Welcome to the Choral Canada Student Chapter!

STUDENT CHAPTER EDITOR (ANACRUSIS)

Originally from St. John’s, Newfoundland, Cameron Bennett (he/him) recently moved to Halifax after completing his Bachelor of Music (Honours) in Musicology from Memorial University of Newfoundland, where he sang with the Quintessential Vocal Ensemble, where he also served as Operations Manager, the MUN Chamber Choir, and the St. John’s Gay Men’s Chorus. Cameron is also a trained clarinetist and pianist, having completed Royal Conservatory of Music examinations in both instruments, and has performed with the Newfoundland Youth Symphony Orchestra, the MUN Wind Ensemble, and as a part of the New York Summer Music Festival at SUNY Oneonta. Currently, Cameron sings with the Halifax Camerata Singers, and is pursuing a Master of Arts in Musicology at Dalhousie, where his thesis research focuses on Dolly Parton.

MEMBER AT LARGE

​​Carmen Nicholson is a bilingual musician based in Montreal, Canada with a passion for music education, musicology and conducting. She studies conducting under Dr. Jean-Sébastien Vallée and voice under renowned soprano Aline Kutan at McGill University.

Carmen has performed with the National Arts Centre on multiple occasions, first in 2018 under direction of Alexander Shelley in Britten’s War Requiem, then later in 2023 in Artistic Fraud’s production I Forgive You, as well as Handel’s Messiah. From 2019-2024, Carmen earned various scholarships from placing well in yearly competitions such as Kiwanis Music Festival and NATS National Capital Region.

She first conducted the Concert Choir of the Ottawa Children’s Choir while volunteering as a mentor in 2023. Since then, she has had the chance to conduct the World Youth Honors Chorus at Interlochen Centre for the Arts in Michigan, and the Ottawa Regional Youth Choir on occasion.

Carmen sings with the Choeur Polyphonique de Montréal at Cathédrale Marie Reine du Monde, Shaare-Zion Congregation Choir and McGill’s Schulich Singers. Prior to moving to Montréal, she resided in Ottawa and was heavily involved with the music community. During her years with the Ottawa Regional Youth Choir, she performed and soloed with chamber orchestra in works such as Vivaldi’s Gloria, Handel’s Messiah, Mozart’s Coronation Mass, Haydn’s Creation, Saint-Saëns’ Oratorio and Fauré’s Requiem. After her final season with ORYC in spring 2024, she was awarded the Rich Little Award for her work.

COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR

Celeste Thordarson is a soprano, choral conductor, and music educator. She currently serves as Music Director and conductor at Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish, Associate Conductor with the Mississauga Festival Youth Choir, and Assistant Conductor with Bach Children’s Chorus Choir II.

Celeste has worked with children’s, youth, adult, and chamber ensembles through organizations including the Toronto Children’s Chorus, Sistema Toronto, VIVA Singers, the Gryphon Trio’s Listen Up! program, and Exultate Chamber Singers, where she was selected as an Apprentice Conductor in 2024. She is also a private voice teacher and works professionally as a singer and voice actor in video games, film, and commercial work, including recording and soundtrack projects.

Passionate about choral education, vocal pedagogy, and music and wellbeing, Celeste previously served as Advocacy Representative for the Choral Canada Student Chapter and now serves as its incoming Communications Director.

MEMBER AT LARGE

Daniel Dumaresque Correa is a conductor, composer, instrumentalist and vocalist based in St. John’s Newfoundland & Labrador. 

He is a 4th year Bachelor of Music student – pursuing a major in composition and a minor in business and administration at Memorial University of Newfoundland. Daniel has been involved in the choral scene for years, largely due to his extensive involvement in Shallaway Youth Choir since 2016. Through Shallaway he has been a part of the International Choral Expo in Portugal (2022), Cork International Choir Competition in Ireland (2023), HarbourVOICES! International Choral Festival in Newfoundland (2024), the 110th-anniversary commemoration of the Battle of Beaumont-Hamel in France (2026) and plenty more. Today, he serves as a conducting choral scholar for Shallaway’s high school aged choir, Camerata. Most recently, Daniel served as a Bass section leader in the 2026 National Youth Choir of Canada in British Colombia. Apart from choir, Daniel also serves as Assistant Conductor and Principal Trombone in the Calos Youth Orchestra, plays in the MUN Wind Ensemble & Jazz Orchestra, performs with The Tide Quartet, performs in local theatre productions and accompanies singers in the Kiwanis Music Festival.

Daniel is thrilled to be a member of the Student Chapter and looks forward to collaborating with the wonderful singers and conductors in our nation-wide choral community!

MEMBER OF CC BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Diane Kolin is a jazz and classical singer and a musicologist. She is the founder of ArtsAbly, a company offering diverse services related to accessibility and disability in the arts. Diane holds a PhD in Musicology from York University, Toronto. Her research interests are diverse and include Critical Disability Studies, Ludwig van Beethoven, and Franz Liszt. She is the editor in chief of the Journal of the French Beethoven Society. The study of Beethoven’s deafness and her personal history led to her research in disability and music. She specializes in disability awareness and inclusion in the artistic world, particularly in music. Her collaboration with disabled musicians in the professional musical world allows her to expose new ideas on making music more accessible to a broader audience.

MEMBER AT LARGE

Ellie Piercey is a soprano, choral singer and educator based in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador.

She is a fourth-year Bachelor of Music student in Vocal Performance at Memorial University of Newfoundland, where she studies voice with Dr. Jane Leibel. Deeply rooted in Newfoundland and Labrador’s choral community, Ellie spent twelve years singing with Shallaway Youth Choir, performing with its ensembles across the province, Canada, and internationally. Through Shallaway, she participated in the World Choral Expo in Lisbon, Portugal (2022), the Cork International Choral Festival and Fleischmann International Trophy Competition in Ireland (2023), and HarbourVOICES! International Choral Festival in St. John’s (2024).

Ellie currently sings with Lady Cove Women’s Choir and Projekt Chamber Voices and has performed extensively with ensembles at Memorial University. In 2025, she was selected for the Ellison Canadian Honour Choir, and most recently represented Newfoundland and Labrador in the 2026 National Youth Choir of Canada, performing at PODIUM in Victoria, British Columbia.

Alongside her choral work, Ellie is an active solo and operatic performer, most recently performing the role of Susanna in MUN Opera Workshop’s Le nozze di Figaro. She is also a winner of the Kiwanis Music Festival Senior Rose Bowl (2026) and performs as a percussionist with the MUN Concert Winds.

Beyond performing, Ellie is passionate about music community-building. She is actively involved in student leadership and community engagement through Memorial’s School of Music. Her work is driven by a love of bringing people together through singing and by a deep commitment to the rich choral culture of Newfoundland and Labrador.

MEMBER AT LARGE

Evelyn Barber is an aspiring singer, conductor and educator from Oshawa, Ontario. She is currently in her fourth year of a Bachelor of Music degree in Voice Performance at Western University, studying under Torin Chiles. Evelyn is passionate about education and bringing the arts to all spaces in a fun and uplifting way; she has served as an arts educator with The Travelling Stage Studio in the Durham Region and had the wonderful opportunity to direct the music for various theatre productions, including The Little Mermaid, 9 to 5: The Musical, and, upcoming, Ride The Cyclone with Theatre Western. Evelyn previously served as assistant conductor at Siloam United Church in London. She is currently co-conductor of the Student Leadership Choral Collective at Western University, and sings as the Alto choral scholar at New St. James Presbyterian Church. Evelyn is grateful to have sung with various choral ensembles including RESOUND Choir, London Pro Musica, Western University Singers, and multiple sacred chamber groups.

MEMBER AT LARGE

Born in Calgary, Alberta, Helayna Moll is a classically trained soprano pursuing a Bachelor of Music in voice performance and with a minor in choral conducting at McGill University’s Schulich School of Music. Although they study solo voice performance as a major and have the incredible opportunity of appearing with opera companies like Opera McGill and the McGill Savoy Society, their first love was always choral music. They recently represented Quebec in the soprano section of the National Youth Choir of Canada under the direction of Dr. Julia Davids. In July 2026, they appeared as the Julie Bailey Choral Scholar at the Cambridge Choral Academy in Cambridge, UK. They also appeared in the Alberta Youth Choir and Alberta Children’s Choir several times throughout their grade school years. Helayna is also a keyboardist and enjoys the challenge of self accompaniment while singing.

MEMBER AT LARGE

Helen (Hei Lam) Leung is a Hong Kong-born Canadian choral conductor. She is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Choral Conducting at the University of British Columbia under the tutelage of Dr. Hyejung Jun and Dr. Graeme Langager. She holds a double degree in Music Education (B.Ed.) and Creative Arts and Culture (B.A.) with First Class Honours from the Education University of Hong Kong (EdUHK). 

In Vancouver, Helen co-conducts the Vancouver Cantonese Choir and UBC’s Oriana and Chamber Choir. She also sings with Elektra Women’s Choir and has recently conducted a youth choir ensemble, Knox Lab choir. She found immense joy from building community and promoting cultural exchange through choral music. 

Active internationally, Helen has studied with esteemed choral conductors including Sanders Lau (Hong Kong), Prof. Thomas Caplin (Sweden), Soma Szabó (Hungary), Dr. Po Kwan Law (Hong Kong), Dr. Pawasut Jodi Piriyapongrat (Thailand), and Dr. Paulina Wong (Hong Kong). In 2026, she was selected to work with Dr. Jean-Sébastien Vallée at the Montreal Summer Choral Academy at McGill University and with Dr. William Weinert at the Choral Masterworks Eastman Summer Workshop. 

ADVOCACY DIRECTOR

Ian Olson (he/him) is a singer and prospective public servant based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He is a vocal advocate for the arts, and an active tenor in the Winnipeg music community who loves sharing the joys of music with everyone who will listen. He currently sings as a section lead for both the St. Andrew’s River Heights United Church and the University of Manitoba Concert Choir, and has sung with Dead of Winter, Polycoro, Canzona, Manitoba Opera, Manitoba Underground Opera, University of Manitoba Singers, and other groups whenever he can. Ian was also fortunate to be able to represent Manitoba in the National Youth Choir of Canada in 2024 and 2026.

MEMBER AT LARGE

John Waterfield is a singer, pianist, conductor, and third-year Bachelor of Music (Honours Performance) student at Western University, where he studies voice with Torin Chiles and piano with Marianna Chibotar-Rutkevich. He is the Co-Conductor of London’s Concentus Consort and Western University’s Student Leadership Choral Collective (SLCC), and recently studied conducting at the Sherborne Summer School of Music in Dorset, England.

As a choral musician, John has performed with ensembles including the National Youth Choir of Canada, St. Paul’s Cathedral Choir, Western University Singers, and the Grand Philharmonic Choir. He also serves as an apprentice organist at New St. James Presbyterian Church and will work as a collaborative pianist for students at Western this year. His upcoming performances with Opera at Western include the roles of Masetto in Mozart’s Don Giovanni and Simone in Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi.

Alongside his performance and conducting work, John enjoys composing art songs and piano miniatures for various recitals and events at Western.

CO-CHAIR

Karen Hu is a music educator, choral conductor, and singer based in Milton, Ontario. They recently completed a Bachelor of Music with Honours in Voice Performance at Western University. 

As an avid choral artist, Karen has performed in various choral ensembles across the country including the National Youth Choir of Canada, the Ontario Youth Choir, the Ellison Canadian Honour Choir, Western University Singers, and Modern Sound Collective. In addition to their role within the community, Karen currently serves as Co-Chair of Choral Canada’s Student Chapter Executive Committee. Karen is the recipient of the Ken Fleet Choral Conducting Scholarship (2025) and Deral Johnson Legacy Award in Choral Music Conducting (2023) and holds Levels I, II, and III Kodály Certifications from Western University. As a conductor, Karen has previously participated in Exultate Chamber Singers’ apprentice conductor program and was the co-conductor/founder of the Student Leadership Choral Collective at Western University. Currently, they are the assistant conductor of Bach Children’s Chorus Choir I, Preparatory Chorus Rehearsal Assistant with VIVA Singers Toronto, and Choir Teaching Artist with Sistema Toronto.

MEMBER AT LARGE

Miguel Alvarado is a young Tenor born in Vancouver, British Columbia. Currently pursuing a degree in English Language and Literature, with a minor in General Music Studies. He hopes to become a Secondary School Teacher in the near future. Miguel has had the privilege of touring all over the world to perform in choir festivals in North America, Europe and Asia. 

Miguel has sung for various different choirs in the city. Most notably, Carrie Tennant and the Vancouver Youth Choir. Miguel has also sung with the University of British Columbia’s University Singers. Miguel also works for various different Choral Ensembles. He works as the Phoenix Chamber Choir’s Phoenix Choral Experience Coordinator, Chor Leoni’s Prelude Program Assistant Conductor, Vancouver Orpheus Men’s Choir’s Social Media Consultant and the British Columbia Choral Federations British Columbia Youth and Teen Choir Manager.

MEMBER AT LARGE

Rosanna Scopacasa is a soprano and violinist based in Toronto, Ontario. Most recently, she represented Ontario in the 2026 National Youth Choir of Canada, and attended programs such as the Elora Singers Studio for Ensemble Singing in April, and Oberlin Baroque Performance Institute in June. She is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Music in violin performance, at the University of Toronto, under the mentorship of Timothy Ying, and is a member of the University of Toronto MacMillan Singers and choral scholar at St. Martin-in-the-Fields.

CO-CHAIR

William Austin (he/him/his) is a tenor, pianist, and researcher based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. He completed his Bachelors of Science (Medical Sciences) with Honours and a Minor in Music (Voice) in 2025 and is currently pursuing a Masters of Applied Science in Biomedical Engineering at Dalhousie University.

An avid musician, William sings with the Halifax Camerata Singers, Symphony Nova Scotia Chorus, and Galileo Baroque Choir. William has also performed with the National Youth Choir of Canada (2022, 2024, 2026) and Nova Scotia Youth Choir (2019, 2024), and has toured the province with Musique Royale's production of Messiah (2022-2025). William supports the work and growth of choral singing among his peers across Canada as Co-Chair of the Choral Canada Student Chapter Executive Committee. Outside of his choral activities, William can be found either developing new nature-sourced materials to prevent osteoarthritis, promoting science education among youth with Let's Talk Science, and playing Celtic piano with Halifax's very own Fiddle Sticks.

Each Branch will have its own set of goals and activities.  The overall benefit for each Branch is offering an incentive for students to share their passion. This way, students will become more committed to the art of choral music and group singing during their educational formative years. Benefits can also include learning opportunities beyond the classroom/rehearsal, the development of leadership skills, providing professional development opportunities, and contributing supportive services to the choral area and music department.

You can choose how little or how much organization you want.  A successful Branch will be one in which the students determine how they want to function, seeking out guidance from their Branch Advisor, if applicable. Ideally the Branch would provide encouragement and opportunity to students outside the classroom and choral rehearsal that directly relates to, but is not in competition with, the choral program or other music programs.

It depends on the goals and activities that you choose to do, and how you choose to do them. 

1. Organizing activities and sessions at the local level that engage in the training and experience of student choral musicians.

2. Encouraging student attendance and involvement at Choral Canada’s national biennial conference—Podium—through applying for student oriented programs and opportunities, and through attending the conference.

3. Encouraging and stimulating student membership and involvement in Choral Canada’s programs and projects that are relevant to the students at the local, provincial and national levels.

4. Promoting and recognizing the involvement of Student Chapter Branches on post-secondary campuses.

1. Student workshops and symposia

2. Conducting masterclasses

3. Reading sessions

4. Submitting articles for consideration in Choral Canada’s journal Anacrusis

5. Network/social events with other choral programs/groups in community and/or post secondary schools

6. Community engagement activities (e.g. singing in hospitals, workshops in elementary schools)

7. Organizing activities and sessions at a provincial choral association’s events (e.g. conference) that directly relate to the training and experience of student choral musicians

8. Other professional development and educational opportunities

The Chair/Co-Chairs of each Branch are required to send an annual report to the Choral Canada Student Chapter Executive Committee’s email address ([email protected]) by June 1 each year.

1. Discuss interest in starting a Choral Canada Student Chapter Branch with fellow students and/or a choral conductor/professor at your post-secondary institution. If applicable, identify a faculty member (likely the choral conductor/professor) who will be willing to be the Branch Advisor.

2. Review the goals of the choral program at your post-secondary institution and determine the advantages of forming a Choral Canada Student Chapter Branch, and potential goals and activities of the Branch that would support the program studies.

3. Encourage students to join Choral Canada and your CCSC Branch.  Choral Canada Student Membership annual fees are $35 plus tax (2023-24) and start on the day of purchase. If the membership is a financial barrier, Choral Canada does offer a “Pay-What-You-Can” option. Membership can be done online through the Choral Canada website (choralcanada.org). 

4. Obtain any required approval from your post-secondary institution officials to become a recognized student organization on your campus.

5. Send completed Choral Canada Student Chapter Branch Application Form to the Student Chapter Executive Committee email address ([email protected]).