Jean Coulthard was a Canadian composer who lived from 1908 to 2000. She was born in Vancouver and worked there for most of her life. She was the first composer from Canada’s West Coast to become known across the country. She wrote for orchestras, singers, and small groups, and she wrote many piano pieces for students. The best first piece for a child is “Star Gazing,” a quiet piano piece about the night sky.
Quick facts
- Born: 1908, in Vancouver, British Columbia
- Died: 2000, in North Vancouver, British Columbia
- Era: Modern
- Played: piano
- Known for: music for orchestra and voice, piano pieces for students, and 26 years of teaching at the University of British Columbia
The life in short
Coulthard’s father was a doctor. Her mother was a singer and a music teacher, and she gave Jean her first lessons. Jean began to write her own music at eight.
At 20, she sailed to England to study at the Royal College of Music in London. One of her teachers there was the composer Ralph Vaughan Williams.
She came home to Vancouver and kept learning. Over the years, she showed her work to some of the best-known composers of her time, among them Béla Bartók and Arnold Schoenberg, and asked for their advice.
In 1947, she joined the music department of the University of British Columbia. She taught there for 26 years. Many Canadian composers were her students.
She did not stop writing when she retired from teaching in 1973. She finished an opera, The Return of the Native, in 1979. Canada made her an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1978.
She died in 2000, at 92.
What the music sounds like
Coulthard’s music is songful. It has clear keys and rich, colorful chords. Some pieces are warm and singing. Others are dark and thoughtful.
She loved the landscape of British Columbia, and many of her titles point to the sea, the forest, the night sky, and the seasons.
Her student pieces are short and paint one picture each. They ask a young pianist to listen for color and mood, and not only to play the right notes.
Pieces to play first
“Star Gazing.” A quiet piano piece about the night sky. It is a Level 5 piece in the Royal Conservatory lists.
Canada Mosaic. A suite for orchestra from 1974, built on tunes and scenes from across Canada.
Twelve Essays on a Cantabile Theme. Music for eight string players. “Cantabile” means “in a singing style.” The singing tune returns in 12 different moods.
Piano Sonata. For an older student. It dates from 1947, the year she began to teach at the university.
Music for students
In the 1970s, Coulthard and two other composers wrote a series of eight piano books called Music of Our Time. The books gave students new Canadian music at every level, from the first year to the advanced grades.
Several of her pieces are in the Royal Conservatory piano lists today. A piano student in Canada may well play one before they know her name.
Things to do together
Look up, then listen. Go outside on a clear night. Come in and play “Star Gazing.” Ask how the music shows space and stillness.
Find her city. Find Vancouver on a map. Look for the sea, the mountains, and the forest that she saw every day.
Sing it. “Cantabile” means “singing.” Play a slow tune by Coulthard and hum along with the top line.
Ask the teacher. If your child takes piano lessons, ask the teacher for a piece by Coulthard at their level.
Her teacher
Vaughan Williams collected English folk songs and wrote music about the English countryside. Coulthard did something similar for the Canadian West. Read Vaughan Williams for kids.
Print and play
Fill in a composer study notebook page for Jean Coulthard. Read about more composers in Canadian composers for kids and women composers for kids. For the exam system that lists her pieces, see RCM levels explained.
For more composers by era, see classical composers for kids.
Sources
Checked in November 2026.
- The Canadian Encyclopedia. Jean Coulthard.
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Use it with your kids
Print a listening page, a practice chart, or a composer fact sheet. Or try a tool, such as the composer timeline or the piece picker.