Mark Wilkinson - Bass

Actor and singer Mark Wilkinson is a performing artist, teacher, and director. His performances have taken him across Canada and have been broadcast on CBC, in a range of media that spans theatre, concert, recital, chamber music, and voice-over work.

As a baritone soloist, recent highlights include Bach’s St. John Passion with the Choir of King’s College under Paul Halley; Handel’s Israel in Egypt with the Richard Eaton Singers under Leonard Ratzlaff; Mozart’s Missa brevis in D with the Alberta Baroque Ensemble and Da Camera Singers under John Brough; and his recital début with pianists Stephen Ralls and Bruce Ubukata. When not diligently working as a public servant, Mark teaches acting and speech at the Ottawa School of Speech and Drama.

Carolyn Beaudoin – Soprano

Soprano Carolyn Beaudoin is in her second year of a Masters of Music degree in vocal performance at the University of Ottawa under the direction of distinguished Canadian soprano Donna Brown. She has performed the roles of Despina in Mozart’s Cosi fan tutte, Zerlina in Don Giovanni, and Second Lady in Die Zauberflöte with the University of Ottawa’s Opera Productions ensemble. She has also appeared as the soprano soloist in Fauré’s Requiem and Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream with the University of Ottawa Orchestra under the direction of conductor Rennie Regehr. Ms. Beaudoin was a second place winner at the 2012 Canadian Music Competition National Finals. She has also recently been awarded with the Marie-Claire Guindon and Robert Major Fund, the Helen Nininger Scholarship in Fine Arts, the William H. Kelly Scholarship, the Guy Huot Memorial Scholarship, the Donald Metcalfe Memorial Scholarship for Young Artists, and the First Place Uxbridge Music Scholarship.Ms. Beaudoin received her Bachelor of Music degree in 2012 from the University of Ottawa, where she studied with renowned Canadian mezzo-soprano Sandra Graham. She has performed in master-classes with Michiel Schrey, Daniel Taylor, and Edith Wiens.

Anthony Boxell - Tenor

Tenor Anthony Boxell is currently completing his undergraduate degree in vocal performance at the University of Ottawa. He is in his 3rd year of studies under the guidance of Soprano Christiane Riel. Anthony performed Don Ottavio in the university's production of Don Giovanni and will be presenting his 3rd year recital in March.

Lydia Piehl – Mezzo-Soprano

Lydia Piehl is a Mezzo-Soprano currently in her fourth year of undergraduate studies at the University of Ottawa Ontario. Up and coming performances include the role of Dido in Purcell's Dido and Aeneas with the University of Ottawa's Opera Production. Lydia recently performed in the chorus of Ottawa's Opera Lyra in Carmen by Bizet at the National Art Center. Lydia has performed previously in the University of Ottawa's opera productions which include the roles of Dorabella in Mozart's Cosi fan tutte and Donna Elvira in Mozart's Don Giovanni. Lydia has also been a featured soloist in the university of Ottawa's Callixa-lavalee Choir and does classical vocal solo work throughout the city of Ottawa community.

Ania Hejnar – Soprano

With critics already hailing her "pristine coloratura" and "outstanding interpretations," soprano Ania Hejnar is currently enjoying what many consider the inevitable result of her extraordinary voice and talent. Last year alone she won first prize in the Canadian Music Competition, where she was selected from nearly six hundred applicants, and asked to perform with the Orchestre Métropolitain under the baton of Alain Trudel. She also won the 2009 Barry Alexander International Vocal Competition, resulting in a performance debut at Carnegie Hall, which then led to her being given a study grant for The Alexander & Buono Festival of Music, and a performance with an international array of artists as part of the Festival's final recital at New York's Kosciuszko's Foundation Auditorium.

Recently Ms. Hejnar won the 2011 Barry Alexander International Vocal Competition that resulted in an invitation to a Carnegie Hall performance in January 2012. She also won the NYCO Mozart Vocal Competition, and has been invited to perform with the NYCO Symphony Orchestra in Toronto in March 2012. She returned to Carnegie Hall the following month as a featured guest artist for The Fifth Annual ABC Gala.

Ms. Hejnar began musical studies with the violin, performing her first recital at the age of three. She later joined the Ottawa Junior Youth Orchestra as a violinist, remaining a member for many years. She began her voice studies at age sixteen, developing the technique for the bel canto and coloratura works that have become a part of Hejnar's vocal signature.

Ms. Hejnar began her undergraduate work as a Bachelor of Music candidate at the University of Ottawa, studying under Professor Ingemar Korjus. This collaboration led to invitations to perform in a variety of works and venues, among them the University of Ottawa Opera Company, Opera Musica Orchestra and Opera Lyra Ottawa.

Having received her Master's Degree in the School of Music at the University of Ottawa, earlier this year, Ms. Hejnar has recently appeared as Lisa in the Altamura Center for the Arts production of La Sonnambula, under the baton of Maestro Michel Brousseau. Currently coaching with Madame Carmela Altamura and Barry Alexander in New York, Ms. Hejnar is preparing roles and concert repertoire for upcoming performances that include engagements in Canada and North America.

Whitney O'Hearn – Mezzo-soprano

Mezzo-soprano Whitney O’Hearn “has a warm and expressive voice and an amazing sense of line” (Ottawa Citizen). She is an up-and-coming Ottawa-Gatineau based vocal artist pursuing a career in opera and contemporary music. A prolific performer, Whitney seeks to make music more accessible through collaborating with composers and singing in unusual venues in a wide variety of traditional and unexpected ensembles.

As a voice teacher, she shares her insights and philosophy with students from a broad spectrum of genres.

Mrs. O’Hearn has received her Bachelor of Music as well as her Master’s of Music in vocal performance at the University of Ottawa School of Music, where she studied with renowned Canadian mezzo-soprano Sandra Graham. She has performed in numerous master classes and received coaching from Benita Valente, Gilbert Kalish, Donna Brown, and Russell Braun.

Whitney appeared as the title role in Bizet’s Carmen in January 2008 with the University of Ottawa School of Music opera production. She has also sung, amongst other roles, Mère Marie in Poulenc’s Les Dialogues des Carmélites, Maurya in Vaughn Williams’ Riders to the Sea and The Sorceress in Purcell’s Dido and Aneas, and has been a soloist with Musica Viva, Coro Vivo Ottawa, The Elgin Singers, the choir of the First Baptist Church of Ottawa, the Ottawa New Music Creators, the Kanata Symphony Orchestra, the Pembroke Symphony Orchestra, and the University of Ottawa Symphony Orchestra.

In 2009, Whitney was invited as a guest artist to perform Schoenberg’s Pierrot Lunaire with the Stony Brook Contemporary Chamber Players, Stony Brook, NY. She received the Frederick-Karam Scholarship, and she was the winner of the University of Ottawa Concerto Competition, where she performed Gustav Mahler’s Songs of a Wayfarer. She has recently performed in the Ottawa International Chamber Festival, the Festival Pontiac Enchanté, and she appeared as Mercedes in the wildly successful Carmen on Tap over its 2010, 2011, and 2012 seasons.

Whitney is currently the alto soloist at the well established St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church in Ottawa and she continually brings old and new music to new places and audiences in an array of varied musical projects.

Jeffery Boyd – Tenor

Hailed as “exciting to watch … and a joy to hear” (Daphna Levit,Opera Canada) and a “stylish soloist” (Steve Smith, New York Times) Ottawa tenor Jeffery Boyd is equally at home on both concert and operatic stages. With an undergraduate in performance from McGill and master's in voice from the University of Western Ontario, Jeff has featured recently in productions of Cosi Fan Tutte (Capital City Opera - Ferrando), the Magic Flute (Opera Kitchener - Tamino), and in the title role of Tales of Hoffman (Halifax Summer Opera Workshop). In concert he has performed with Ottawa's Cantata Singers and 13 Strings for Haydn's Stabat Mater and with the Ottawa Bach Choir, making his Carnegie Hall debut with them last year.

Jeffery appears later this month with Montreal's Opera da Camera as Basilio in Mozart's le Nozze de Figaro.

Joan Fearnley - Soprano

Ottawa based soprano, Joan Fearnley, is a versatile singer performing both solo and ensemble works. She enjoys a wide range of styles and periods and truly shines in late baroque/classical as well as contemporary repertoire. Audiences have been impressed by the beauty of her tone, superb musicianship and communicative stage presence. Joan is a regular soloist and conductor at Notre Dame Cathedral (Ottawa) where she leads the Women’s Choir and the Children’s Choir. Her years of experience at the Cathedral have nurtured a love and an affinity for sacred music. Her recent work with Barbara Ross has propelled her into a series of successful recitals and concerts.A gifted soprano exuding charm, passion, and charisma.

Jeffrey Boyd - Tenor

My name is Jeffery Michael Boyd: I sing tenor. My core value is creativity: I believe that with intelligence, emotion, humor and attention people shape the world. During my studies in performance at McGill and the University of Western Ontario, I learned that active minds and interesting people make the best music. I have been privileged to study under some of Canada's best musicians and want to share my passion for performance with you. I have performed with Opera McGill, the McGill Savoy Society, UWO Opera, the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, Voces Boreales, Choralis Camerata Niagara, the Canadian Opera Company chorus and many others.

Misty Banyard - Coloratura Soprano

A gifted soprano exuding charm, passion, and charisma, Misty Banyard’s beautiful coloratura voice has been described as "a stunning instrument of great value on the national and international stage." Ms. Banyard is quickly establishing herself as an outstanding soloist, having been critically acclaimed on CBC Radio by Laurence Wall for her "fine voice and touch for the theatrical."

Ms. Banyard completed her Bachelor of Music and Bachelor of Music Education degrees at Acadia University, and studied with internationally renowned vocal coach Laurence Ewashko at the University of Ottawa, where she earned her Masters of Music degree in 2009.

Recent engagements have included solo recitals at Christ Church Cathedral (Dublin, Ireland) and the Grange School (Hartford, England), "Gabriel" in The Creation (York University) and the roles of "The Sandman" and "The Dew Fairy" in Hansel und Gretel (Opera Lyra Ottawa’s Young Artists Training Program)." Ms. Banyard’s upcoming performances include engagements with Coro Vivo, Opera Lyra Ottawa, the Ewashko Singers, Bytown Operaworks and as part of a series of upcoming recordings which feature Handel, Bach and Scarlatti virtuoso repertoire.

Whitney O’Hearn- Mezzo-soprano

Whitney recently graduated from the Masters of Music program at the University of Ottawa. She studies with renowned Canadian mezzo-soprano Sandra Graham. In January 2007, she made her operatic debut with the University of Ottawa Opera Workshop’s production as Mère Marie in Poulenc’s Les Dialogues des Carmélites. This past January she appeared as the title role in Bizet’s Carmen also with the University of Ottawa Opera Workshop ensemble. She has sung with Ottawa Pocket Opera as Maurya in Vaughn Williams’ Riders to the Sea, The Sorceress in Purcell’s Dido and Aneas, and The Announcer in Moore’s Gallantry. She has been a soloist with CAMMAC,The Musica Viva Singers,The Elgin Singers, the choir of the First Baptist Church of Ottawa, the Kanata Symphony Orchestra and the University of Ottawa Symphony Orchestra. Whitney was invited to perform Pierrot Lunaire with the Stony Brook Contemporary Chamber Players. She was the winner of the 2009 U of Ottawa Concerto Competition. She is pursuing a career in opera and contemporary music.

Joanne Griffin

Joanne has been an active participant in Coro Vivo Ottawa for five years. Her musical background is in piano and more recently harp. Joanne began formal studies in Celtic harp in 1997, and now plays regularly as a freelance musician as well as with a variety of small ensembles. In 2007 she became certified as a therapeutic harpist through the International Healing and Transition Program. This is an exciting new field which is pioneering the use of harp music at the bedside of those seriously and/or under palliative care. Joanne arranges for the harp, has several publications to her credit, and maintains a busy teaching studio.

Richard Maurel

Originally from France, Richard Maurel is an Ottawa-area musician specialising in the Renaissance and baroque repertoires. Although playing the organ is his first passion, the viola da gamba comes a close second. He is equally at ease on both the bass and the tenor viols, with a particular fondness for 18th century German music and continuo playing. This is his first musical partnership with Coro Vivo.

Marcia Phillips

Marcia is a session musician, teacher and composer currently living in Merrickville. Since arriving in Ottawa from the UK in 1989 she has been teaching piano and recorder in several schools and in her home studio. Over the years she has worked with several choirs as a guest soloist and in ensemble. As a lover of celtic and early music she performs in medieval festivals and other local historic events, and enjoys playing whistle, bodhran and accordion for ceilidhs in the North Grenville area. Recently she joined the 'Theatre Night in Merrickville' group as musical director.