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A vocal coach who has been in the vanguard of classical music in Canada for more than six decades. Stuart Hamilton is a well-known Canadian musician who has been in the forefront of music in Canada for more than 60 years. Here, in this memoir, he recounts his sometimes hectic assault on the Canadian music world. Along the way, Hamilton encountered, as a vocal coach and accompanist, most of the great Canadian singers of the last half of the 20th century, and some international ones as well. For 27 years Hamilton was an erudite and funny personality on CBC’s Saturday Afternoon at the Opera.

An insider’s view of the opera world from one of its greatest figures. Everything about opera is larger than life, but the bigger the art form, the bigger the potential for disaster. When things go wrong at the opera house, they really go wrong. No one has a greater or more intimate knowledge of such moments than Lotfi Mansouri. Over the course of a career that has spanned five decades, Mansouri has directed nearly 500 productions at major opera houses around the globe.

Victor Feldbrill is an account of the life and cultural contribution of one of Canada’s most talented conductors. Born in 1924, he made his Toronto Symphony conducting debut at 18. He went on to become the artistic director of the Winnipeg Symphony, a conductor with the Toronto Symphony, and a guest conductor of virtually every major symphony orchestra in Canada. Feldbrill was also the first conductor-in-residence at the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Music from 1968 to 1982.

Although she called herself "just a singer," soprano Lois Marshall (1925-97) became a household name across Canada during her thirty-four year career and remains one of the foremost figures in the history of Canadian music. She rubbed shoulders with Canada's musical aristocracy – Glenn Gould, Sir Ernest MacMillan, Jon Vickers, Maureen Forrester – but Marshall always held first place in the hearts of her adoring fans. At the height of the Cold War, Moscow and St. Petersburg embraced her as warmly as Canada had.

Let's Dance: A Celebration of Ontario's Dance Halls and Summer Dance Pavilions is a nostalgic musical journey, recapturing the unforgettable music of youth and lasting friendships, the days when the live mellow sounds of Big Bands wafted through the air – Louis Armstrong, the Dorsey Brothers, Bert Niosi, Art Hallman, Johnny Downs, Mart Kenney, Bobby Kinsman, Ronnie Hawkins ...

The Royal Conservatory of Music, founded in 1886, is rich in history and genius. Its long tradition of excellence in musical training and examining places it among the leading music schools of the world. Glenn Gould, Lois Marshall, Teresa Stratas, Jon Vickers, Mario Bernardi, and many other international artists have studied there. Amply illustrated, with over forty photographs dating back to the school's first years, this book is an unvarnished account of its controversial leaders, its successes and failures, its encounters with the musical and academic world, and its passions.

Short-listed for the 2002 Award for Excellence in Historical Recorded Sound Research In the seventy years since 1931, various organizations large and small, including several semi-private ones, have issued or re-issued various original 78 rpm recordings from original metal plates. No comprehensive listing of these has ever before appeared; this is the first, and gathers together all the various information of ongoing interest. This is a most important addition to the record-collecting bibliography.

For almost twelve years, Jean Beaulne was a member of the Baronets "the Beatles of Quebec" along with René Angélil. In this book, he has collaborated with writer and journalist Jean Beaunoyer to tell the untold story of René Angélil and Céline Dion. Previously unknown details of René Angélil’s personal and professional life are revealed in this unprecedented investigation into the man who orchestrated one of the foremost successes in the history of show business.

It started with a festival - three classic operas performed in a theatre in Toronto. But when it became apparent that there was a need for a national opera company, an organization was founded that would go on to become one of the largest performing arts organizations in the country. The Canadian Opera Company was born in 1950, and is now one of the major opera companies in North America.

Music Makers examines and celebrates the extraordinary lives of composer Harry Freedman and his partner, soloist Mary Morrison.Harry, with roots in jazz and popular music, was a member of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra for 25 years. Canada’s Composer of the Year in 1979, he has written an enormous repertoire that celebrates Canada and is sung and played around the world.After a stellar career in Canada as a popular singer and opera diva, Mary became an esteemed exponent of Canadian vocal works.