Executive Committee

​JULIE FREEDMAN SMITH, PRESIDENT
Julie Freedman Smith has been involved in teaching for the past 28 years. Her experience as an Elementary/Jr. High music teacher, a choral conductor with the Calgary Boys Choir, a voice instructor and a choral clinician has resulted in extensive opportunities to work with children and adults in both individual and group environments. A founding member of Luminous Voices and a regular addition to VoiceScapes, Julie continues to feed her love of performance. Since 2002, she has encouraged parents across the country as co-founder of Parenting Power. Julie holds B.Sc. Biology and a B.A. Psychology with Distinction from the University of Calgary. ​
​JOANNE COLLIER, VICE PRESIDENT
Joanne Collier has shared her passion for choral singing with people of all ages as either a singer or conductor her entire life. Currently she teaches for Holy Spirit Catholic Schools at The Children of St. Martha School in Lethbridge, is Music Director at St. Augustine’s Church, and Music Director of Vox Musica Choral Society. For nineteen years she was on faculty at Medicine Hat College where she taught voice and directed children’s, youth, and adult choirs including the award-winning MHC Girls’ Choir. Originally from Boissevain, Manitoba, Joanne holds a Bachelor of Music (Performance) from the University of Manitoba and Master of Music (Vocal Performance) from the University of British Columbia. Following an accomplished career of almost twenty years, she entered the Faculty of Education at the University of Lethbridge in 2011 where she received the William Aberhardt Gold Medal upon graduation. She is the recipient of the Alberta Choral Federation’s “Con Spirito” award for contributions to choral music in her community, the Johann Strauss Foundation scholarship for study in Austria, Medicine Hat College Employee of the Year and City of Medicine Hat Civic Award for contributions to the arts.   
AMY ABBOTT, SECRETARY
Amy Abbott is a lawyer currently based in Edmonton. She obtained an LL.B at Dalhousie University in 2009, after completing her BA Honours at the University of Alberta. She articled with the ARCH Disability Law Centre in Toronto, Ontario, where she was called to the bar before returning to Alberta in 2010. Amy currently works at Emery Jamieson LLP, one of Alberta's oldest law firms, where she maintains a general practice, and has represented clients before all levels of Court in Alberta. Prior to law school, Amy was a long-time chorister with the University of Alberta Mixed Chorus. Music, and choir in particular, has been a passion of Amy’s since childhood. She values the opportunity to reconnect with her choral roots and contribute to the choral community as a member of the Choir Alberta Board.
​TOKIE ONODA, VICE PRESIDENT MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS
Tokie (Satoko) Onoda is a Communications Specialist residing in Calgary, AB. She studied in Japan, the US, and Canada, and holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration degree and a Minor degree in Music from the University of Southern Mississippi. Tokie has more than 20 years of experience promoting for-profit, non-profit, and post-secondary education institutions including the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, the University of Calgary School of Creative and Performing Arts, the Faculty of Arts, Luminous Voices, and the Southern Alberta Myeloma Patient Society. In 2020, she found Calgary Classical – a website that provides an integrated list of classical music events in Calgary and the surrounding area. Tokie is also a violinist and performs with the Calgary Civic Symphony, and the Rocky Mountain Symphony Orchestra, and is a founding member of Amadea Strings.
TIMOTHY SHANTZ, VICE PRESIDENT PROJECTS + PROGRAMS
Timothy Shantz is Associate Professor and Director of Choral Activities at the University of Alberta’s Department of Music and Founder & Artistic Director of Calgary’s professional choir, Luminous Voices. For over a decade he was Chorus Master for the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra and Artistic Director of Spiritus Chamber Choir, gaining recognition including the Healey Willan award. In 2021, he was honoured with the Richard S. Eaton Award of Distinction from Choir Alberta in recognition of exemplary service to choral music in the province of Alberta. He has multiple recordings with both Luminous Voices and Spiritus Chamber Choir, including the JUNO nominated Sea Dreams (2020). Tim holds a Doctor of Music degree in Choral Conducting from Indiana University Jacobs School of Music.

Directors

OLIVIA ALBERT, DIRECTOR
Olivia Albert is a proud Métis/Acadian educator who is passionate about two-eyed seeing and integrating Indigenous ways of being into choral spaces. On her mother’s side, her family names are Halpin and Leask, and her origins are in Selkirk, Manitoba, the northern extension of the Red River Settlement. On her father’s side, her family names are Albert and Doiron, with roots in Bas-Caraquet and Saint-François-de-Madawaska. In 2021, she received a B.Sc. In Chemistry with a minor in music. She has sung with the University of Alberta Madrigal Singers, NYCC in 2022, and most recently with Pro Coro #connect. In her free time, she enjoys spending time on the land with her family. She also passes time beading, quilling, and tufting, thanks to teachings passed along to her by Traditional Dene Artist Suzan Marie and Métis Artist Krista Leddy.
ANDREW SNYDER, DIRECTOR 
Andrew Snyder is the choral teacher at Lindsay Thurber Comprehensive High School in Red Deer, and has held the position since 2017. He studied voice performance and education at the University of Lethbridge where he graduated with great distinction. Andrew is slowly (emphasis on slowly) working towards achieving his Masters in Leadership Studies from Royal Roads University on Vancouver Island and is passionate about Values-Based Leadership. He loves being active, leadership, music, fun and being creative, and is passionate about music literacy and growing his student's choral skills. Andrew currently sits on the board for Choir Alberta and is the department head of Fine Arts at his high school. He and his wife Denise have three children - Theo, Jack, and Celia.
LAUREN WOODS, DIRECTOR 
Lauren Woods, soprano, performs in operas, oratorios and concerts from coast to coast. As a born-and-raised Calgarian, she was thrilled to return home as one of Calgary Opera’s Emerging Artists in 2016-2017. Lauren grew up singing in Cantare Children's Choir, touring through Canada, the United States as well as Europe. She went on to complete a diploma in Voice performance at MRU, a bachelor’s degree in Opera at UBC and a master's in Voice at McGill. Lauren was a finalist in the Wirth Vocal Competition in Montreal, and was one of six Canadians invited to the International Belvedere competition in Amsterdam. Currently, Lauren performs with Luminous Voices and is a vocal coach for a number of Calgary-based choirs. Aside from performing, Lauren is a visual artist, mother of two and teaches voice and piano through her private studio. 
INTERESTED IN JOINING THE CHOIR ALBERTA BOARD?
​Our volunteer Board is made up of musicians and non-musicians dedicated to supporting choirs and choral practitioners across Alberta. The broad range of skills and perspectives represented on the Board contribute to the effective planning and delivery of the organization's diverse offerings.

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