User:Pmc/Helmut Blume

Helmut Blume (12 April 1914 –9 October 1998) was a prominent German-Canadian musician, educator and broadcaster.

Born in Berlin, Germany, Blume studied at the University of Berlin and the Hochschule für Musik. In 1940, he was interned as an enemy alien and brought to Canada, where he continued his studies at the Toronto Conservatory of Music under Alberto Guerrero and was subsequently appointed head of the piano department at the Hambourg Conservatory of Music.

Blume's association with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) began in 1944 when he joined the German section of CBC International Service in Montreal. He served as an editor-broadcaster and later became the head of the section. Blume produced and hosted numerous acclaimed music programs, including the radio series "International Concert" and the TV series "Music to See."

Blume also contributed to the book Canada's Story in Song (Gage, 1960), working with Edith Fowke and Alan Mills. He was supervising editor of A. Mason Clarke’s Thirty-Four Biographies of Canadian Composers (Scholarly Press, 1964).

In addition to his broadcasting career, Blume had a significant impact on music education. He joined McGill University's Faculty of Music as an instructor in 1946 and became the dean in 1964. During his tenure, he introduced changes to the curriculum, established an electronic studio, and played a key role in the completion of the Pollack Concert Hall in McGill's Strathcona Music Building. Blume's dedication to music education extended beyond McGill, as he co-founded the Canadian Association of University Schools of Music (now known as the Canadian University Music Society).

After his retirement from McGill University in 1976, he conducted a study on music training in Canada for the Canada Council, published in 1978 as A National Music School for Canada. Blume became a professor emeritus in 1979 but continued teaching piano at McGill for another 20 years, acted as an adjudicator for various music competitions. He served as the president of the German Society of Montreal from 1980 to 1985.

Honours and awards
Blume was awarded the Centennial Medal of Canada in 1967. He was made a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, London in 1976. In 2013, the Schulich School of Music at McGill University established the Helmut Blume Memorial Scholarships.