1. CHARLES KAROL DOBIAS This prominent Canadian violinist was born in Slovakia and arrived in Toronto at age seven. He was a scholarship student of Kathleen Parlow at the Royal Conservatory. He won a Canada Council Grant to study in Prague with the great violinist Josef Suk during the summers of 1972 to 1974. As a member of the Toronto Symphony he toured Japan, England, Scotland and France with Seiji Ozawa conducting, and as Concert Master and Soloist with the National Ballet Company of Canada he toured all of Canada and the U.S. and performed as Soloist in Mexico. In 1970 he accepted the position of Concert Master of the Edmonton Symphony and in 1972 came to Winnipeg as Concert Master for the Royal Winnipeg Ballet and as Associate Concert Master of the Winnipeg Symphony. In September of 1996 he founded and sponsored the first Slovak National Violin Competition which took place in Bratislava. He presided over this competition as recently as this past Christmas [2000]. He is survived by his sister Gabrielle Neubauer and brother-in-law Joseph, numerous nieces and nephews, grand nieces and nephews, his cousin Ethel Dobias, god children Sam and Rita Penner and an extended family of fellow musicians and friends. Memorial service held in his honour will be at Elmwood Mennonite Brethren Church on Henderson Hwy. at 4:00 p.m. Monday, March 19. Cremation has taken place. Voyage Funeral Chapel in care of arrangements. Thanks to H5 at Health Sciences and West Wing at Riverview.
As published in the Winnipeg Free Press on Mar 17, 2001
2. Memorable Manitobans: CHARLES KARL [sic] DOBIAS Born at Klatava [sic] Nova Ves, Czechoslovakia (Slovakia) on 6 August 1914, son of Karl [sic] Dobias and Katarina Ambrova, he came to Canada in 1931 and was a scholarship student at the Royal Conservatory. Between 1960 and 1969 he was a member of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and during the 1960s he played in various string ensembles, including the Soloway String Quartet and with Glenn Gould at the Stratford Festival. In 1970 he became Concert Master of the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra. He came to Winnipeg in 1972 to become the Concert Master of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet and Associate Concert Master of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra. He founded the Slovak National Violin Competition (1996) and the Karl [sic] Dobias International Violin Competition (1997). He died at Winnipeg on 17 March 2001. His cremains were spread in Klatova Nova Ves, Slovakia, and in Toronto.