Adjudicators 2013

Claudette Caron (Piano, Beginner  Grade 4) holds a Bachelor of Music degree in performance from the University of Manitoba and a Licentiate Diploma from the Trinity College of Music. Advanced piano studies have included teachers Alma Brock-Smith, pianist Robin Harrison, and duo-artist Phyllis Sellick in England.  She pursued her interest in chamber music in the Ford/Caron flute and piano duo with flautist Robert Ford from 1989 to 2010. These years included the release of a CD dedicated to the works of composer Siegfried Karg-Elert in 2000, and the premiere of a commissioned trio by Dr. Kenneth Nichols in 2003. In the summer of 2011 she and her sister Yvonne Ingram premiered Piano Island, a piano duet written by Dr. Kenneth Nichols inspired by his experiences in China. The work is dedicated to them. She has also premiered several works by Western Canadian composer David Dahlgren. Ms. Caron maintains a successful, well-established independent studio in Brandon, Manitoba. She is devoted to teaching a large and varied class of piano students with a special emphasis on ensemble playing.  Her students have consistently won awards at the local and provincial levels, and distinguished themselves as scholarship recipients in music programs in both Canada and the USA. She maintains a special interest in teaching young students, and consequently has always included them as part of her teaching studio. Since 2006 she has run a two-week Summer Concerto/Ensemble session which has been received with enthusiasm by students and parents alike. Ms. Caron enjoys working with young people at all levels, and her enthusiasm for sharing her particular expertise and ideas has made her a respected clinician and adjudicator. She is a member of the Canadian Adjudicators Association and a Senior Examiner with the RCME College of Examiners.

Jeremy Epp (Percussion) Born in Winnipeg into a musical family, Jeremy Epp was appointed Principal Timpanist of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra in 2010. In addition to his duties with the WSO, Mr. Epp is also the Principal Timpanist of the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra. Prior to his appointment in Winnipeg, he held the same position with the Erie Philharmonic. Mr. Epp studied with Paul Yancich and Richard Weiner while attending the Cleveland Institute of Music; prior to this, he worked extensively with Jauvon Gilliam in Winnipeg. He has performed as a timpanist and percussionist with several orchestras, including with the WSO since age eighteen. Summer engagements have included studying and performing at the Aspen Music Festival and School, as well as holding the position of Principal Timpanist with the Bear Valley Music Festival Orchestra, the Youth Orchestra of the Americas and the National Repertory Orchestra. Committed to sharing his passion for music with others, Mr. Epp serves as the percussion instructor at the University of Manitoba and is also active as a clinician, recently serving on the faculty of the Traveling Notes music festival in Armenia. Jeremy Epp performs exclusively on Remo drumheads.

Donna Fletcher (Vocal, 8, 10, 12 & 14 years and under) is an accomplished actor, singer, and concert performer with a wide range of national experience in theatre, musical theatre, and symphonic work.  Proud of her prairie roots, Donna received her early training in Winnipeg and earned a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from the University of Manitoba, a diploma in Music Theatre from The Banff Centre for the Arts, and a Master of Music in Vocal Performance from The University of Toronto.  She has performed with the Winnipeg Symphony; the Florida Orchestra, and the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra and was featured on the CBC Radios Saturday Afternoon at the Opera.  As an actor, Donna has been acclaimed in principle roles from east to west with the Charlottetown Festival, Drayton Festival, Rainbow Stage, Theatre Calgary, Stage West Calgary, the National Arts Centre, Manitoba Opera, MTC, PTE, MTYP, the Belfry Theatre and Persephone Theatre.  Recent performing credits include Cats (Rainbow Stage), Little Women and Follies (Dry Cold Productions), directing Brundibar for the MCO and taking the WSO stage with Len Cariou in Send in the Clowns: The Music of Stephen Sondheim.  Always seeking new challenges, Donna co-created Dry Cold Productions which celebrated its 10th anniversary season with the Manitoba premiere of Sweeney Todd.  In July of 2012 she was inducted into the Rainbow Stage Wall of Fame and directed their acclaimed production of Annie.  Donna is a Sessional Voice and Musical Theatre Instructor at the University Of Manitoba Marcel A. Desautels Faculty of Music as well as the University of Winnipeg Theatre Department.

Millie Hildebrand (Choral, School Recorder, Handbells and Orff) is familiar to Manitobas music community as a teacher, choral director, voice instructor and festival adjudicator. She has taught classroom and choral music at all levels and has been active in implementing programs for young musicians in her local community of Steinbach and throughout the province. These have included collaborations with the University of Manitoba, the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, the International Peace Gardens Music Camp, regional and provincial honour choirs and and numerous choir tours. Millies performance background includes past productions with Manitoba Opera, Winnipeg Mennonite Theatre, the Oregon Bach Festival Chorus, and Canzona, to name a few. Her two-year teaching post in Bucharest, Romania provided an exhilarating adventure into the art and culture of Eastern Europe.  Millie currently co-conducts the University Concert Choir together with husband Ed, and directs the Faith and Life Womens Chorus. She and Ed look forward to co-directing The Sound of Music with the Steinbach Arts Council this spring.

Margot Jewell (Strings) received her Bachelor of Music from McMaster University and her ARCT from the Royal Conservatory of Music. This was followed by studies in Matsumoto Japan with Shinichi Suzuki, and lessons on Baroque Violin with Jeanne Lamon and Kevin Mallon.  Margot has enjoyed performing in groups such as Opera York, Hamilton Philharmonic, Symphony Niagara, Te Deum Orchestra, Talisker Players, the Aradia Ensemble, as well as many freelance groups. She has enjoyed working with young people and their families, first at the Hamilton Suzuki School where she taught violin and was also the director. Then in 1982 she founded the Etobicoke Suzuki Music, where she is director and on faculty.  Margot also has worked for the Toronto District School Board as a visiting artist at the Etobicoke School of the Arts. For the last 18 years, Margot has been a festival adjudicator cross Canada and a member of the Canadian Music Festival Adjudicators' Association. She is an examiner for the Royal Conservatory of Music and is presently the string specialist, involved in the training and development of examiners. Margot also acts as a reviewer of the new violin syllabus. For many years she was a member of the Board of the Suzuki Association of Ontario and is presently a board member of the Suzuki Association of the Americas. In demand for weekend workshops and week-long institutes, Margot thoroughly enjoys working with young people and their families across Canada. She has also enjoyed being a faculty member of Huckleberry Music Camp and at the National Music Camp.

Elaine Lau (Piano, Grades 9 Honours and Adult)
Versatile as both a soloist and collaborative artist, Elaine Lau has been broadcast on CBC Radio 2, National Public Radio (US) and Rondo Classic (Finland).  Equally at home with the standard canon, Elaine also has an avid interest in the contemporary repertoire for toy, solo and duo piano, and is active in the premiering of new works for these mediums. Her live performances of Canadian piano repertoire can be found online at the Canadian Music Centre.  As duo pianist with Joseph Ferretti, Elaine has performed across North America, recorded for Capstone Records and held an artist residency at the Banff Centre for the Arts.  Along with Stephanie Chua, Elaine and Joseph also co-founded junctQn, a keyboard collective of three devoted to performing new music, with recent concerts at the Colours of Music Festival in Barrie, Scotiabank Nuit Blanche, and at the Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre. In addition to performing, Elaine is a Senior Examiner for RCM and serves as a senior teacher advisor for the online music tool, iSCORE.  A member of the piano faculty at Wilfrid Laurier University since 2003, she will be joining the faculty at the National Youth Orchestra of Canada in 2013.  Elaine holds graduate degrees from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and the Glenn Gould School of the Royal Conservatory of Music; her influential teachers include Peter Longworth, Valerie Tryon, Gwen Beamish and Karl Ulrich Schnabel, among many others.

Jennifer Moir (Vocal, Grades C, B, A and Adult) received her Masters of Vocal Literature and Performance from The University of Western Ontario. In addition to her duties as in Instructor of Voice and Choirs at The Don Wright Faculty of Music at The University of Western Ontario, she is on Faculty at St. Johns University, Collegeville, Minnesota where she teaches during intercession for The Voice Care Network. As a community choral conductor, Ms. Moir is the Founder, Artistic Director and Producer of the Kaleid Choral Festival held annually in Woodstock, Ontario. Select conducting credits in clude: CBC Radio Competition Prizes, Gold Medal Performances at the Eisteddfod in Llangollen, Wales and The Choral Olympics in Linz, Austria, the Opening Ceremonies, Jeux du Canada Games, CD recordings: Canadian Portraits, The World Awaits, Echo as well as a music video of the Huron Carol. Ms. Moir is a supporter of new Canadian music and has commissioned over 70 new works since 1998. As a vocalist, Ms. Moir maintains a small private studio in addition to her work at UWO, and presents masterclasses and solo recitals each season. She adjudicates festivals and works as a clinician for voice and choirs across North America annually. Select singing credits include Suor Angelica in Puccinis Suor Angelica (UWOpera, London, ON and OperaViva, Kelowna, BC), commissioning and premiering, Tableaux Eternelles a song cycle for Soprano and piano, by Canadian composer Jeff Smallman, collaborations with pianist John-Paul Bracey presenting the music of Joaquin Turina and the North American premiere performance of the music of Guastavino.

Amber Morphy (Vocal, 16 & 18 years and under) soprano and pianist, is a versatile performer, teacher and adjudicator. She has travelled throughout Canada and enjoys working with youth in a workshop, festival or exam situation. Amber began her musical training in Ontario completing a Bachelor of Music in voice and piano at Wilfrid Laurier University. She then graduated with a Masters in Music from the University of Western Ontario, specializing in vocal performance. She has been a member of the College of Examiners for the Royal Conservatory of Music for 20 years. She examines all levels of piano and voice. She is also an active adjudicator for music festivals and competitions throughout Canada. Amber has performed extensively in Ontario with Elora Festival, Gallery Concert Series, Kokoro, K-W Opera, Hamilton Opera, Summer Lyric Opera Theatre, Cambridge Symphony Orchestra and many more. She is an active recitalist throughout the Waterloo region. She is also an accompanist and coach for singers at an integrated arts high school in Kitchener. She owns her own successful private music studio in Cambridge, teaching over 35 students a week. In 2003, Amber had the honour of being the first Artist-in-Residence for the city of Cambridge. This exciting position allowed for monthly concerts, workshops, performances at community events and the creation of her first self titled CD. In her spare time, Amber is a competitive triathlete and yoga instructor.

Carson Nattrass (Musical Theatre and Gilbert & Sullivan) is a professional singer, actor and director whose work has been seen from coast to coast. He has sung for Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber while in the original cast of THE BOYS IN THE PHOTOGRAPH and has worked with Tony Award winner Len Cariou on David Mamets GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS, Tony Award nominee Kristin Hanggi in the Toronto production of ROCK OF AGES and Academy Award nominee Sarah Polley in her adaptation of the Carol Shields short story THE HARP. He has worked for the Belfry Theatre (Victoria), Catalyst Theatre, Citadel Theatre, River City Shakespeare Festival (Edmonton), Theatre Calgary, Ground Zero Theatre/Hit & Myth, Lunchbox Theatre (Calgary), Persephone Theatre (Saskatoon), Regina Globe Theatre (Regina), Rainbow Stage, Manitoba Theatre For Young People, Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre, Danny Schur Productions, Prairie Theatre Exchange, Winnipeg Jewish Theatre, Theatre Projects Manitoba (Winnipeg), Talk is Free Theatre (Barrie), Mirvish Productions (Toronto), Festival Antigonish and Will Power Theatre (Nova Scotia). Carson has been the recipient of Calgarys Betty Mitchell Award, Edmontons Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Award and the Stage West-Equity Emerging Theatre Artist of the Year Award.

Heather Godden Waldner (Piano Grades 5-8) Studying with Dr. Lyell Gustin in Saskatoon, Heather Godden Waldner received her Associate from the Royal Conservatory of Music, Toronto and her Licentiate from Trinity College of Music, London, England.  Heather is a Registered Music Teacher, an examiner for the Royal Conservatory of Music, a festival adjudicator and workshop clinician.  She has composed a number of works for piano, published under the name of Heather Godden Laliberte, as well as vocal and choral works, and has led workshops on the Art of Practising, Examination & Festival Preparation and numerous theory topics. Ms. Waldner has performed as an accompanist for a wide variety of events, and has held a number of church organist/music director positions.  She was one of the founding performers of the trombone quartet, Simply Bones, and currently plays lead trombone in the Saskatoon Concert Band.  She teaches piano, piano pedagogy, trombone, singing and all levels and subjects of music theory at her private music studio in Warman, SK.

Flutist Fiona Wilkinson is an Associate Professor of Flute and Chamber Music at the Don Wright Faculty of Music - Western.Since joining the faculty in 1980, Fiona has maintained a concert and recording profile throughout North America as both a soloist and chamber musician.  Ms. Wilkinson is a founding member of the Aeolian Wind Quintet and Triptych. These ensembles have toured extensively throughout Canada, the United States and the Far East. More recently she has been involved in the development of a world music group The Antler River Project.  As a Canadian artist she has been the recipient of numerous awards for career development from the Ontario Arts Council and the Canada Council. Ms. Wilkinson has studied with international artists such as Peter Lukas Graf (Switzerland), William Bennett and Trevor Wye (London, England) and Jeanne Baxtresser (New York). As a freelancer, Fiona has worked with the Toronto Symphony, New Music Concerts - Toronto, the Canadian Opera Co., the Hamilton Philharmonic, and the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony Orchestras. A Western Academic Development Fund award enabled Prof. Wilkinson to continue research into the electronic manipulation of the flute's technique through the use of synthesis and samplers. This has been a welcome addition to her involvement with classical, jazz and modern composition. As a soloist and chamber musician, her discography includes Spells (1983), A Recital for Flute and Organ (1988), Pastels (1992), Triptych (1993), Home Suite Home (1995) The Devil's Dictionary (2001) Fiona Wilkinson plays Bach (2008) and Latitude 43 ( 2011). As a Canadian flutist, Ms. Wilkinsons career has produced an extensive discography of important Canadian collaborations with a diverse array of artists, composers and genres. This diversity has resulted in frequent guest appearances on CBC Radio as well as a unique exposure to the international community as a Canadian artist.

Mark Wilson (Classical Guitar) Passionate playing with clear technical command and a compelling story behind each composition are what Mark Wilson brings to the stage. Performing regularly at festivals and concert series throughout the Greater Northwest, Wilson has distinguished himself as a unique voice with programs that feature his transcriptions of new works for the guitar by such greats as lutenist Sylvius Leopold Weiss, or transcriptions of the harpsichord music of Francois Couperin. Wilson's performing career has taken him to Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall with the new music group Ensemble Sospeso to concert halls across the US. He earned his Master's in Classical Guitar Performance at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York and he earned a Bachelor's of Music as a double major in Music History and Classical Guitar Performance at Western Washington University. His compositions for the guitar have been appearing on stages throughout the Northwest US and Canada for over 15 years. The main medium he works in is the relatively unexplored genre of multiple guitars or Guitar Orchestra. Wilson is the conductor, composer, arranger and music director to the Guitar Orchestra of Seattle. The number of players in Guitar Orchestra has ranged from 8 to 40. Wilson is currently on the faculty of Bellevue College teaching courses on the history of rock n roll along with guitar courses. He teaches privately at the Rosewood guitar and enjoys walking to work on the days he teaches there.