Maureen Katherine Stewart Forrester was a Canadian operatic contralto born on July 25, 1930, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. She began studying piano at an early age and later took voice lessons from Sally Martin, Frank Rowe, and Bernard Diamant. Her professional debut came in 1951 with the Chorale Elgar of Montreal in The Music Makers by Edward Elgar. Forrester's breakthrough moment occurred in 1956 when she performed Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 2 at Carnegie Hall under Bruno Walter, launching her international career. She collaborated extensively with pianist John Newmark and performed with renowned orchestras directed by conductors such as Thomas Beecham, Otto Klemperer, and Herbert von Karajan. Forrester received numerous honors, including being named Canadian Woman of the Year in 1964 and receiving the Order of Canada in 1967. She passed away on June 16, 2010, at the age of 79.
