The dean of McGill University's Schulich School of Music says professor Eleanor Stubley, whose body was found after she had been missing for about one week, was utterly devoted to her students.
Stubley, 57, was last seen Aug. 7 in southwestern Montreal and police confirmed her body was found in the same neighbourhood Sunday night.
Police said her disappearance and death are not connected to a criminal act but they refused to provide further details.
Music school dean Brenda Ravenscroft said Stubley "was well-known and highly respected by a variety of people in the musical community."
Stubley suffered from multiple sclerosis but Ravenscroft said it was her music that was front and centre in her life.
"She was such a big contributor to her work," Ravenscroft said. "Utterly devoted to students and such an excellent conductor and any issues with physical challenges were just in the background.
"It's a big loss for us."
McGill University principal Suzanne Fortier said in a statement Monday that Stubley's MS informed her work.
"Professor Stubley was critically acclaimed as both a scholar and an artist, conducting ensembles in Canada, England, Finland and the U.S," Fortier said.
"She lived with multiple sclerosis, and much of her work explored the physicality of music."
Stubley was the associate dean in the graduate studies department at Schulich. She taught music education, musicology, and performance.
She was also the recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal, in recognition of her "decades of outstanding contribution to the arts," said Fortier.
