A native of St. John’s, Newfoundland, Kathleen Allan moved to Vancouver in 2007, and has quickly made an enviable reputation as a composer, conductor and soprano. The youngest current member of the Vancouver Chamber Choir, she is in demand as a soloist and new music specialist, and regularly performs in premieres of new vocal and choral works. Her recent recital, [...]
Tonia Allen has been teaching Orff and Kodaly methods since 1981. Tonia joined the faculty at VAM in 1981 as an Orff teacher. Tonia has worked in many private schools and community centers in the lower mainland and is currently teaching Orff at the Vancouver Academy of Music, Dunbar Community Centre, Roundhouse Community Centre, as well as the Sunflower Academy [...]
Lorraine Ambrose grew up in Edmonton where she attended the University of Alberta and completed her Bachelor of Music Degree in Piano Performance. She also received Associate and Licentiate Degrees from the Western Board of Music and had subsequent studies at the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria and in Munich, Germany. After her formal studies, she accepted a position as piano [...]
Lisa received her Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) and Certificate of Liberal Arts from Simon Fraser University. She went on to complete her Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) from the University of British Columbia, Faculty of Law where she also served as an Associate Editor of the UBC Law Review. After graduating from law school, Lisa spent 10 years working as a [...]
Kristl Armstrong studied at the Royal College of Music, London. She has also completed teacher training in the Suzuki Method with, among others, Tanya Carey, Rick Mooney, and Carey Beth Hockett. As a performer, Kristl has with many groups in and around Vancouver such as the Vancouver Opera Orchestra, the Vancouver Island Symphony, and the Vancouver New Music Society.
Heather’s early music education began at the age of five at the Vancouver Academy of Music. Under the school’s tutelage with Jane Martin, Anne-Elise Keefer and Brenda Fedoruk, Heather was guided into the musical world with a strong footing and quickly developed a blooming love for the performing musical arts. At 17, Heather’s professional flute aspirations were solidified when she [...]
Joan Blackman, Associate Concertmaster of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra (VSO), enjoys a vibrant musical life in our community. Besides playing in the VSO, she is sought after as a first class chamber musician in Canada. Joan is an active teacher, giving master classes throughout B.C., and was on faculty for four years at SOAP, a BC orchestral training program. Joan [...]
Martha Brickman is a graduate of the Conservatoire in Montreal in harpsichord and chamber music (Premier Prix). Martha was a student of Kenneth Gilbert, and studied the Suzuki Method with Susan Magnusson. Ms. Brickman is a former Professor of Harpsichord at Laval University and Conservatoire de Musique et d’Art Dramatique. An active performer, Brickman has appeared on stage for Vancouver’s Masterpiece Music, [...]
Trumpeter Al Cannon is a freelance musician and brass educator based in Vancouver, BC. Al has performed across North America and in Ireland, Thailand, Taiwan, and China. He has been selected to attend numerous outstanding summer music programmes including the Lake Placid Institute in Lake Placid New York, the Pierre Monteux School in Hancock, Maine, and the National Youth Orchestra [...]
Amanda Chan has achieved recognition as concert pianist, teacher, lecturer, adjudicator, and examiner for the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. Amanda has given concerts in Canada and abroad as a soloist and chamber player. Born and raised in Vancouver, she started her studies with Edward Parker and was highly successful in her early competitive career. After completing the ARCT [...]
Marea began studying oboe in Vancouver at the age of thirteen. She holds a Bachelor of Music from UBC, an Artist Diploma from VAM, and a Master of Music from Boston University. As a freelance musician, Marea plays principal oboe with Sinfonia Orchestra of the North Shore and the Kamloops Symphony, and has played with the Vancouver Opera Orchestra, Vancouver [...]
Clarinettist AK Coope is frequently heard performing with the Vancouver and Victoria Symphonies, Turning Point Ensemble, the Ad Mare Wind Quintet, and the Vancouver New Music Ensemble, among others. She is a member of Standing Wave, one of Canada’s premier contemporary music ensembles, and can also be heard on numerous film sound tracks and CD recordings. AK has recently performed [...]
Born in Seattle, Washington, trombonist Gregory Cox has been a member of the Vancouver Symphony since 1976. He holds the Bachelor of Music with distinction from the Eastman School of Music where he studied with Emory Remington. Upon graduation he accepted a position with the North Carolina Symphony and appointed the trombone instructor at the North Carolina School of the [...]
Mr. D’Angelo has performed with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, CBC Radio Orchestra, Thunder Bay Symphony, American Brass Quintet, Aspen Festival Orchestra, Canada West Chamber Orchestra, and is currently second trumpet with the Vancouver Island Symphony. Mr. D’Angelo is sessional trumpet instructor at Capilano University. Mark holds a Master of Music Degree from McGill University.
Recently appointed Music Director of the Vancouver Academy of Music Symphony Orchestra, Leslie Dala is also the Music Director of the Vancouver Bach Choir in addition to his positions as the Associate Conductor and Chorus Director with Vancouver Opera. He recently stepped down as Music Director of the Prince George Symphony which he led for eight years and was the [...]
Born in Sorel-Tracy, Québec, Sophie Dansereau discovered the bassoon after several years of work at the piano and the flute. This new opportunity led her to obtain the highest honor of the Conservatoire de Musique du Québec, the “Prix avec Grande Distinction à l’unanimité” in bassoon and chamber music, as well as a Master of Music from Yale University. Her [...]
Professor Dawes was first violinist of the Orford String Quartet from 1965 to 1991 and first violinist of the Tokyo String Quartet from 1995 to 1996. During his career he performed over three thousand concerts on six continents and made 60 recordings. Professor Dawes has been awarded the Order of Canada, The Chalmers National Music Prize, and the Canada Council’s [...]
Violinist and Violist, Leanne Drewlo has performed with many orchestras across Canada including the Regina Symphony Orchestra, Kamloops Symphony Orchestra, Vancouver Island Symphony Orchestra, and the Prince George Symphony Orchestra, where she served as Principal Second Violin. Leanne began violin studies at the age of four using the Suzuki Method. Ms. Drewlo earned a Bachelor of Music from the University [...]
DeAnne Eisch began playing the violin at the age of 4 after her father attended a concert given by Suzuki’s students on their first North American visit to Chicago. DeAnne received her Bachelor of Music degree from DePaul University in Chicago and continued her studies in New York where she was a member of the National Orchestral Association Orchestra. Since [...]
Joseph Elworthy has been a featured soloist, recitalist, and chamber music performer on such stages as Alice Tully Hall, Suntory Hall, Carnegie Hall, the Library of Congress, and Sejong Hall. His recordings can be heard on EMI, Sony, Archtype, and Bose record labels. In addition to receiving the Sylva Gelber Award of $15,000, Joseph has been the recipient of multiple [...]
Ruth Enns has earned a Ph.D. (musicology), from the University of British Columbia., a Master of Music (accompanying and coaching) from Westminster Choir College, (Princeton, NJ) as a student of Martin Katz, and a Bachelor of Music (piano) from the University of Manitoba as a student of Marek Jablonski. Ms. Enns is a former instructor and vocal coach at University [...]
Brenda Fedoruk is currently Principal Flute with the Vancouver Opera Orchestra and a core member of Vancouver’s esteemed Turning Point Ensemble. Ms. Fedoruk was a long time member of the CBC Radio Orchestra, until the orchestra’s disbanding in 2008. She performs often with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, has appeared as Guest Principal Flute with the Victoria Symphony and performed as [...]
Judith Fraser received her training at the Royal Academy of Music in London, England where afterward she was principal cello with the London Festival Ballet. Returning to Vancouver, Ms. Fraser became a member of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and the CBC Radio Orchestra. A founding member of the Vancouver Cello Club – treasurer for 37 years – Judith was also [...]
Brian G’froerer was both Associate Principal horn of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra (VSO) and Principal horn of the CBC Radio Orchestra for over thirty years. Now retired from those positions, Brian continues to freelance in Vancouver with the VSO as well as performing with the Victoria, Kamloops, and Okanagan orchestras. In addition, he is also asked to perform with the [...]
Ms. Gerbrecht formerly danced with Ballet Theatre of Boston, Oregon Ballet Theatre, and Louisville Ballet Company. Her repertoire includes a wide range of classical and contemporary ballet. As an independent artist she has performed throughout North America and Asia and is an award winning choreographer. She served as Company Teacher and School Director of Louisville Ballet Company and has taught [...]
Sheila Hardy has earned her ARCT performer’s and teacher’s degree as well as her Bachelor of Music in Performance from UBC. Ms. Hardy has been a VAM faculty member since 1977 and has been an active committee member of the Vancouver Music Festival Workshop for piano since 1980. From 1964-1971 Sheila was an active chamber musician and teacher in Paris [...]
David Haskins is the Associate Principal Horn of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, a position he has held since 2008. Before coming to Vancouver, he was Principal Horn of the Windsor Symphony Orchestra and an active freelancer in the Toronto area. In addition, he has performed in Japan as Principal/Third Horn of the Hiroshima Symphony Orchestra for their 2002-2003 season. David [...]
Lawrie Hill has been a faculty member of VAM since 1981. Her former teachers include: Gwen Thompson, Tom Rolston, Ronald Sheen, and Yasuko Eastman. Ms. Hill has been a member of the Vancouver Opera Orchestra since 1985, and was a long standing member of the former CBC Radio Orchestra, now the National Broadcasting Orchestra. Lawrie has toured many times with [...]
Teresa Ho graduated with a Bachelor of Music at UBC where she studied with Professor Jane Coop. Prior to her undergraduate studies, Ms. Ho received her ARCT in piano performance and pedagogy. Ms. Ho studied with Winifred Scott Wood and Robin Wood at the Victoria Conservatory of Music, where she was elected as an Associate in piano performance and pedagogy. [...]
A native of Vancouver, Jason Ho is a graduate of the prestigious Cleveland Institute of Music where he studied with David Updegraff. Jason began his musical studies at the age of four with Don Lum and also with Professor Andrew Dawes at the University of British Columbia. Jason Ho was a grand prize winner at the Canadian Music Competition, BC [...]
Cyrena has played baroque cello and viola da gamba with the Modern Baroque Opera, the Pacific Baroque Orchestra and Kawasha’s Crew. She studied jazz with the Turtle Island String Quartet and performed with Canadian jazz icon Karin Plato. She has performed with the Vancouver Opera and Vancouver Symphony Orchestras, The Elektra Women’s Choir, The Vancouver Cantata Singers, and recorded with [...]
Chloé Hurst is an active teacher, pianist, and singer. From the age of three, she started her formal training in music and has now completed both her bachelor and master of music from The University of British Columbia. Over the years, Chloé has performed in several recitals, concerts, festivals and operas across North America, Europe and Asia. Such events include [...]
Joan Hurst graduated from UBC with a Bachelor of Music, with a major in piano and a minor in classical guitar. Ms. Hurst spent her fifth year studying ‘Special Teaching Techniques’ with Robert Rogers. Joan studied the Suzuki Piano Method under Dorothy Mae Williams, Doris Koppleman, and Haruko Kataoko. For ten years, Ms. Hurst was Music Director and Co-ordinator of [...]
Cris Inguanti is sought after as a soloist, orchestral musician, and chamber music collaborator. He is currently the assistant principal and bass clarinetist of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, and has been a member of the Houston Ballet and Pacific Northwest Ballet Orchestras, the New York City Opera National Company Orchestra, and the New Philharmonia of Portugal. He has appeared as [...]
Olga Ioutskevitch has been a Kodaly instructor at VAM since 1999. Ms. Ioutskevitch earned a Bachelor of Music from Donetsk College of Music (Ukraine) and a Master of Music from Gnesins’ Academy of Music (Moscow, Russia). Following graduation, Olga taught solfege and theoretical subjects at Donesk College of Music. Ms. Ioutskevitch has taught piano and theory in Vancouver since 1997.
Anne-Elise Keefer has taught at the Vancouver Academy of Music since 1995, and has been Head of the Suzuki Flute Programme since 1999. She has enjoyed a busy international career as a recitalist, concerto soloist, recording artist, orchestral musician, chamber musician and educator. She performed as a soloist to critical acclaim in England, France, Italy, Norway and former Yugoslavia; broadcast [...]
After 10 years as Fourth Horn of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra Ben was appointed to the position of Second Horn in 2011. Prior to moving to Vancouver from Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Ben completed a Bachelor of Music Degree in Performance at Acadia University and a year of post-graduate studies at the New England Conservatory under James Sommerville. In addition to [...]
Canadian flutist Nadia Kyne first attracted national attention in 2001 when, at the age of sixteen, she was awarded the Grand Award at the National Music Festival Finals becoming one of the youngest competitors in any discipline to receive this honor. Since then, she has performed throughout Canada, the United States and Japan as a soloist, chamber musician and orchestra [...]
Lee Kum Sing studied with Gerhard Puchelt in Berlin, and with Julius Katchen and Magda Tagliaferro in Paris. Mr. Lee started his solo and orchestral career in Singapore (1953) and made his New York debut in Carnegie Hall (1963) and his London debut in Wigmore Hall (1969). He has collaborated with Cho-Liang Lin, Alfredo Campoli, Rivka Golani, and Kim Borg. [...]
Donna Lee-Leung has a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of British Columbia. She studied with Professors Mary Tickner, Robert Rogers and Lee Kum Sing (chamber ensemble). Donna’s love and dedication to teaching led her to complete a Bachelor of Education degree from Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario. She has attended numerous pedagogy conferences in Calgary (studied Suzuki Method [...]
Dr. Leggatt has been teaching at VAM since 1997 and is currently Head of Theory and Manager of the VAM Library. Ms. Leggatt earned a Bachelor of Music (Piano) from Queen’s University and a Master of Music and Doctoral of Musical Arts from UBC in Composition. Also an active composer, Leggatt’s works -in both acoustic and electroacoustic genres- have been [...]
Li-Ling Liao was born in Taipei, Taiwan. She attended Ecole d’Humanite in Switzerland at the age of sixteen and also studied violin with Daniel Dodds at the Lucerne Conservatory. She then studied violin with Lynn Chang at the Boston Conservatory before completing a Master’s degree and graduate diploma at the New England Conservatory of Music, studying violin with famed pedagogue [...]
Julie Lowe has recorded for CBC and WDR (West German Radio). Julie has been an active recitalist, soloist, and chamber musician throughout Canada, US, and Europe, and has received numerous awards at international piano competitions. Ms. Lowe studied piano with Lee Kum-Sing (VAM and UBC), Louis Kentner (England), Guenter Ludwig, Carmen Graf-Adnet and chamber music with the Amadeus Quartet. Julie [...]
Originally a native of Edmonton, Mark Luchkow moved to Vancouver in 1993 to study viola with Gerald Stanick at the University of British Columbia. He received a Bachelor of Music degree in Viola Performance. He has been active in the Vancouver music scene, playing in orchestras such as the North Shore’s Sinfonia and the Vancouver Symphony, as well as chamber [...]
Shirley Lum holds a MBA in Marketing and Finance for non-profit arts groups, a BA in Music History and Theory, and an ARCT in Violin Performance. Her principal teachers include Douglas Stewart and Gerald Jarvis. At Indiana University, she studied violin pedagogy with Mimi Zwieg and violin masterclasses with Franco Gulli. Shirley maintains a large violin and theory studio in [...]
Born into a musical family, Cristian Markos began playing the cello at age eight. He completed his early studies in his native country, Romania, earning a Bachelor degree in Music Performance from the Music Academy of Bucharest. From Romania, Mr. Markos went on to study for one year at the Musik Akademie in Weimar, Germany and toured throughout Europe with [...]
Erin Marks is one of Vancouver’s best loved oboe soloists. Since her return to Vancouver in 2002, she has enjoyed being a member of the Vancouver Opera Orchestra. In 2011, Erin officially became 2nd Oboe in the Vancouver Opera Orchestra. She is a busy freelance oboist, and is in great demand as a teacher. Ms. Marks earned her master’s degree [...]
Saida Matyukov is a graduate of the Moscow State Conservatory of Music. Ms. Matyukov was an active performer throughout the former Soviet Union performing in Moscow and St. Petersburg and collaborating with such conductors as Maxim Shostakivich and Rudolf Barshai. Following post-graduate studies with Teodor Gutman, Saida was appointed to the Moscow State Pedagogical Institute. In 1981, Ms. Matyukov emigrated [...]
David Meek, Head of VAM Voice Department, began his professional career with the Canadian Opera Company (COC) in chorus and supporting roles. Mr. Meek toured extensively with the COC throughout Canada and the U.S. David was leading tenor at the Stadttheater (Wuerzburg, Germany) for six years, performing major roles including Tamino, Alfredo, Edgardo, Hoffmann among many others. Since 1979, David [...]
Paul Meister began his violin studies at the age of nine with John Conrad in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He obtained a BMA at the University of Western Ontario where his teachers included Bob Skelton and Gwen Thompson. He later earned a graduate diploma in Suzuki Methodology with John Kendall. His performance career includes playing in the Banff Centre Opera Orchestra, Symphony [...]
Hanh Nguyen has been a faculty member of the Vancouver Academy of Music since 1991. She also teaches the classical guitar program at the Vancouver Community College. She holds performance diplomas from Vancouver Community College and Western Washington University. She has won numerous competitions, including the first annual Northwest Guitar Competition. She has studied in master classes with Leo Brouwer, [...]
Audrey holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of British Columbia and a Master of Music degree from the University of Victoria. She had further cello studies with Kurt Engert at the Richard Strauss Konservatorium in Munich, Germany. She has also studied the Suzuki method with many renowned teachers such as Bill Starr, John Kendall and Tanya Carey. A devoted [...]
Jenna O’Connor has been a faculty member at the Vancouver Academy of Music since 2009. Ms. O’Connor completed a MMus Degree in Music Education with an emphasis on Suzuki Pedagogy at the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point and a BMus Degree in Violin Performance from the University of Western Ontario where she studied with Robert Skelton and Annette-Barbara Vogel. Ms. [...]
Rosalind O’Keefe, LRAM Royal Academy of Music (London, England) has been Head of the Suzuki Violin program at VAM and also a member of the Teacher Trainer Suzuki Association of the Americas since 1970. Ms. O’Keefe first encountered the Suzuki method observing Yasuko Eastman in a program established in Edmonton, Alberta in the mid 1960′s. In 1970, Rosalind, along with [...]
A graduate of Royal Academy of Music in London, England, Miya Otake is a talented harpist, performer and teacher. She began to study harp at seven years-old in Japan with Taeko Okajima. After immigrating to Canada, she continued her musical studies at Vancouver Academy of Music and the Victoria Conservatory of Music under Taka Kling. She has won many awards [...]
Andrew was born in Bristol, England and received his early musical training within the British school system including singing, music appreciation, history and theory. Completing Associates from both Trinity College of Music and the London College of Music in Theory and Practice of Composition, he continued to attain a Licentiate in Theory, followed by a Fellowship thesis, “Orchestrations Of Robert [...]
Isabelle is a native of Canada, but was raised dividing her time between Paris and Vancouver. Isabelle received a Bachelor of Music from the University of Victoria studying with Jaroslav Karlovsky and obtained a Masters in Performance at the Cleveland Institute where she was a student of Heidi Castleman, Lynn Ramsey Irvine, and Robert Vernon. From 1990-2001, Ms. Roland was [...]
Robert Rozek graduated from the Juilliard School of Music where he studied with Ivan Galamian. Later he continued his studies at the Academia Chigiana as a violin student of Franco Gulli and Nathan Milstein, and a conducting student of Sergiu Celibidache. Mr. Rozek’s performance career includes, leader of The Zurich Chamber Orchestra, leader of the Luzerner Kammersolisten, concertmaster – conductor [...]
Angela Schiwy is a graduate of the UBC School of Music where she majored in piano performance, studying with Lee Kum-Sing. In France she worked with Nicole Rolet de Castelle at the Schola Cantorum de Paris. Following her studies Angela performed with chamber music ensembles, both locally and on tour in BC, and taught piano at the Vancouver Academy of [...]
Douglas Gwynn Smith is a native of Vancouver who has been active in the Vancouver music community for more than 30 years as composer, performer, arranger and teacher. Doug has received numerous commissions and awards: most recently from the National Arts Centre Orchestra for BC Scene for two solo violins and orchestra; the Canadian Music Centre; the Douglas College Music [...]
Toni Stanick violinist, Bachelor of Music from University of Toronto and UBC, completed her post-graduate work with Jean-Jacques Kantorow at the Rotterdam Conservatorium. Her early career focused on early childhood education, conducting the Surrey Junior Strings, and founding the Pacific Chamber Music Society – an intensive summer program for gifted youth. Ms. Stanick is currently immersed in Vancouver’s new music [...]
Nicki Stieda grew up in Vancouver, BC. After graduating in Violin performance from the University of British Columbia she moved to the Netherlands to continue her studies in Amsterdam with the renowned teacher Herman Krebbers. She played full time in the Netherlands Radio Orchestra for fifteen years prior to returning to Vancouver. In Canada Nicki has had an active career, [...]
Djina Stojkov is a graduate of the University of Arts, Belgrade, Serbia with a Bachelor of Music in Pedagogy and a Diploma in Piano Performance and Music Theory. Miss Stojkovic completed her Suzuki Teacher Training with Susan Magnusson, and has been a member of the VAM faculty since 2009.
Mary Thomson has been a VAM faculty member since 1987. She began her studies in Victoria with James Hunter, then continued Suzuki training with Tanya Carey. Mary has coached chamber music workshops both in Canada and in France, has been an adjudicator for string festivals and has taught at several summer music camps including the Japan/Seattle Suzuki Institute and the [...]
Master Degree of the Music Academy St. Moniuski in Poland; postgraduate studies and Virtuoso Diploma at the Ecole Normale de Paris Alfred Cortot; Artist Diploma, Vancouver Academy of Music studying with Lee Kum-Sing; multiple prize winner of national piano competitions in Poland, prize winner of the international competitions in Europe and the first prize winner of the Eckhardt-Gramatté Piano Competition— [...]
Yumiko Van Rooi received her Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance from the Toho Gakuen University of Music (Tokyo, Japan). Yumiko continued her studies with Saida Matyukov at the Vancouver Academy of Music, receiving her Artist Diploma. Ms. Van Rooi has performed in master classes for Robert Silverman, John O’Connor, Mikhail Vosklesensky, Jan Ekier, and Lee Kum Sing. Yumiko has [...]
Ms. Wang received her Bachelor of Music degree in piano performance from Vancouver Academy of Music, studying with Mr. Lee Kum Sing. She was a prize winner of numerous competitions including the Kay Meek competition. She has given solo recitals in Canada, the United States and China. She has appeared throughout Switzerland as both a soloist and chamber musician. She [...]
Robin Wenham has over thirty years experience teaching violin in the Suzuki Method. She studied with Lorand Fenyves at the University of Toronto after receiving a Bachelor of Music and Teaching Certificate from UBC. Ms. Wenham received teacher training in the Suzuki Method from John Kendall, Ronda Cole, Yuki Mori, James Maurer, and Mark Bjork. Robin has attended teaching symposiums [...]
Graduate of the Royal College of Music in London, Nicholas made his solo debut with the York Guildhall Orchestra, playing the Dvorak Romanze, which was recorded for Radio 3. He took up his place as a scholar at the Royal College, studying initially with Prof. Itzhak Rashkovsky and later with Prof. Rodney Friend. He has given recitals throughout the UK [...]
