A native of Toronto, Dr. Hopkins earned his Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the New England Conservatory while serving as Assistant to Frank L. Battisti, and was awarded the Gunther Schuller Medal at graduation. Dr. Hopkins taught music in high schools for twelve years, including seven years service as Chair of the Music Department at Upper Canada College. He is Founding Music Director (Emeritus) of the Toronto Wind Orchestra and the Alberta Winds, freelance professional wind ensembles in Toronto and Calgary. Dr. Hopkins is very active as a guest conductor of professional and collegiate ensembles, having led performances across Canada and the United States, Bermuda, Hong Kong, China, Japan, Italy, Switzerland, and Romania.