2025 Adjudicator – Mr. Martin McDonald

Martin MacDonald is one of Canada’s most dynamic and outstanding conductors and has been awarded both the Heinz Unger Award and the Jean-Marie Beaudet Award for orchestral conducting. Martin has served as Music Director of the Cathedral Bluffs Symphony Orchestra since 2022, and Artistic Partner of the Brott Music Festival since 2024. Martin has guest conducted extensively across Canada with the orchestras of Toronto, National Arts Centre, Vancouver, Victoria, Kamloops, Edmonton, Calgary, Regina, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, Hamilton, Kingston, Kitchener-Waterloo, London, Niagara, Sudbury, Thunder Bay, Windsor, Quebec, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland. He has served as a Cover and Guest Conductor for the National Ballet of Canada, and has worked with the Minnesota Ballet, Atlantic Ballet, and Halifax Dance. Martin has recorded extensively for the CBC and for several commercial recordings. Most notably, Martin has served as Resident Conductor, Associate Conductor, and a regular guest conductor of Symphony Nova Scotia since 2008 with over 250 performances. Previously, Martin served as Associate Conductor of the National Academy Orchestra of Canada, and has participated in several international conducting workshops and competitions. Recently, Martin has led several live orchestra to film productions and has produced orchestral and opera recordings for the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and Against the Grain Theatre. 

Martin has a Master’s degree in Orchestral Conducting from McGill University and a Bachelor’s degree in Cello from Memorial University. Martin has studied conducting with Alexis Hauser, Bernhard Gueller, Boris Brott, and Michael Jinbo, Kenneth Kiesler, Gustav Meier, Jorma Panula, and Johannes Schlaefli. Martin’s conducting activities have been generously supported by the Canada Council for the Arts.

Cape Breton born, Martin is the youngest of twelve children and has a diverse musical background with a strong Celtic music tradition including extensive touring and performing with members of his family throughout Europe and North America. Martin resides in Toronto, Ontario with his wife, Kristen and their daughter, Frances.

June 2025