Jon Vickers

Jonathan Stewart "Jon" Vickers was born on a Saskatchewan prairie farm. After singing in church choirs and working in retail, he studied at the Royal Conservatory in Toronto before making his international debut at London's Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, in 1957.

Possessing a colossal, dark-hued dramatic tenor voice combined with ferocious theatrical intensity, Vickers became the preeminent heroic tenor at the Metropolitan Opera, Bayreuth, and La Scala under Herbert von Karajan. His definitive portrayals of Verdi's Otello, Wagner's Tristan, and Benjamin Britten's Peter Grimes remain benchmarks in opera history. He was made a Companion of the Order of Canada.