Hailing from Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, Jon Vickers was raised in a musical family and worked on a local farm in his youth.  His robust, healthy frame held a voice that, after training at Toronto's Royal Conservatory of Music from 1950, led him on a career journey from Covent Garden to Bayreurth to the Metropolitan Opera (for 280 performances over 27 years).  His co-stars and collaborators ranged from Maria Callas to Sir Colin Davis and Herbert von Karajan.  On every opera stage, he was known for his vocal virtuosity, powerful physical presence and depth of interpretation.  He was made a Companion of the Order of Canada in 1968, receiving the the Governor General's Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement in 1998.