Bailey Bird

Bird, Bailey

(William Thomas) Bailey Bird. Administrator, publisher, b Belgaum, India, 17 Mar 1917; d Bowmanville, Ont, 10 Nov 1992. A violin pupil of Elie Spivak in Toronto, he was a founder in 1936 of the Aeolian Trio in Stratford. He joined Gordon V. Thompson Ltd in 1937 and became general manager in 1946. He served 1953-60 as head of the publications division of BMI Canada. With Wallace Young he founded Concert Associations of Canada, which in the 1950s presented Maureen Forrester, Glenn Gould, Lois Marshall, and others in recitals throughout southern Ontario. In 1960 Bird joined Leeds Music (Canada) as general manager and vice-president, becoming in 1970 president of MCA (Canada) and a vice-president of MCA, which had purchased Leeds in 1967. He was president of the CMPA 1958-9 and of the NYO 1968-9 and was appointed a director of CAPAC in 1966. He retired from MCA (Canada) and CAPAC in 1982. A scholarship for composition students was offered in his name. He was married to Irene Bird.

See also Charles Bird (his father) and John Bird (his brother).