One of Canada’s foremost choral musicians, Robert Cooper is also the Artistic Director of the Opera in Concert Chorus and former Artistic Director of the Orpheus Choir of Toronto.

 

He taught for several years as a member of the Choral Department, Faculty of Music, University of Toronto and has had a long association mentoring youth, having conducted the Toronto Mendelssohn Youth Choir for over 20 years, several provincial

youth choirs, the National Youth Choir of Canada and the Ontario Youth Choir on three occasions.

 

In addition to founding the Ontario Male Chorus and conducting the professional Black Creek Festival Chorus and Stratford Festival Youth Choir, Mr. Cooper made his Carnegie Hall debut conducting a Celebration of Canadian Choral Music.

 

Mr. Cooper has adjudicated internationally, including the BBC choral competition Let The Peoples Sing, as well as World Choral Games in China, USA, Russia and South Africa. In addition to his work with choirs, Mr. Cooper has conducted symphony orchestras in Halifax, Winnipeg, Edmonton and London, and has been involved with the presentation of more than 150 operas in Victoria, Ottawa, and Winnipeg as well as Toronto Operetta Theatre and Opera in Concert. Over his career Mr. Cooper has prepared choruses for many international conductors including Helmuth Rilling, Sir David Willcocks, Sir John Rutter, Sir Andrew Davis, Charles Dutoit, Robert Shaw and Elmer Iseler. 

 

For 31 successful years Robert Cooper brought fine vocal and choral music to Canadian listeners as Executive Producer of Opera and Choral Music for CBC Radio Two.  He has served as President of both Choirs Ontario and Choral Canada, was on the Board of Chorus America, the Advisory Board of the International Federation of Choral Music and acted as Canada’s representative to the World Choir Council. Recipient of the St. Catharines’ Trillium Arts Award, Robert Cooper has also received the 2016 Distinguished Service Award from Choral Canada, an Honorary Doctorate from Brock University, the Order of Canada as well as the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal for his significant contribution to the Canadian choral community.