John Kim Bell facts for kids
John Kim Bell (born October 8, 1952) is a very important Canadian leader. He was the first Indigenous person to conduct a symphony orchestra in Canada. He also started the National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation, which is now called Indspire. This group helps Indigenous people succeed. He also created the National Aboriginal Achievement Awards, now known as the Indspire Awards, which celebrate Indigenous leaders.
John Kim Bell is also a top expert who helps First Nations communities with their energy resources. He has received many awards, including being an Officer of the Order of Canada and a member of the Order of Ontario. He won the Royal Bank Award for Canadian Achievement in 1988, which came with a large cash prize. He has also received three medals from the Queen. In 2005, he was an advisor to Prince Charles. The Indigenous community has honored him with three Eagle feathers for his work.
Contents
Early Life and Music
Growing Up
John Kim Bell was born in 1952 on the Kahnawake Reserve in Quebec, Canada. His father, Don Eagle, was a famous Mohawk wrestler. His mother, Beth Hamilton Bell, was a model and writer. She even had her own radio show!
John Kim and his brother moved to Ohio with their mother after his parents separated. They would visit the Kahnawake Reserve in the summers.
Discovering Music
John Kim Bell started playing the piano when he was just eight years old. He was very talented! By age ten, he was already playing piano on TV talent shows and winning competitions. As a teenager, he played piano for a summer theater company. This led him to become an associate conductor for a big international show called A Chorus Line. By the time he was 18, he was conducting many Broadway shows, ballets, and operas. He even worked with famous stars like Gene Kelly and Lauren Bacall.
Learning More About Music
John Kim Bell went to Ohio State University and earned a music degree in 1976. He then studied in Italy and learned from a famous conductor named Zubin Mehta at the New York Philharmonic. After his studies, he conducted for several dance companies and Broadway shows in New York.
A Career in Music and Helping Others
Becoming a Conductor
In 1980, John Kim Bell was conducting A Chorus Line in Toronto, Canada. The musicians from the Toronto Symphony Orchestra were so impressed with him that they suggested he become an apprentice conductor for their orchestra. He soon got the job!
In 1984, the CBC made a documentary about him called "John Kim Bell: The First North American Indian Conductor." After this documentary, many Indigenous artists reached out to him for help. He realized there were no programs to support Indigenous artists. This inspired him to create the Canadian Native Arts Foundation (CNAF). His first fundraising concert in 1987 featured the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and even a young Shania Twain!
John Kim Bell also helped create and conduct "In the Land of the Spirits," which was the first ballet to feature only Indigenous performers. It toured across Canada starting in 1992 and was very successful. He also composed music for several films and shows. He conducted the National Ballet of Canada orchestra in 1985 and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in London in 1987.
Helping His Community
John Kim Bell realized he could use his position to help his people. In 1985, he started the National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation. In 1993, he launched the National Aboriginal Achievement Awards to celebrate successful Indigenous leaders in Canada. These awards became one of the biggest cultural events in Canada.
He was the President of the Foundation for twenty years. During this time, he helped it become the largest charity for Indigenous peoples. He raised about $80 million to support Indigenous causes in Canada. The Foundation is now called Indspire, and the awards are called the Indspire Awards.
In 2008, he suggested a program to help First Nations communities get loans, and the government put it into action in 2010. He is also a member of Artists Against Racism, a Canadian charity.
Working as a Consultant
From 1988 to 2005, John Kim Bell was president of a company called Ariontha Inc. In 2006, he started his own company, Bell & Bernard Limited. In 2009, he helped create the Enbridge School Plus Program, which supports extra activities in First Nations schools. Today, he is a leading expert who helps First Nations communities with their energy resources.
Boards and Awards
Board Positions
John Kim Bell has been a member of many important boards. These include the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation, and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. He also helped with Toronto's bid for the 2008 Olympic Games. He is currently a supporter and arts judge for Indigenous Arts & Stories, a competition for young Indigenous writers and artists.
Awards and Honors
- Member of the Order of Canada (1990) and Officer of the Order of Canada (1997).
- Member of the Order of Ontario (2003).
- Royal Bank Award for Canadian Achievement (1998).
- Keith Kelly Award for Cultural Leadership from the Canadian Conference of the Arts (2002).
- Outstanding National Cultural Leader by the Canadian Conference of the Arts (2003).
- Lifetime Achievement Award from the Aboriginal Peoples Choice Music Awards (2010).
He also won two Gemini Awards for the sets he designed for the National Aboriginal Achievement Awards.
Honorary Degrees
John Kim Bell has received six special degrees from universities across Canada to honor his achievements.
- Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Ontario (1990)
- Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario (1992)
- Mount Allison University in Sackville, New Brunswick (1994)
- University of Alberta in Edmonton, Alberta (1999)
- University of Toronto in Toronto, Ontario (1999)
- Wilfrid Laurier University in Kitchener, Ontario (2008)
