Adrian Albulescu
Violin
Born in Romania, Adrian Albulescu graduated from the University of Bucharest with a Master of Arts degree in Music, specializing in violin. Before making his debut in Canada in 1991, he toured Norway, Sweden, Germany and Italy. He now teaches RCM and Suzuki violin methods and continues to perform in venues such as the Vancouver Art Gallery, Langley’s Rose Gellert Hall, Chilliwack Arts Centre, Abbotsford Arts Centre and many more. Additionally, Adrian has been the concertmaster of several orchestras, including the Chilliwack Symphony Orchestra, the Chilliwack Chamber Orchestra, the Burnaby Symphony Orchestra, Symphonietta, and Philomusica. Adrian founded the Quasi Bene youth orchestra, which competed and won gold at both the Langley Kiwanis Festival and the Chilliwack Music Festival. Quasi Bene has also presented several performances in the Fraser Valley, including an appearance with the Chilliwack Symphony Orchestra in 2001, as well as with the well known 12-year-old prodigy violinist and pianist Jonathan Chan.
Sharie Atley
Piano
Sharie Atley completed an ARCT in piano teaching at 18 while studying at UBC for a Bachelour of Music with Helen Silver and Lee Kum Sing. She continued at UBC and earned a Master’s Degree in Historical Musicology. She was Robert Silverman’s teaching assistant, and taught Music History at Capilano College. Ms. Atley then studied Early Music in London, England and, upon returning to Canada, piano pedagogy. She taught piano and theory at Douglas College for eight yearsbefore starting a family. She has performed in many settings, including as a member of Trio Vivo with Monica Kobelt, violinist, and Anne Dalton, cellist. She brings over 30 years’ teaching experience as a BC Registered Music Teacher.
Marlene Carr
Children’s Programs (Kindermusik and Kelly Kirby Piano), Piano and Voice
Marlene Carr, is a graduate of the National University of Freiburg in Germany, where she completed a masters degree in vocal performance. She began her career in 1984 and has since been heard in concert and recital in both Europe and North America. Ms Carr has over 25 years of experience as a soloist and teacher. Presently she is a faculty member of Chilliwack Academy of Music and the Central Academy of Music in Abbotsford. Her special expertise is in German vocal repertoire which she coaches throughout the Fraser Valley and Vancouver. She is the co-founder and coach of the Fraser Valley Youth Opera, providing opportunity for young singers to perform and share their love for opera repertoire.
Colleen Denoni
Piano
Colleen Denoni holds an ARCT Diploma in piano performance and was successful at the Teacher’s Written Exam from the Royal Conservatory of Music. Her principal instructor was Edward Parker with whom she studied full time from 1973 to 1980. She began teaching part time in 1975 and has maintained her own private music studio since 1979. Ms Denoni served as President of the British Columbia Registered Music Teachers’ Association Coquitlam/Maple Ridge Branch from 1987 to 1989. Her students have won numerous trophies and scholarships at the Chilliwack, Abbotsford and Coquitlam Festivals. Currently, Ms. Denoni teaches piano privately at home in Hope, as well as in Chilliwack and Mission. She is a member of the Chilliwack Branch of the BC Registered Music Teachers Association and believes she has found her calling in teaching, which she loves.
Karin Fehlauer
Children’s Programs (Suzuki Piano and Suzuki Violin), Piano, Violin and Viola
Karin Fehlauer is well known as a music teacher and performer in the Chilliwack area. She has taught privately and at Alberta College, and is now String Department Advisor at the Chilliwack Academy of Music. Recent performances include appearances with the Chilliwack Symphony Orchestra, the Festival of Trees, and The Mikado with the Fraser Valley Stage Society. Ms. Fehlauer holds her Licentiate from Trinity College, England in both violin and piano, and has completed extensive Suzuki training at Western Washington University and at various workshops in the Pacific Northwest. She is the string section coordinator for the Lions Club Music Festival, and is a long-time member of the local BCRMTA. Ms. Fehlauer is an enthusiastic and dedicated teacher who believes in the power of music to make a positive impact on each and every student’s life.
April Gibson
Piano Pedagogy
April Gibson studied piano, composition and pedagogy at the Victoria Conservatory of Music. In 1982, Ms. Gibson obtained her AVCM. Her piano teachers include Susan de Burgh, Kelly Charlton and Eva Kinderman. While at the Conservatory, Ms. Gibson attended weekly master classes with Winnifred Scott Wood and Robin Wood. Ms. Gibson studied composition and theory with Jean Ethridge and has written music for Voice and piano. She is a graduate of the VCM Teacher Training Program ( First Class Honours) where her principal instructors were Winnifred Scott Wood, Robin Wood, and Edward Parker. Ms. Gibson has over 30 years experience teaching piano privately and has been an active member of the ARMTA and BCRMTA since 1983.
Laurie Hirschman
Music Theory and Music History
Laurie Hirschman completed her ARCT Singing Teacher’s diploma in 1980 and followed it with her ARCT Singing Performance diploma in 1983. In 1992, she received her Kodaly Summer Diploma from the University of Calgary and the following year attended the IKS/OAKE Seminar at Hartford University in Connecticut. Ms. Hirschman teaches theory and ear training at the Chilliwack Academy of Music, where she has taught since 1988. She is currently president of BCRMTA local, past board member of the Chilliwack Arts Council, provincial secretary and local registrar of the Chilliwack Lions Club Music & Dance Festival, and an instigator of the Joanne Stoutjesdyk Memorial Fund which awards a scholarship for those pursuing a music teaching degree.
Gwyneth Jones
Children’s Programs (Suzuki Violin), Violin, Viola, Fiddle and String Orchestra
Gwyneth Jones works part-time at the Chilliwack Library and teaches Suzuki Violin through the Chilliwack Academy of Music. As well as performing with Rob O’Brennan, she teaches beginning fiddlers at the Pacific Fiddle College and performs with the Chilliwack Symphony Orchestra and the Burnaby Symphony Orchestra.
Ian Lochead
Drums and Percussion
Ian Lochead began his musical career in Ottawa, Ontario and brings over thirty years of percussion experience to his teaching. As a professional musician, he has recorded and toured with various rock, jazz, R&B, and country groups across Canada. Mr. Lochead’s extensive and widely-varied live performances have included venues from clubs to concert halls and outdoor festivals to TV shows. His studio experience as both band member and session player has involved records, CD and video productions and has received airplay in Australia, Canada and Europe. Mr. Lochead has enjoyed being a member of the faculty of the Chilliwack Academy of Music since 1994.
Teng Mackay
Piano
Teng Lee Mackay was born and trained in Singapore, and has taught piano since having a Licentiate in Piano Teaching from the Trinity College of London in 1987. Ms. Mackay has studied with Tan Bee Yen, Georgina Emmanuel and Lena Ching. She is a highly sought after accompanist and coach, having worked with several area school music teachers in numerous presentations of Musical Theatre.
Alex Maier
Saxophone, Oboe and Clarinet
Alexander Maier received his musical training in Chelyabinsk, Russia, and in 1976 earned the highest diploma from the State Institute of Culture where he specialized in oboe. Mr. Maier has performed in many orchestras and ensembles and as a soloist in Russia and in Canada. He is also on faculty at the Central Valley Academy of Music, and the Western Conservatory of Music where he teaches oboe, saxophone and clarinet.
Ken Nachtigal
Cello
Ken Nachtigal is a graduate of the Victoria Conservatory of Music and Camosun College, having received an associate degree in cello performance. His teachers have included Walter Neufeld, James Hunter, Sydney Humphreys, and Ian Hampton. Mr. Nachtigal has given solo recitals in Victoria, Winnipeg, and the lower mainland of BC. He has also performed with professional orchestras in various cities. In addition to his experience as a cellist and musician, Mr. Nachtigal has Bachelor and Masters degrees in education and teaches in the Chilliwack School District.
Paula Quick
Voice, Chilliwack Festival Chorus and Intergenerational Choir
Paula Quick was, until 1997 Ottawa-based and is now living in Chilliwack BC. She holds both a Bachelor of Music in Theory and Composition and Master’s degree in Vocal Performance and Literature from the University of Western Ontario. Throughout her performance career, Ms. Quick has received consistent critical acclaim for her creativity within the contemporary music idiom and her stylistic versatility. A compilation compact disc or recent work entitled Ensemble Girigonza (CAM 9601) is available through most music distributors and the Canadian Music Centre. Ms. Quick’s performances are heard frequently on both the CBC and Radio Canada.
Nilan Ritter
Guitar (rock/jazz/blues/country)
Nilan Ritter has spent 30 years traveling extensively throughout Europe and North America as a musician, teacher and clinician. Mr. Ritter has performed in numerous settings ranging from the Whatcom County Symphony Orchestra to a Jerry Lee Lewis tour and everything in between. Nilan’s education includes attending the Berklee School of Music, The Guitar Institute of Technology and the Guitar Study Center. Mr. Ritter is also a faculty member of the National Guitar Workshop, has taught at major universities in both the United States and Canada and was the owner and head instructor at the Langley Music Connection. Nilan’s love of the guitar and teaching is immediately apparent to each of his students and he is comfortable teaching in all styles.
Carmen Roberts
Piano and Flute
Carmen Roberts received a Bachelor of Music degree in both Piano and Flute Performance from Walla Walla College (Washington), and a Master of Music degree in Flute Performance from the University of British Columbia. In addition, she holds the Associate of Flute and Piano Performance from both the Royal Conservatory of Music and the Western Board of Music, and the Licentiate Diploma from the Western Board of Music. Her principal teachers include Julius Baker, Robert Aitken, Richard Hahn, and Paul Douglas, as well as theory with Nadia Boulanger at Fountainebleau, France. Ms. Roberts has performed throughout the United States, Canada, Asia, and the Caribbean as a soloist, recitalist, chamber musician, and on radio and television.
Lisa Scyner
Voice, Popular Voice and Piano
Lisa Scyner joined the Academy as a voice instructor in 2003 and has been the accompanist for the Chilliwack Festival Chorus for the past 5 years. She is also the Music Coordinator at Carman United Church. Lisa received her A.C.C.M. (Performer, Voice) from Conservatory Canada where she was awarded the Don & Lillian Right Travel & Study Scholarship, and completed a 3-year music diploma in Voice/Piano at Douglas College.
Sean Steeves
Trumpet, French horn
Sean completed a Bachelor’s degree in music at Trinity Western University, specializing in trumpet. He held principal chair in the TWU Orchestra and played in a period style Dixieland band along with many other ensembles. He has conducted many brass clinics at schools around the Fraser Valley and Lower Mainland area and has taught at several music studios. Currently, he plays in the Moonliters big band and is a freelance musician.
Rod Swanson
Piano, Guitar (rock/classical), Banjo and Ukulele
Rod Swanson has had many years of experience performing solo guitar in concerts and in the hospitality industry in Western Canada. During that time, he has developed a wide repertoire to accommodate many situations. Since Mr. Swanson has moved to the West Coast, he has performed with Alexander Maier and participates in Early Music Groups and churches. Mr. Swanson also teaches guitar and keyboard throughout the Fraser Valley.
Jill Tarling
Trombone
Jill Tarling holds a Bachelour of Music and a Bachelour of Music Education from UBC. She began playing the trombone at the age of 9 in the New Westminster and District Community Band with her father. Music has taken her all over the world, including Europe and Taiwan, and she was one of six Canadians to play in a 2000-piece band at the Opening Ceremonies for the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games. Currently, Ms. Tarling plays with the Moonliters Big Band. She teaches band at Chilliwack Middle School, a position she has held for 3 years.
Alisa van Dijk
Violin
Alisa began studying the violin at the age of seven and recently completed a Masters of Music in Violin at UBC where she studied with Paul Kling, Eugenia Choi and Joan Blackman. Ms. van Dijk has participated in master classes at the Banff International Festival, Orford Arts Centre, and the Mozarteum in Salzburg and is currently working with Robert Rozek at the Vancouver Academy of Music. She has performed in many solo and chamber recitals, as well as orchestral engagements, and enjoys playing as a freelance musician. Alisa teaches students from beginners to advanced in violin, fiddling and modern music.
Caralee Voth
Piano
Caralee Voth holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music (gold medal) from the University of Winnipeg as well as a Bachelor of Church Music in Piano Performance from Concord College. She completed her ARCT diploma in Piano Performance under the study of Irmgard Baerg. In addition to teaching piano at the Chilliwack Academy of Music and in Abbotsford, Ms. Voth accompanies for recitals, festivals, musical theatre and other performances. She also works for the music department of Trinity Western University.