It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Mrs. Ljerka Blume, on April 23, 2012 at the age of 83. 

As a prodigy, Mrs. Ljerka Blume became a concert pianist very early on and acquired an excellent reputation throughout Europe. In the early 20's, while studying in Zagreb, Croatia, she was invited to perform as a concert pianist in the former Soviet Union. At age 18, she was the youngest person ever to be admitted to the staff of the famous Music Academy of Vienna. After the tragic death of her first husband (Wollmarker) at age 33, Mrs. Ljerka Blume immigrated to Canada where she continued for a few years as a performing artist. She performed as an accompanist to the contralto Maureen Forrester, a leading Canadian figure on the international scene. A few years later, she decided to join the Music faculty of McGill University (now the Schulich School of Music) where she spent the rest of her career as a teacher. At McGill she met the late Dean Helmut Carl Gustav Blume, the Emeritus Professor and Former Dean of McGill Faculty of Music, who later became her husband with whom she spent the rest of her life. She rapidly acquired a solid reputation and was a highly respected figure in the field of classical music. Throughout her career as a professor of music at McGill University and also as a piano teacher, she dedicated her time and efforts in helping many young talents to develop. Passionate about music, she was a devoted teacher who never calculated her time. She loved her students and treated them as if there were part of her family. She was involved in several philanthropic and cultural organizations and was a fervent supporter for the protection of animals. With the desire to promote music to the public at large, she founded the Montreal Council of Women Choir. She is predeceased by her daughter and by her late husband the Emeritus Professor and former Dean Helmut Karl Gustav Blume. She will be greatly missed by her family, friends and by all her students. Family and friends may pay their respects at Collins Clarke MacGillivray White, on Tuesday, May 1st between 5 p.m. and 9 p.m.. A memorial service and reception will be announced later. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the SPCA, www.spca.com.