Brian McCool

Brian McCool

Brian (Samuel) McCool. Educator, administrator, conductor, b London, Ont, 20 Oct 1901, d Toronto 22 Jan 1982; BA (Toronto) 1923. He taught English, physical training, and classical languages in Toronto schools and was head 1928-39 of the music section at Harbord Collegiate, Toronto. Following distinguished military service in World War II, including his participation as principal landing officer at Dieppe, he was awarded the MBE.

The Ontario Dept of Education appointed McCool assistant director of music in 1945 and he was vice-principal of its Summer Music School 1945-9 and principal 1956-70. He was a music professor 1948-9 at the Ontario College of Education and the music director 1959-68 for Ontario schools. Through the music branch of the Dept of Education, he organized concerts 1947-60 in 75 Ontario towns, in which more than 300 young performing artists (including Jon Vickers and Lois Marshall) gave and received invaluable musical experience.

A man of prodigious energies, McCool engaged in many community activities. He was conductor 1945-8 of the Harmony Symphony Orchestra and assistant conductor of the Leslie Bell Singers. An ardent Gilbert & Sullivan fan, he conducted over 100 productions of their works in the years 1932-70. He was also Ontario chairman 1945-9 of the Citizen's Forum and, after retirement, secretary for both the provincial and federal Boundaries Commissions. In 1974 he was awarded L'Ordre militaire et hospitalier de St-Lazare de Jérusalem. With Healey Willan he edited the 1951 edition of the School and Community Song Book (Toronto). In 1966 the Toronto Kiwanis Festival established the Brian S. McCool trophy to be awarded annually to the school accumulating the most points in choral, orchestral, and band classes.