Music Education in Canada: A Historical Account

Desmond Maley is a librarian at the J.W. Tate Library, Laurentian
University.

It is a daunting task for anyone to attempt to chronicle the history of
music education in Canada. A multitude of milieus have to be considered,
including education at the elementary- and secondary-school levels,
private instruction, and the conservatories. There are also contextual
factors such as regional, national, and historical patterns of
development. Other dimensions include festivals, music in the community,
teacher training, professional associations, and music in higher
education.

Fortunately, authors Green (of the University of Western Ontario) and
Vogan (of Mount Allison University) have done an admirable job in
bringing together these diverse strands. This book is a landmark survey
that traces the development of music education from its
seventeenth-century origins in New France through to Canada’s
centennial in 1967. Events since 1967 are also briefly described.

The thoroughness of the research is reflected in the 46 pages of
endnotes and bibliography. The authors make extensive use of published
and unpublished works, including dissertations, periodicals, and a wide
range of archival sources. A large cast of characters is introduced in
this volume, and where possible the authors allow them to speak in their
own words, giving the narrative color and flavor. The most frequently
quoted personality is Sir Ernest MacMillan (1893-1973), and indeed no
other Canadian has had a greater impact. MacMillan’s energetic
leadership and vision was felt at virtually all levels of Canadian
musical culture.

The bulk of the book, however, is devoted to tracing the evolution of
school music in the Maritimes, Quebec, Ontario, and the West. The
pattern of development was often discontinuous and sporadic. There never
was a consensus concerning the value of music in education or the
content of the curriculum. This ambiguity of purpose is reflected, for
example, in the debate on whether the emphasis in education should be on
theory, appreciation, or performance skill.

There are no obvious answers to these and many other problems with
which music educators have grappled. But with this impressive work of
synthesis, the framework for the discussion has, at least, been laid.