largest producers of opera in North America. The COC performs in its own opera house, the Four Seasons Cent ...
in 1959.
With space now a major problem, the University of Toronto sold the College Street property to
Ontario Hydro
Ontario Hydro, established in 1906 as the Hydro-Electric Power Commission of Ontario, was a publicly owned electricity utility in the Province of Ontario. It was formed to build transmission lines to supply municipal utilities with electricity g ...
in 1962 (demolished to make way for the Ontario Power Building in 1975), and the conservatory moved to 273 Bloor Street West, the original site of
McMaster University
McMaster University (McMaster or Mac) is a public research university in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The main McMaster campus is on of land near the residential neighbourhoods of Ainslie Wood and Westdale, adjacent to the Royal Botanical Ga ...
or McMaster Hall as well as Castle Memorial Hall. The concert and recital halls of the College Street site were only partially replaced in the move, and the library, residence, and all three pipe organs were lost.
Independent institution
The conservatory was governed by the University of Toronto from 1963 until 1991, at which time it became a wholly independent institution again, taking control of its building and diverse music programs. Peter Simon was appointed president of the conservatory.
Also in 1991, the conservatory developed a master plan to renovate its historic building and expand it with the construction of new facilities on the same site. The plan was carried out by Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg Architects (KPMB) in stages, initially with the 1997 renovation of Mazzoleni Concert Hall in the historic Ihnatowycz Hall. The plans for this renovation are held at the
Canadian Centre for Architecture
The Canadian Centre for Architecture (CCA; french: Centre Canadien d'Architecture) is a Architecture museum, museum of architecture and research centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is located at 1920, rue Baile (1920, Baile Street), between r ...
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 ...
. The new construction is named the
TELUS
Telus Communications Inc. (TCI) is the wholly owned principal subsidiary of Telus Corporation, a Canadian national telecommunications company that provides a wide range of telecommunications products and services including internet access, voi ...
Centre for Performance and Learning and features academic and performance spaces; the acoustically sound, 1,135-seat Koerner concert venue; studios; classrooms; a new-media centre; a library; and a rehearsal hall. During the renovations, the conservatory temporarily moved to the former location of the
Toronto District School Board
The Toronto District School Board (TDSB), formerly known as English-language Public District School Board No. 12 prior to 1999, is the English-language public-secular school board for Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The minority public-secular franco ...
's
Ursula Franklin Academy
Ursula Franklin Academy (colloquially known as UFA; pronounced as oo-faa) is a public high school in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located in the High Park neighbourhood, it was owned by the Toronto Board of Education until its merger into the Toront ...
in the Dufferin and Bloor West area. In September 2008, the conservatory returned to a newly renovated and expanded headquarters at 273 Bloor Street West near Avenue Road. Koerner Hall opened on 25 September 2009, beginning a new age of large-scale performances at The Royal Conservatory.
The original building, McMaster Hall, was renamed Ihnatowycz Hall in 2005, in reference to the contribution of alumni Ian Ihnatowycz and Marta Witer. The designation of this site as a heritage building required that the majority of the original materials and formal qualities be maintained while complying with the
building code
A building code (also building control or building regulations) is a set of rules that specify the standards for constructed objects such as buildings and non-building structures. Buildings must conform to the code to obtain planning permission ...
. The original brickwork was maintained: decorative red brick,
Medina sandstone
Medina sandstone is a geographic subset of the Medina Group stratigraphic formation in New York state and beyond. The name refers specifically to sandstone first quarried in Medina, NY and later quarried in other locations in Orleans County and ...
, and polished granite. The imposing manner of the building demonstrates the prominent form of the building.
Arts education programs
The Royal Conservatory is a
not-for-profit
A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
organization offering a wide range of arts programs.
The Royal Conservatory Certificate Program
This is the division of The Royal Conservatory that sets and supports standards in music examinations across Canada and internationally. The organization conducts 100,000 examinations annually in over 300 communities around the world.
Examinations are conducted three or four times each year in more than 300 communities through a network of local centres. The Certificate Program encompasses all levels and spans 11 grades: from beginner to certification as an Associate of The Royal Conservatory of Music (ARCT), to certification as a Licentiate of The Royal Conservatory of Music (LRCM).
Achievement on the examinations of The Royal Conservatory is recognized for credit toward secondary school graduation in many school systems in Canada. For most provinces in Canada, a Level 6 Certificate and Level 6 Theory (formerly Intermediate Rudiments) counts as Grade 10 credit, a Level 7 Certificate and Level 6 or Level 7 Theory (also formerly Intermediate Rudiments) counts as Grade 11 credit, and a Level 8 Certificate and Level 8 Theory (formerly Advanced Rudiments) counts as Grade 12 credit. One's standing in the Certificate Program also plays an important role in entrance requirements for professional music programs at many universities and colleges.
The Royal Conservatory Music Development Program
In 2011 The Royal Conservatory partnered with
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...
to launch The Achievement Program in the United States. In January 2013 The Royal Conservatory took on sole responsibility of the successful program under the name The Royal Conservatory Music Development Program. Developed to provide a national standard for all learners, in 2016 The Music Development Program was merged with The RCM Certificate Program.
The Frederick Harris Music Co., Limited
The Frederick Harris Music Co. Limited, is the oldest and largest print-music publisher in Canada.
Frederick Harris (1866–1945) devoted his life to music publishing. He began his career in England working for a large
music publishing
A music publisher is a type of publisher that specializes in distributing music. Music publishers originally published sheet music. When copyright became legally protected, music publishers started to play a role in the management of the intellect ...
firm. In 1904, he set up his own business in London and in 1910, established a Canadian office in Toronto – marking the beginning of a long association with The Royal Conservatory that led to an increased emphasis on publications for teaching and learning.
In 1944, the company was donated to the conservatory with profits to be used for its own purposes.
The Glenn Gould School
A centre for professional training in classical music performance at the postsecondary and postbachelor levels, The Glenn Gould School was established in 1987. Originally called The Royal Conservatory of Music Professional School, it was renamed in 1997 to honour
Glenn Gould
Glenn Herbert Gould (; né Gold; September 25, 1932October 4, 1982) was a Canadian classical pianist. He was one of the most famous and celebrated pianists of the 20th century, and was renowned as an interpreter of the keyboard works of Johann ...
, the Toronto-born piano
virtuoso
A virtuoso (from Italian ''virtuoso'' or , "virtuous", Late Latin ''virtuosus'', Latin ''virtus'', "virtue", "excellence" or "skill") is an individual who possesses outstanding talent and technical ability in a particular art or field such as ...
and a former pupil. Enrollment is limited to 130, and The School is supported by funding from the
Department of Canadian Heritage
The Department of Canadian Heritage, or simply Canadian Heritage (french: Patrimoine canadien), is the department of the Government of Canada that has roles and responsibilities related to initiatives that promote and support "Canadian identity ...
through the National Arts Contribution Program. It has become one of the most highly-respected music conservatories in North America, and the world.
The faculty consists of internationally acclaimed performers, teachers, and scholars. More than 125 master classes are presented each year with artists, such as
Leon Fleisher
Leon Fleisher (July 23, 1928 – August 2, 2020) was an American classical pianist, conductor and pedagogue. He was one of the most renowned pianists and pedagogues in the world. Music correspondent Elijah Ho called him "one of the most re ...
Anton Kuerti
Anton Emil Kuerti, OC (born July 21, 1938) is an Austrian-born Canadian pianist, music teacher, composer, and conductor. He has developed international recognition as a solo pianist.James Ehnes
James Ehnes, (born January 27, 1976) is a Canadian concert violinist and violist.
Life and career
Ehnes was born in Brandon, Manitoba, the son of Alan Ehnes, long time trumpet professor at Brandon University (Canada), and Barbara Withey Ehnes, ...
.
Glenn Gould School alumni have established careers as solo performers, orchestral musicians, chamber musicians, and recording artists. Alumni include the pianist
Jan Lisiecki
Jan Lisiecki (; born March 23, 1995) is a Canadian-born classical pianist of Polish ancestry. Lisiecki performs over a hundred concerts annually and has worked closely with the world's leading orchestras and conductors, his career at the top of ...
, singers
Isabel Bayrakdarian
Isabel Bayrakdarian ( arm, Իզապէլ Պայրագտարեան; born February 1, 1974) is a Lebanese-born Canadian operatic soprano of Armenian descent who now resides and works in the United States.
Early life
Born in Zahlé, Lebanon, into an ...
and Robert Gleadow, the pianists David Jalbert and Richard Raymond, the harpist Mariko Anraku, the violist Adam Romer, as well as the
St. Lawrence String Quartet
The St. Lawrence String Quartet is a Canadians, Canadian string quartet, and one of Canada's premier chamber ensembles.
The Quartet was founded in 1989 and has served residencies at the Juilliard School, Yale University, the University of Toront ...
.
The Glenn Gould School offers an accredited four-year Bachelor of Music (Honours) degree in Music Performance in piano, voice, and all orchestral instruments, designed for high school graduates who wish to prepare for a career as a performer. The Artist Diploma is a two-year postbachelor program for piano, voice, orchestral instruments, performance, and
pedagogy
Pedagogy (), most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political and psychological development of learners. Pedagogy, taken as ...
.
The school also offers The Rebanks Family Fellowship and Performance Diploma Program, a one-year career development program for aspiring classical musicians.
The Phil and Eli Taylor Performance Academy for Young Artists
After a competitive audition and interview, accepted students are streamed into Junior, Intermediate, or Senior Academy programs. This comprehensive program develops performance skills, musicianship, and academic excellence. Most Academy activities take place on Friday evenings and Saturdays but students are expected to practice daily and work on regular assignments. Through the support of private individuals and foundations, financial assistance is available for all students. Alumni of the Academy who have launched successful careers include Peter Simon, Katie Stillman, Eugene Nakamura, Marcin Swoboda, Janice LaMarre, Marta and Irena Kretchkovsky, and Karen Ouzounian.
Royal Conservatory School
The Royal Conservatory School offers individual and group instruction in classical, popular, folk, jazz, and world music, to people of all ages and abilities.
The school also offers music appreciation sessions as well as training programs for teachers and artists.
The Marilyn Thomson Early Childhood Education Centre
In October 2013 The Royal Conservatory launched The Marilyn Thomson Early Childhood Education Centre, with an aim of spreading online learning in music to young children.
Exchange Program
The Royal Conservatory of Music’s Glenn Gould School has joined the exchange program with different prestigious music institutions across the world.
The exchange institutions include:
*
Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris
The Conservatoire de Paris (), also known as the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
;
*
Shanghai Conservatory of Music
The Shanghai Conservatory of Music () was founded on November 27, 1927, as the first music institution of higher education in China. Its teachers and students have won awards at home and abroad, thus earning the conservatory the name "the crad ...
,
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
;
*
Sibelius Academy
The Sibelius Academy ( fi, Taideyliopiston Sibelius-Akatemia, sv, Sibelius-Akademin vid Konstuniversitetet) is part of the University of the Arts Helsinki and a university-level music school which operates in Helsinki and Kuopio, Finland. It als ...
of the
University of the Arts Helsinki
The University of the Arts Helsinki ( fi, Taideyliopisto, sv, Konstuniversitetet), also known as Uniarts Helsinki, is a Finnish arts university that was launched in the beginning of 2013. Apart from a few exceptions, it is the only university i ...
,
Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
;
*
Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin
The in Berlin, Germany, is one of the leading universities of music in Europe. It was established in East Berlin in 1950 as the () because the older (now the Berlin University of the Arts) was in West Berlin. After the death of one of its fir ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
;
*
The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts
The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA) (Chinese: 香港演藝學院) is a provider of tertiary education in Hong Kong. Located near the north coast of Wan Chai on Hong Kong Island, the main campus also functions as a venue for pe ...
,
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
;
*
Sydney Conservatorium of Music
The Sydney Conservatorium of Music (formerly the New South Wales State Conservatorium of Music and known by the moniker "The Con") is a heritage-listed music school in Macquarie Street, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is one of the old ...
,
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
;
*
Reina Sofía School of Music
The Reina Sofía School of Music (Escuela Superior de Música Reina Sofía in Spanish) is a private music school founded in Madrid, Spain, in 1991 by Paloma O'Shea. It belongs to the Albéniz Foundation, and it bears the name of its Honorary Pr ...
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
;
*
Reina Sofía School of Music
The Reina Sofía School of Music (Escuela Superior de Música Reina Sofía in Spanish) is a private music school founded in Madrid, Spain, in 1991 by Paloma O'Shea. It belongs to the Albéniz Foundation, and it bears the name of its Honorary Pr ...
,
Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
;
*
Tokyo University of the Arts
or is the most prestigious art school in Japan. Located in Ueno Park, it also has facilities in Toride, Ibaraki, Yokohama, Kanagawa, and Kitasenju and Adachi, Tokyo. The university has trained renowned artists in the fields of painting, scul ...
, Faculty of Music, and Graduate School of Music,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
;
* London’s
Royal Academy of Music
The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is the oldest conservatoire in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the first Duke of ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
.
Performing arts
The Royal Conservatory presents approximately 100 performances a year, featuring classical,
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...
,
world
In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...
, and pop music artists from around the world. It has three concert venues: Koerner Hall, Mazzoleni Concert Hall, and Temerty Theatre.
Koerner Hall
Named for donors Michael and Sonja Koerner, Koerner Hall opened in September 2009 and houses 1,135 seats. It was designed by
KPMB Architects
KPMB is a Canadian architecture firm founded by Bruce Kuwabara, Thomas Payne, Marianne McKenna, and Shirley Blumberg, in 1987. It is headquartered in Toronto, where the majority of their work is found. Aside from designing buildings, the firm a ...
, under the direction of
Marianne McKenna
Marianne McKenna, OC, FRAIC, OAA, OAQ, AIA, RIBA (born September 25, 1950) is a Canadian architect and a founding partner of KPMB Architects, a Toronto-based practice established in 1987. She is an invested Officer of The Order of Canada "for her ...
, theatre consultant Anne Minors Performance Consultants, and acoustics company Sound Space Design. It features two balcony tiers above the main orchestra level as well as a third technical balcony. Koerner Hall's signature element is an acoustically transparent veil of twisting oak strings that forms the backdrop for the chorus at the first balcony level, then hovers over the stage below the fixed acoustic canopy, extending into and over the hall at the technical balcony level. Completion of the project also includes three tiers of glass fronted lobbies overlooking
Philosopher's Walk
The is a pedestrian path that follows a cherry-tree-lined canal in Kyoto, Japan between Ginkaku-ji and Nanzen-ji. First opened in 1890 and extended again in 1912, the path follows the course of a shallow irrigation channel bringing water fro ...
, back-of-house areas for performers, a ground-floor café, and installation of a unique collection of antique musical instruments donated by the Koerner family and valued at $1 million. Each level is also equipped to host a variety of private functions.
Mazzoleni Concert Hall
Mazzoleni Concert Hall has and 237 seats. When it opened in 1901, it was known as Castle Memorial Hall. At that time it had a chapel with stained glass windows on the ground floor level and a library on the lower level. By the 1960s, the University of Toronto, which used the space as a lecture hall, had bricked up the windows and removed a rear balcony. In 1996, restoration began. Mazzoleni Concert Hall was named in honour of Ettore Mazzoleni, a former principal of the conservatory.
Temerty Theatre
"A granite cube which floats above Bloor Street," this multipurpose performance and event space is located on level 2 of the
TELUS
Telus Communications Inc. (TCI) is the wholly owned principal subsidiary of Telus Corporation, a Canadian national telecommunications company that provides a wide range of telecommunications products and services including internet access, voi ...
Centre for Performance and Learning. It has space for up to 150 seats and is designed to accommodate a range of functions, including special events, performance, rehearsals, and "Learning Through the Arts™" activities. In scale and proportion, the Conservatory Theatre replicates the acoustic quality and stage size of Koerner Hall to prepare students for live performance. The venue is named in honour of James and Louise Temerty.
ARC Ensemble
Established in 2002, the ARC Ensemble (Artists of The Royal Conservatory) is composed of senior faculty members of the conservatory's Glenn Gould School in Toronto and led by artistic director Simon Wynberg.
The ensemble has been nominated for three
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
s. Its current album, dedicated to the works of Polish-American composer
Jerzy Fitelberg
Jerzy Fitelberg (May 20, 1903 – April 25, 1951) was a Polish-American composer."Jerzy Fitelberg, 48, A Polish Composer," ''New York Times'' (April 27, 1951), p. 23.
Biography
Son of Grzegorz Fitelberg, Jerzy was born in Warsaw. He first stud ...
Producer of the Year, Classical
The Grammy Award for Producer of the Year, Classical is an honor presented to record producers for quality classical music productions at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Honors ...
(David Frost). The ensemble has also received Grammy nominations for its 2007 recording ''On the Threshold of Hope'', and its 2008 album ''Right Through The Bone'', devoted to the music of German-Dutch composer
Julius Röntgen
Julius Engelbert Röntgen (9 May 1855 – 13 September 1932) was a German-Dutch composer of classical music. He was a friend of Liszt, Brahms and Grieg.
Life
Julius Röntgen was born in Leipzig, Germany, to a family of musicians. His father, ...
.
Current membership
* Marie Berard, violin
*
Benjamin Bowman
Benjamin Walter Bowman (born September 20, 1979) is an American-Canadian violinist. The Metropolitan Opera and incoming Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin appointed Bowman as concertmaster as of the 2018-19 season, after a successful one-year ...
, violin
*
Steven Dann
Steven Dann (born December 27, 1953) is a Canadian violist.
Early years
Dann was born in Burnaby, British Columbia. He played the violin until 1970, when he switched to the viola. He began studying with Lorand Fenyves in Toronto in 1972, and co ...
, viola
* Bryan Epperson, cello
* David Louie, piano
*
Erika Raum
Erika Raum is a Canadian violinist.
Biography
Raum began playing professionally at age 12. She took first place at the 1992 Joseph Szigeti International Violin Competition in Budapest as well as the award for best interpretation of a Mozart co ...
, violin
* Joaquin Valdepeñas, clarinet
* Dianne Werner, piano
Alumni
*
Randy Bachman
Randolph Charles Bachman (; born September 27, 1943) is a Canadian guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He was a founding member of the bands The Guess Who and Bachman–Turner Overdrive. Bachman recorded as a solo artist and was part of a num ...
Emilie-Claire Barlow
Emilie-Claire Barlow (born 6 June 1976) is a Canadian singer, arranger, record producer, and voice actress. She has released several albums on her label, Empress Music Group, and has voiced characters for animated television series. She performs ...
, jazz singer and musician
*
Isabel Bayrakdarian
Isabel Bayrakdarian ( arm, Իզապէլ Պայրագտարեան; born February 1, 1974) is a Lebanese-born Canadian operatic soprano of Armenian descent who now resides and works in the United States.
Early life
Born in Zahlé, Lebanon, into an ...
, soprano
*
Jeanne Beker
Jeanne Beker, (; born 19 March 1952) is a Canadian television personality, fashion editor, and author.
Family
Jeanne Beker was born in Toronto, Ontario to father Joseph Beker and mother Bronia Beker, two Jewish Holocaust survivors born in Koz ...
, television personality
*
Mario Bernardi
Mario Bernardi, (20 August 1930 – 2 June 2013) was a Canadian conductor and pianist.Laila Biali
Laila Biali (born 3 October 1980) is a Canadian Vocal jazz, jazz singer and pianist. She has been nominated for and won a Juno Award and has worked with Chris Botti and Sting (musician), Sting.
Career
Born in Vancouver, Biali began playing pi ...
, singer, songwriter, and pianist
* Mary Bothwell, classical vocalist (Canadian Academy of Music)
* Russell Braun, baritone
*
Measha Brueggergosman
Measha Brueggergosman (née Gosman; June 28, 1977) is a Canadian soprano who performs both as an opera singer and concert artist. She has performed internationally and won numerous awards. Her recordings of both classical and popular music ha ...
, soprano
*
Howard Cable
Howard Reid Cable (December 15, 1920March 30, 2016) was a conductor, arranger, music director, composer, and radio and television producer. He was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Biography
Cable received an Associate diploma (ATCM) from The ...
Kim Cattrall
Kim Victoria Cattrall (; born 21 August 1956) is a British-Canadian actress. She is known for her role as Samantha Jones on HBO's ''Sex and the City'' (1998–2004), for which she received five Emmy Award nominations and four Golden Globe A ...
, actor
*
Piya Chattopadhyay
Piya Chattopadhyay () is a Canadian journalist, currently host of '' The Sunday Magazine'' on CBC Radio One.
She is known for her work on CBC Radio,Jane Child
Jane Richmond Hyslop (born 15 February 1967), known professionally as Jane Child, is a Canadian singer, songwriter and record-producer best known for her hit single " Don't Wanna Fall in Love". She is also known for her unusual fashion style, w ...
, singer
*
Bruce Cockburn
Bruce Douglas Cockburn ( ; born May 27, 1945) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist. His song styles range from folk to jazz-influenced rock and his lyrics cover a broad range of topics including human rights, environmental issues, po ...
, singer, songwriter, and guitarist
* Jonathan Crow, violinist, concert master
*
George Crum
George Speck (also known as George Crum;Hugh Bradley, ''Such Was Saratoga'', New York: 1940 July 15, 1824 – July 22, 1914) was an American chef. He was known for his role in popularizing potato chips in Upstate New York and was later mythologiz ...
, conductor
* John Cuciurean, music theorist, composer, guitarist
*
Mychael Danna
Mychael Danna (born September 20, 1958) is a Canadian composer of film and television film score, scores. He won both the Golden Globe Award, Golden Globe and Academy Awards, Oscar for Academy Award for Best Original Score, Best Original Score f ...
, Academy Award-winning composer
*
John Estacio
John Estacio (born April 8, 1966) is a contemporary Canadian composer of opera, orchestral and choral music.
__TOC__
Life and career
Estacio was born in Newmarket, Ontario. Raised in the farming community of the Holland Marsh, Ontario, Estacio t ...
, composer
*
Bob Ezrin
Robert Alan Ezrin (born March 25, 1949) is a Canadian music producer and keyboardist, best known for his work with Lou Reed, Alice Cooper, Aerosmith, Kiss, Pink Floyd, Deep Purple, Peter Gabriel, Andrea Bocelli and Phish. As of 2010, Ezrin' ...
, record producer
*
Ivan Fecan
Ivan Fecan is a Canadian media executive producer and philanthropist. Fecan was the president and chief executive officer of Baton Broadcasting and its successor CTVglobemedia from 1996 to 2011, and chief executive officer of the CTV Television N ...
, media executive
*
David Foster
David Walter Foster (born November 1, 1949) is a Canadian musician, composer, arranger, record producer and music executive who chaired Verve Records from 2012 to 2016. He has won 16 Grammy Awards from 47 nominations. His music career spans mor ...
erhu
The ''erhu'' (; ) is a Chinese two-stringed bowed musical instrument, more specifically a spike fiddle, which may also be called a ''Southern Fiddle'', and is sometimes known in the Western world as the ''Chinese violin'' or a ''Chinese two-s ...
player and composer
* Wallis Giunta, mezzo-soprano
*
Chilly Gonzales
Jason Charles Beck (born 20 March 1972), professionally known as Chilly Gonzales, is a Canadian musician, songwriter, and producer. Currently based in Cologne, Germany, he previously lived for several years in Paris. Gonzales is a musical polymat ...
, Grammy Award-winning pianist, songwriter, and producer
*
Glenn Gould
Glenn Herbert Gould (; né Gold; September 25, 1932October 4, 1982) was a Canadian classical pianist. He was one of the most famous and celebrated pianists of the 20th century, and was renowned as an interpreter of the keyboard works of Johann ...
Lawrence Gowan
Lawrence Henry Gowan (born 22 November 1956) is a Scottish born Canadian singer and keyboardist. He was born in Glasgow and raised in the Toronto suburb of Scarborough, Ontario. Gowan has been both a solo artist and lead vocalist and keyboard ...
, pianist
*
Barbara Gowdy
Barbara Gowdy, CM (born 25 June 1950) is a Canadian novelist and short story writer. Born in Windsor, Ontario, she is the long-time partner of poet Christopher Dewdney and resides in Toronto.
Literary career
Gowdy's novel '' Falling Angels'' ...
, novelist, short-story writer
*
Gryphon Trio
The Gryphon Trio is a Canadian classical music ensemble that has been nominated for several and has won three Juno Awards for its classical recordings released by the Analekta label. Its members are Annalee Patipatanakoon (violin), Roman Borys (cel ...
*
Emily Haines
Emily Savitri Haines (born 25 January 1974) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She is the lead singer, keyboardist and songwriter of the rock band Metric and a member of the musical collective Broken Social Scene. As a solo artist, she has pe ...
, singer/songwriter
* Stuart Hamilton, pianist, vocal coach, radio broadcaster, artistic director, and producer
* Rt. Hon Stephen Harper 22nd Prime Minister of Canada
*
Jeff Healey
Norman Jeffrey Healey (March 25, 1966 – March 2, 2008) was a Canadian blues, rock and jazz singer, guitarist, and songwriter who attained popularity in the 1980s and 1990s. He reached No. 5 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart with " A ...
, guitarist
*
Angela Hewitt
Angela Hewitt, (born July 26, 1958) is a Canadian classical pianist. She is best known for her Bach interpretations.
Career
Hewitt was born in Ottawa, Ontario, daughter of the Yorkshire-born Godfrey Hewitt (thus she also has British nationality ...
, pianist
*
Heather Hiscox
Heather Hiscox (born 18 November 1965) is a Canadian news anchor who hosts '' CBC News Now'' from 6 to 10 a.m. on weekdays on CBC News Network. She was also the host of the CBC's former flagship morning television program '' CBC News: Morning' ...
, journalist and broadcaster
* Leslie Holmes, baritone and voice teacher (Canadian Academy of Music)
*Scott Houghton, Pianist, Doctor, Motorcycle Enthusiast
* Carly Rae Jepsen, singer/songwriter
*
Norman Jewison
Norman Frederick Jewison (born July 21, 1926) is a retired Canadian film and television director, producer, and founder of the Canadian Film Centre.
He has directed numerous feature films and has been nominated for the Academy Award for Best D ...
, film director
*
Kiesza
Kiesa Rae Ellestad (born January 16, 1989), known professionally as Kiesza ( ), is a Canadian singer and multi-instrumentalist from Calgary.
In 2017, she was involved in a car accident in Toronto, suffering severe injuries that required her to ...
Norbert Kraft Norbert Kraft (born 21 August 1950) is a Canadian guitarist, music teacher, producer and arranger.
Life
Born in Linz, Austria, Kraft's family emigrated to Canada in 1954. He studied at the Royal Conservatory of Music at Toronto with Carl van Feggel ...
, classical guitarist
*
Diana Krall
Diana Jean Krall (born November 16, 1964) is a Canadian jazz pianist and singer known for her contralto vocals. She has sold more than 15 million albums worldwide, including over six million in the US. On December 11, 2009, '' Billboard'' maga ...
Gary Kulesha
Gary Kulesha (born 22 August 1954) is a Canadian composer, pianist, conductor, and educator. Since 1995, he has been Composer Advisor to the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. He has been Composer-in-Residence with the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony (198 ...
, conductor, composer, and faculty at the
University of Toronto, Faculty of Music
The Faculty of Music at the University of Toronto is one of several professional faculties at the University of Toronto. The Faculty of Music is located at the Edward Johnson Building, just south of the Royal Ontario Museum and north of Queen's ...
*Robert, now
Bobbi Lancaster
Bobbi Lancaster (born June 23, 1950) is a family physician, champion golfer, author, human rights advocate and motivational speaker. She is also a transgender woman, and underwent undergoing gender reassignment surgery in 2010. She attempted to qu ...
Gordon Lightfoot
Gordon Meredith Lightfoot Jr. (born November 17, 1938) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist who achieved international success in folk, folk-rock, and country music. He is credited with helping to define the folk-pop sound of the 1960 ...
Jan Lisiecki
Jan Lisiecki (; born March 23, 1995) is a Canadian-born classical pianist of Polish ancestry. Lisiecki performs over a hundred concerts annually and has worked closely with the world's leading orchestras and conductors, his career at the top of ...
, pianist
*
Alexina Louie
Alexina Diane Louie, (born July 30, 1949) is a Canadian composer of contemporary art music. She has composed for various instrumental and vocal combinations in a variety of genres. She has fulfilled a number of commissions, and her works, whic ...
Loreena McKennitt
Loreena Isobel Irene McKennitt, (born February 17, 1957) is a Canadian singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and composer who writes, records, and performs world music with Celtic and Middle Eastern influences. McKennitt is known for her r ...
, singer, pianist and composer
*
Sarah McLachlan
Sarah Ann McLachlan Order of Canada, OC Order of British Columbia, OBC (born January 28, 1968) is a Canadian singer-songwriter. As of 2015, she had sold over 40 million albums worldwide. McLachlan's best-selling album to date is ''Surfacing ( ...
, singer/songwriter
*
Sean Morley
Sean Allen Morley (born March 6, 1971), better known by the ring name Val Venis, is a Canadian retired professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Entertainment (WWF/WWE) fro ...
, wrestler
*
Geoffrey Moull
Geoffrey Moull is a Canadian professional conductor. He was principal conductor of the Bielefeld Philharmonic Orchestra and music director of the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra.
Education
Geoffrey Moull was born in London, Ontario, Canada and ...
, conductor and pianist
*
Kent Nagano
Kent George Nagano GOQ, MSM (born November 22, 1951) is an American conductor and opera administrator. Since 2015, he has been Music Director of the Hamburg State Opera and was Music Director of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra from 2006 to 20 ...
, conductor and music director
*
Scott Niedermayer
Scott Niedermayer (born August 31, 1973) is a Canadian former ice hockey defenceman and current special assignment coach of the Anaheim Ducks. He played 18 seasons and over 1,000 games in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the New Jersey Devi ...
, hockey player
*
Phil Nimmons
Phillip Rista Nimmons, (born June 3, 1923) is a Canadian jazz clarinetist, composer, bandleader, and educator. Nimmons is known for playing in a "Free Jazz" and mainstream styles. As well as playing jazz, Nimmons also played other genres, notab ...
Sandra Oh
Sandra Miju Oh (born July 20, 1971) is a Canadian–American actress. She is best known for her starring roles as Rita Wu on the HBO comedy '' Arliss'' (1996–2002), Dr. Cristina Yang on the ABC medical drama series ''Grey's Anatomy'' (2005 ...
, award-winning actress
* Joseph Pach, violinist
*
Owen Pallett
Michael James Owen Pallett (born September 7, 1979) is a Canadian composer, violinist, keyboardist, and vocalist. Under their erstwhile moniker of Final Fantasy, Pallett won the 2006 Polaris Music Prize for the album '' He Poos Clouds''. Palle ...
, violinist and composer
*
Jon Kimura Parker
Jon Kimura Parker (born 25 December 1959) is a Canadian pianist.
Early life and education
Jon Kimura Parker was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, the son of Keiko Parker and John Parker. He began his studies with his uncle, Edward P ...
, pianist and educator
*
Richard Reed Parry
Richard Reed Parry (born October 4, 1977) is a Canadian multi-instrumentalist, composer, producer, best known as a core member of the Grammy Award-winning indie rock band Arcade Fire, where he plays a wide variety of instruments, often switching ...
, guitarist and composer
*
Ryan Peake
Ryan Anthony Peake (born March 1, 1973) is a Canadian musician, singer and songwriter who is best known as the rhythm guitarist, keyboardist, and backing vocalist of the Canadian rock band Nickelback. He has been with the band since their incepti ...
, guitarist
*
Oscar Peterson
Oscar Emmanuel Peterson (August 15, 1925 – December 23, 2007) was a Canadian virtuoso jazz pianist and composer. Considered one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time, Peterson released more than 200 recordings, won seven Grammy Awards, ...
, pianist and composer
*
Adrianne Pieczonka
Adrianne Pieczonka, OC ( ; born March 2, 1963) is a Canadian operatic soprano singer.
Life and career
Pieczonka was born in Poughkeepsie, New York, and grew up in Burlington, Ontario. She graduated from the University of Western Ontario in 19 ...
, soprano
*
Gordon Pinsent
Gordon Edward Pinsent (born July 12, 1930) is a Canadian actor, writer, director, and singer. He is known for his roles in numerous productions, including ''Away from Her'', ''The Rowdyman'', ''John and the Missus'', ''A Gift to Last'', '' Due So ...
, actor
*
Sarah Polley
Sarah Ellen Polley (born January 8, 1979) is a Canadian actress,Howell, Peter (September 24, 1999)"Nobody's Starlet: Toronto's Sarah Polley is Only 20 but already a veteran actor so secure in her craft she can thumb her nose at Hollywood" ''Tor ...
, filmmaker and actress
*
Kalan Porter
Richard Kalan Porter (born November 11, 1985) is a Canadian former singer-songwriter from Medicine Hat, Alberta, and the winner of the reality television series '' Canadian Idol'' in 2004. He started to sing at an early age and is classically t ...
, singer/songwriter
*
Tegan and Sara
Tegan and Sara () are a Canadian indie pop duo formed in 1998 in Calgary, Alberta. The band is led by identical twin sisters Tegan Rain Quin and Sara Keirsten Quin (born September 19, 1980). Both musicians are songwriters and multi-instrumenta ...
Quin, singers, songwriters, and pianists
*
Eric Radford
Eric Radford (born January 27, 1985) is a Canadian pair skater. With former partner Meagan Duhamel, he is a two-time world champion ( 2015, 2016), a 2018 Olympic gold medallist in the team event, a 2014 Olympic silver medallist in the team even ...
, world champion pairs figure skater
* The Hon. Bob Rae, former premier of Ontario
*
Erika Raum
Erika Raum is a Canadian violinist.
Biography
Raum began playing professionally at age 12. She took first place at the 1992 Joseph Szigeti International Violin Competition in Budapest as well as the award for best interpretation of a Mozart co ...
, violinist
*
Ryan Reynolds
Ryan Rodney Reynolds (born October 23, 1976) is a Canadian-American actor. He is one of the highest-grossing film actors of all time, with a worldwide box-office gross of over billion.
He began his career starring in the Canadian teen ...
, actor
*
Doug Riley
Douglas Brian Riley, CM (April 12, 1945 – August 27, 2007) was a Canadian musician, also known as Dr. Music. He spent two decades with the Famous People Players as its musical director, besides his participation on over 300 album projects ...
R. Murray Schafer
Raymond Murray Schafer (18 July 1933 – 14 August 2021) was a Canadian composer, writer, music educator, and environmentalist perhaps best known for his World Soundscape Project, concern for acoustic ecology, and his book ''The Tuning of th ...
, composer and educator
*
Paul Shaffer
Paul Allen Wood Shaffer (born November 28, 1949) is a Canadian singer, composer, actor, author, comedian, and multi-instrumentalist who served as David Letterman's musical director, band leader, and sidekick on the entire run of both '' Late ...
, musical director
*
Mitchell Sharp
Mitchell William Sharp (May 11, 1911 – March 19, 2004) was a Canadian politician and a Companion of the Order of Canada, most noted for his service as a Liberal Cabinet minister. He did, however, serve in both private and public sectors dur ...
, Canadian former Minister of Finance
*
Sarah Slean
Sarah Hope Slean (born June 21, 1977) is a Canadian singer-songwriter, composer and musician. She has released eleven albums to date (including EPs and live albums). She is also a poet, visual artist, and occasional actress.
Career Major recordi ...
Teresa Stratas
Teresa Stratas (born May 26, 1938) is a retired operatic soprano from Canada of Greek descent. She is especially well known for her award-winning recording of Alban Berg's ''Lulu''.
Early life and career
Stratas was born Anastasia Stratakis to ...
Shania Twain
Eilleen Regina "Shania" Twain ( , ; née Edwards; born August 28, 1965) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She has sold over 100 million records, making her the best-selling female artist in country music history and one of the best-s ...
, singer
*
Veronica Tennant
Veronica Tennant, (born January 15, 1946) is a Canadian producer, director, and filmmaker and a former principal dancer of the National Ballet of Canada. She was born in London, England and moved to Canada with her parents and sister in 1955. Da ...
, filmmaker and former Prima Ballerina, National Ballet of Canada
*
Jon Vickers
Jonathan Stewart Vickers, (October 29, 1926 – July 10, 2015), known professionally as Jon Vickers, was a Canadian heldentenor.
Born in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, he was the sixth in a family of eight children. In 1950, he was awarded a ...
, tenor
*
Rafael Villanueva
Rafael Villanueva (1947–1995)eltrend (Spanish) retrieved 13 December 2010 was a Greg Wells
Greg Wells is a Canadian musician, record producer, songwriter and audio engineer. Wells has songs on over 130 million albums sold. He has worked with John Legend, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Ariana Grande, Jazmine Sullivan, Kid Cudi, Adele, Rufus Wai ...
, Grammy winning musician, composer, record producer
Teachers
Notable teachers at The Royal Conservatory include:
* Joan Barrett violin teacher
*
Boris Berlin
Boris Berlin (27 May 1907 – 24 March 2001) was a Canadian pianist, music educator, arranger, and composer of Russian birth. He is primarily remembered for his work within the field of piano pedagogy, having published an extensive amount of mate ...
, pianist, arranger, and composer
*
Leon Fleisher
Leon Fleisher (July 23, 1928 – August 2, 2020) was an American classical pianist, conductor and pedagogue. He was one of the most renowned pianists and pedagogues in the world. Music correspondent Elijah Ho called him "one of the most re ...
, pianist and conductor
*
Arthur Friedheim
Arthur Friedheim (russian: Артур Фридхайм, 14/26 October 1859 – 19 October 1932) was a Russian-born concert pianist and composer who was one of Franz Liszt's foremost pupils. One of Friedheim's students was Rildia Bee O'Bryan ...
, pianist, conductor and composer (Canadian Academy of Music)
*
Nicholas Goldschmidt
Nicholas Goldschmidt, (December 6, 1908 – February 8, 2004) was a Canadian conducting, conductor, administrator, teacher, performer, music festival entrepreneur and artistic director. He was the grand-nephew of famed composer Adalbert von Goldsc ...
, first music director of conservatory's Opera School (1946-1957)
*
Alberto Guerrero
Antonio Alberto García Guerrero (February 6, 1886November 7, 1959) was a Chilean composer, pianist, and teacher. While he is most famously remembered as the mentor of Canadian pianist Glenn Gould, García influenced several generations of musicia ...
, teacher (1922-1959)
* Paul Kantor, violin teacher
*
Luigi von Kunits
Ludwig Paul Maria "Luigi" von Kunits (20 July 1870 – 8 October 1931) was a Canadian conductor, composer, violinist, and pedagogue. Born in Austria, he studied at the Vienna Conservatory. He later moved to Canada where he was the founding cond ...
, conductor
*
Ernest MacMillan
Sir Ernest Alexander Campbell MacMillan, (August 18, 1893 – May 6, 1973) was a Canadian orchestral conductor, composer, organist, and Canada's only "Musical Knight". He is widely regarded as being Canada's pre-eminent musician, from the ...
, principal (appointed 1926)
*
Boyd Neel
Louis Boyd Neel O.C. (19 July 190530 September 1981) was an English, and later Canadian conductor and academic. He was Dean of the Royal Conservatory of Music at the University of Toronto. Neel founded and conducted chamber orchestras, and cont ...
, dean of the conservatory, 1953–1971
* Laura de Turczynowicz (1878–1953), former opera singer and head of the Royal Conservatory Opera Company 1926–1928
*
Frank Welsman
Frank Squire Welsman (20 December 1873 – 2 July 1952) was a Canadian conductor, pianist, composer and music educator. He began his career as a concert pianist, but ultimately earned his place in Canadian history for establishing Toronto's fir ...
, conductor, pianist, composer and music educator
*
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 ...
, appointed head of the theory department in 1913, vice-principal, 1920–1936
Honorary Fellows of The Royal Conservatory
An Honorary Fellowship is the highest honour awarded by The Royal Conservatory. It is presented to outstanding Canadian and international artists and individuals who have made significant contributions to arts and culture in Canada and around the world.
*1990: John Kruspe, musician and lecturer
*1990: Norman Burgess, musician, educator, administrator
*1991: Gordon Kushner, pianist, conductor, and teacher
*1992: William Littler, educator and music and dance critic at the
Toronto Star
The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part ...
*1993: Robert Goulet
*1993: J Anthony Dawson, organist, composer, and teacher at The Royal Conservatory
*1993:
Adrienne Clarkson
Adrienne Louise Clarkson (; ; born February 10, 1939) is a British Hong Kong, Hong Kong-born Canadian journalist who served from 1999 to 2005 as Governor General of Canada, the List of Governors General of Canada#Governors General of Canada, 1 ...
, journalist and stateswoman
*1994: Lois Marshall, soprano and mezzo-soprano
*1994:
Robertson Davies
William Robertson Davies (28 August 1913 – 2 December 1995) was a Canadian novelist, playwright, critic, journalist, and professor. He was one of Canada's best known and most popular authors and one of its most distinguished " men of letters" ...
, author
*1995:
David Mirvish
David Mirvish, (born August 29, 1944) is a Canadian art collector, art dealer, theatre producer, real estate developer and son of the late Toronto discount department store owner "Honest" Ed Mirvish and artist Anne Lazar Macklin.
Life and caree ...
, art collector and dealer
*1995:
Maureen Forrester
Maureen Kathleen Stewart Forrester, (July 25, 1930 – June 16, 2010) was a Canadian operatic contralto.
Life and career
Maureen Forrester was born and grew up in Montreal, Quebec, one of four children of Thomas Forrester, a Scottish cabinetmak ...
, operatic contralto who gave master classes at the conservatory
*1996:
Mario Bernardi
Mario Bernardi, (20 August 1930 – 2 June 2013) was a Canadian conductor and pianist.Lorand Fenyves, violin teacher
*1997: Doreen Hall, violinist, teacher to the conservatory
*1998:
Jeanne Lamon
Jeanne Lamon, (August 14, 1949 – June 20, 2021) was an American-Canadian violinist and conductor.
Biography
Lamon was born as Jean Susan Lamon in the Queens borough of New York City and was raised in Larchmont, New York. Her parents were Isaa ...
, violinist and conductor
*1998:
Tomson Highway
Tomson Highway (born 6 December 1951) is an Indigenous Canadian playwright, novelist, and children's author. He is best known for his plays ''The Rez Sisters'' and ''Dry Lips Oughta Move to Kapuskasing'', both of which won the Dora Mavor Moore ...
, writer
*1999:
Teresa Stratas
Teresa Stratas (born May 26, 1938) is a retired operatic soprano from Canada of Greek descent. She is especially well known for her award-winning recording of Alban Berg's ''Lulu''.
Early life and career
Stratas was born Anastasia Stratakis to ...
, soprano
*1999: Marina Geringas, publisher at the conservatory
*1999: Alan Goddard, former director of The Royal Conservatory of Music
*2000: Edith Lantos, educator
*2000:
Leon Fleisher
Leon Fleisher (July 23, 1928 – August 2, 2020) was an American classical pianist, conductor and pedagogue. He was one of the most renowned pianists and pedagogues in the world. Music correspondent Elijah Ho called him "one of the most re ...
, pianist and conductor
* 2000:
Aline Chrétien
Aline Chrétien (née Chaîné; May 14, 1936September 12, 2020) was a Canadian academic administrator who was the wife of Canada's 20th prime minister, Jean Chrétien. She previously worked as a secretary, payroll manager, and model. In her l ...
Oscar Peterson
Oscar Emmanuel Peterson (August 15, 1925 – December 23, 2007) was a Canadian virtuoso jazz pianist and composer. Considered one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time, Peterson released more than 200 recordings, won seven Grammy Awards, ...
David Foster
David Walter Foster (born November 1, 1949) is a Canadian musician, composer, arranger, record producer and music executive who chaired Verve Records from 2012 to 2016. He has won 16 Grammy Awards from 47 nominations. His music career spans mor ...
, producer, songwriter, and composer
*2003: Richard Margison, operatic tenor
*2003:
Bruce Cockburn
Bruce Douglas Cockburn ( ; born May 27, 1945) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist. His song styles range from folk to jazz-influenced rock and his lyrics cover a broad range of topics including human rights, environmental issues, po ...
, singer/songwriter
*2004:
Isabel Bayrakdarian
Isabel Bayrakdarian ( arm, Իզապէլ Պայրագտարեան; born February 1, 1974) is a Lebanese-born Canadian operatic soprano of Armenian descent who now resides and works in the United States.
Early life
Born in Zahlé, Lebanon, into an ...
, soprano
*2004:
Barenaked Ladies
Barenaked Ladies is a Canadian rock band formed in 1988 in Scarborough, Ontario. The band developed a following in Canada, with their self-titled 1991 cassette becoming the first independent release to be certified gold in Canada. They reach ...
, rock band
*2005:
Louise Pitre
Louise Pitre (born January 1, 1957) is a Canadian actress in musical theatre. She performs on Broadway and in Canada. She is best known for her role as Donna Sheridan in the ABBA-themed musical '' Mamma Mia!'', which earned her a 2002 Tony Award ...
, actress
*2005:
Bramwell Tovey
Bramwell Tovey (11 July 1953 – 12 July 2022) was a British conductor and composer.
Life and career
Tovey was educated at Ilford County High School, the Royal Academy of Music and the University of London. His formal music education was as ...
, conductor and composer
*2006:
The Tragically Hip
The Tragically Hip, often referred to simply as the Hip, were a Canadian rock band formed in Kingston, Ontario in 1984, consisting of vocalist Gord Downie, guitarist Paul Langlois, guitarist Rob Baker (known as Bobby Baker until 1994), bassi ...
, rock band
*2007: Erica Davidson, ballet dancer
*2007: Marta Witer, optometrist
*2007: Ian O. Ihnatowycz, investor
*2007: Blue Rodeo, pop and country band
*2008: John Perry, pianist
*2008:
Steven Staryk
Steven Sam Staryk, OC (born 27 April 1932) is a Canadian violin virtuoso. He had a distinguished solo career and was concertmaster of several major orchestras, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the Amsterdam Concertgebouw Orchestra, the Concertgeb ...
, violinist
*2008:
R. Murray Schafer
Raymond Murray Schafer (18 July 1933 – 14 August 2021) was a Canadian composer, writer, music educator, and environmentalist perhaps best known for his World Soundscape Project, concern for acoustic ecology, and his book ''The Tuning of th ...
, composer, writer, educator
*2008:
Nelly Furtado
Nelly Kim Furtado (; ; born December 2, 1978) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. Furtado has sold over 40 million records worldwide making her one of the most successful Canadian artists.
She first gained fame with her trip hop-inspired deb ...
, singer/songwriter
*2010:
Darren Entwistle
Darren Entwistle (born 1962) is a Canadian businessman. He is currently the president and chief executive officer of TELUS, a Canadian telecommunications company.
Early life
Born in Montreal, Quebec, Entwistle received a Bachelor of Economics ...
, businessman
*2011: Jeanne Lougheed and
Peter Lougheed
Edgar Peter Lougheed ( ; July 26, 1928 – September 13, 2012) was a Canadian lawyer and Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta, Progressive Conservative politician who served as the tenth premier of Alberta from 1971 to 1985, presiding ...
, philanthropist and Premier of Alberta
*2011: Jens Lindemann, trumpeter
*2011: June Goldsmith, artistic director
*2011:
Phil Nimmons
Phillip Rista Nimmons, (born June 3, 1923) is a Canadian jazz clarinetist, composer, bandleader, and educator. Nimmons is known for playing in a "Free Jazz" and mainstream styles. As well as playing jazz, Nimmons also played other genres, notab ...
, composer and educator
*2011:
Marianne McKenna
Marianne McKenna, OC, FRAIC, OAA, OAQ, AIA, RIBA (born September 25, 1950) is a Canadian architect and a founding partner of KPMB Architects, a Toronto-based practice established in 1987. She is an invested Officer of The Order of Canada "for her ...
, founding partner,
KPMB Architects
KPMB is a Canadian architecture firm founded by Bruce Kuwabara, Thomas Payne, Marianne McKenna, and Shirley Blumberg, in 1987. It is headquartered in Toronto, where the majority of their work is found. Aside from designing buildings, the firm a ...
*2012: Henry Lee, business leader and philanthropist
*2012: Joseph Elworthy, arts administrator
*2012: Stephen McHolm, arts administrator
*2012:
Martin Beaver
Martin Beaver (born 10 November 1967) is a Canadian violinist best known as first violinist of the Tokyo String Quartet. Beaver joined the Tokyo String Quartet as its first violinist in 2002 and remained until they disbanded in 2013. As a part ...
, violinist
*2012:
Judy Loman
Judy Loman (born 3 November 1936) is a harpist and harp teacher, born and educated in the United States and active in Canada. She was the principal harp of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra from 1959 until her retirement in 1991, and won a Juno aw ...
, harpist
*2012: Gerald Stanick, violist, teacher, and arts administrator
*2012:
Measha Brueggergosman
Measha Brueggergosman (née Gosman; June 28, 1977) is a Canadian soprano who performs both as an opera singer and concert artist. She has performed internationally and won numerous awards. Her recordings of both classical and popular music ha ...
, soprano
*2012: Feist, singer/songwriter
*2013: Jeremiah Brown, Olympic medallist
*2013: Dr. Stephen Toope, scholar and administrator
*2013:
Victor Feldbrill
Victor Feldbrill, (April 4, 1924 – June 17, 2020) was a Canadian conductor and violinist.
Early life and education
Feldbrill was born in Toronto,The Hon. Tommy Banks, pianist, composer, television personality, and former senator
*2013:
Doc Severinsen
Carl Hilding "Doc" Severinsen (born July 7, 1927) is an American retired jazz trumpeter who led the NBC Orchestra on ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson''.
Early life
Severinsen was born in Arlington, Oregon, to Minnie Mae (1897–1998) a ...
, jazz and pop trumpeter
*2013:
Bob Ezrin
Robert Alan Ezrin (born March 25, 1949) is a Canadian music producer and keyboardist, best known for his work with Lou Reed, Alice Cooper, Aerosmith, Kiss, Pink Floyd, Deep Purple, Peter Gabriel, Andrea Bocelli and Phish. As of 2010, Ezrin' ...
, music producer
*2013:
Adrianne Pieczonka
Adrianne Pieczonka, OC ( ; born March 2, 1963) is a Canadian operatic soprano singer.
Life and career
Pieczonka was born in Poughkeepsie, New York, and grew up in Burlington, Ontario. She graduated from the University of Western Ontario in 19 ...
, soprano
*2013:
Randy Bachman
Randolph Charles Bachman (; born September 27, 1943) is a Canadian guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He was a founding member of the bands The Guess Who and Bachman–Turner Overdrive. Bachman recorded as a solo artist and was part of a num ...
, guitarist
*2014: Andrew Markow, music teacher
*2014: Paul Dornian, arts administrator and music teacher
*2014: Jean MacPhail, music teacher
*2014: Phil and Eli Taylor, philanthropists
*2014:
Sir Andrew Davis
Sir Andrew Frank Davis (born 2 February 1944) is an English conductor. He is conductor laureate of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, and the BBC Symphony Orchestra.
Early life and education
Born in Ashridge ...
, conductor
*2014:
Ron Sexsmith
Ronald Eldon Sexsmith (born January 8, 1964) is a Canadian singer-songwriter from St. Catharines, Ontario. He was the songwriter of the year at the 2005 Juno Awards. He began releasing recordings of his own material in 1985 at age 21, and has s ...
, singer/songwriter
*2015: Bill van der Sloot, music teacher
*2015: Kathryn Walker, arts administrator
*2015:
Tania Miller
Tania Miller (born August 28, 1969, in Foam Lake, Saskatchewan) is a Canadian conductor.
She is currently Music Director Emerita of the Victoria Symphony following her retirement as music director, a post she had held since 2003. Prior to that, ...
, conductor
*2015: Mary Morrison, soprano and music teacher
*2015: Chris Hadfield, astronaut
*2015: Mario Romano, philanthropist
*2015:
James Ehnes
James Ehnes, (born January 27, 1976) is a Canadian concert violinist and violist.
Life and career
Ehnes was born in Brandon, Manitoba, the son of Alan Ehnes, long time trumpet professor at Brandon University (Canada), and Barbara Withey Ehnes, ...
, violinist
*2015:
Buffy Sainte-Marie
Buffy Sainte-Marie, (born Beverly Sainte-Marie, February 20, 1941) is an Indigenous Canadian-American ( Piapot Cree Nation) singer-songwriter, musician, composer, visual artist, educator, pacifist, and social activist. While working in these ...
Jon Kimura Parker
Jon Kimura Parker (born 25 December 1959) is a Canadian pianist.
Early life and education
Jon Kimura Parker was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, the son of Keiko Parker and John Parker. He began his studies with his uncle, Edward P ...
, pianist
*2016:
k.d. lang
Kathryn Dawn Lang (born November 2, 1961), known by her stage name k.d. lang, is a Canadian pop and country singer-songwriter and occasional actress. Lang has won Juno Awards and Grammy Awards for her musical performances. Hits include the s ...
, singer/songwriter
*2016:
Lang Lang
Lang Lang (; born 14 June 1982) is a Chinese pianist who has performed with leading orchestras in China, North America, Europe, and elsewhere. Active since the 1990s, he was the first Chinese pianist to be engaged by the Berlin Philharmonic, ...
Ben Heppner
Thomas Bernard Heppner (born January 14, 1956) is a Canadian tenor and broadcaster, now retired from singing, who specialized in opera and other classical works for voice.
Early life and career
Heppner, of Mennonite descent, was born in Mur ...
, tenor
*2017: Henry Hung, philanthropist
*2017: Burton Cummings, singer/songwriter
*2018: Denise Ball, journalist and producer
*2018:
Robbie Robertson
Jaime Royal "Robbie" Robertson, OC (born July 5, 1943), is a Canadian musician. He is best known for his work as lead guitarist and songwriter for the Band, and for his career as a solo recording artist. With the deaths of Richard Manuel in ...
, singer/songwriter
*2018:
Sondra Radvanovsky
Sondra Dee Radvanovsky (born 11 April 1969) is an American-Canadian soprano. Specializing in 19th-century Italian opera, Radvanovsky has been called one of the leading Verdi sopranos of her generation. Her signature roles include Elvira in '' E ...
, soprano
*2018: Tim and Frances Price, philanthropists
*2018: Linda Niamath, music educator
*2019:
Lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways.
Lighthouses mar ...
, rock band
*2019: Anagnoson & Kinton, piano duo
*2019: BMO Financial Group, philanthropy
*2019:
Stephen Chatman
Stephen Chatman (born 28 February 1950) is an American-born Canadian composer residing in Vancouver. His compositions have been performed across Canada and in the United States.
Early life and education
Chatman was born in Faribault, Minnesota ...
, composer
*2019:
Eric Radford
Eric Radford (born January 27, 1985) is a Canadian pair skater. With former partner Meagan Duhamel, he is a two-time world champion ( 2015, 2016), a 2018 Olympic gold medallist in the team event, a 2014 Olympic silver medallist in the team even ...
List of Canadian organizations with royal patronage
This is a list of Canadian organizations with royal patronage. The practice of members of the Canadian Royal Family giving their patronage to Canadian organizations stems from that which started in the United Kingdom in pre- industrial times, wh ...
*
List of oldest buildings and structures in Toronto
This is a list of the oldest buildings and structures in Toronto, that were constructed before 1920. The history of Toronto dates back to Indigenous settlements in the region approximately 12,000 years ago. However, the oldest standing structures ...
*
Music of Canada
The music of Canada reflects the diverse influences that have shaped the country. Indigenous Peoples, the Irish, British, and the French have all made unique contributions to the musical heritage of Canada. The music has also subsequently been ...
*
Music of Ontario
As the Canadian province with the largest population, Ontario has a particularly prominent role in Canadian music. The provincial capital city of Toronto, Canada's largest municipality, is home to much of the English Canadian music industry and ma ...
*
The Prince's Charities
The Prince's Charities is a non-profit organisation that has associations with King Charles III. The Prince's Charities, supported by The Prince's Charities Foundation, is based in the United Kingdom and comprises 19 organisations of which Charl ...