Markus Howard
Artistic Director
As a conductor, director and choreographer, Markus Howard has worked extensively in the arts throughout Canada and abroad. He has appeared in 27 countries, working with musicians of varying ages, cultures and experiences. Conducting choirs and opera, and as a private voice teacher, Markus works in many musical genres including opera/oratorio, musical theatre, pop and jazz voice.
His talents have been recognized by Yamaha Music Canada, the Swedish Ministry of Culture, the Ontario Arts Council, and the International Association of Jazz Educators. He has been nominated four times as a candidate finalist by the Ontario Arts Council for the Leslie Bell Prize for Excellence in Conducting. Mr. Howard pursues an active adjudicating schedule across North America, most recently overseeing Classical Voice and Music Theatre at the Federation of Canadian Music Festivals National Finals, Nova Scotia Provincial Finals for Voice and Choirs, and the Ontario Music Festivals Provincial Finals. This coming season takes him to Newfoundland, British Columbia and Stratford, Ontario. Currently, Markus is the Artistic Director for two of Ontario’s most outstanding youth choir organizations, the award-winning Guelph Youth Singers and La Jeunesse Choirs, and concludes an eleven-year tenue leading the Oriana Singers of Cobourg, and as Interim Conductor for London Pro Musica Choir. He serves as the founding conductor of the professional chamber choir LA MOVIDA, and appears as guest conductor for advanced choirs around the province. In September of 2022, he will take over the role of Artistic Director for the Durham Philharmonic Choir.
Recent engagements include concerts with the Guelph Symphony Orchestra, and as conductor for the Handel opera, Alcina with Halifax Summer Opera. He held the position of Lead Artist Educator with the Canadian Opera Company, and was on the faculty of the Royal Conservatory of Music, Glenn Gould School and the Randolph Academy for the Performing Arts. His students grace opera and concert stages, including members of the Stratford and Shaw Festivals, Toronto’s Lion King, Billy Elliott, The Producers, and Jersey Boys, and a number of Broadway and National Touring companies, and has worked as lead voice coach for Mirvish Production’s Lion King School. At the University of Toronto, Markus directed the Hart House Jazz Choir and Massey College Choirs. Mr. Howard is a PROUD recipient of the Paul Harris Fellowship from Rotary International.
Cheryl Duvall
Accompanist
Toronto-based pianist Cheryl Duvall has established herself as one of Canada’s foremost contemporary music interpreters, immersing herself in a wide variety of compositional aesthetics and collaborative endeavours. Her lucid sense of contour, evocative sonic and emotional presence, and boundless versatility make her both a dynamic soloist and in-demand collaborator. Duvall's has been presented as a solo performer by the likes of Innovations en concert, Suoni per il Popolo, The National Arts Centre, Bang On A Can, MTU Cork School Of Music (Ireland), University of Huddersfield (UK), and has toured and performed throughout Canada, Japan, Europe, Argentina and the U.S. In 2016 Duvall's artistry was recognized with a nomination for the KM Hunter Award.
She co-founded the “adventurous and smartly programmed” (Musicworks Magazine) chamber group Thin Edge New Music Collective alongside Ilana Waniuk in 2011. Since their inception, they’ve commissioned over 80+ works, mounting lavish multidisciplinary productions while collaborating with leading performers like Charlotte Mundy, Jason Sharp, and Ensemble Paramirabo (with whom they recorded an album.) TENMC was awarded the 2020 Friends of Canadian Music Award from the Canadian League of Composers and the Canadian Music Centre for being ‘an important musical innovator, working creatively across disciplines with an unwavering commitment to diverse and equitable programming'. Their 2023 release, Dark Flower, featuring the chamber works of Canadian composer Linda Catlin Smith has recently been featured on the BBC and CBC radio, was listed in the top 10 Modern Classical releases of 2023 by UK’s ‘The Wire’ Magazine and nominated for a Juno.
Her 2020 debut solo piano album Harbour, featuring the music of Canadian composer, Anna Hostman has been featured on the CBC radio and was chosen as the #1 Modern Composition Recording of 2020 by UK's 'The Wire' Magazine and was nominated for a Juno for Classical Composition of the Year. Her 2nd solo album, Intimes exubérances, featuring an hour-long piano solo by Québécois composer, Patrick Giguère was released in April 2024. In 2024-2025, she has recorded the complete piano works to date by internationally renowned Canadian composer, Linda Catlin Smith to be released throughout 2025-26 over three volumes.
She also made an acclaimed recording with Bespoken, and worked with the likes of stalwart choreographer Peggy Baker, cellist Paul Pulford, film composer Darren Fung, and Essential Opera. Duvall also regularly performs outside of contemporary music spheres, notably with American violinist Andrew Sords, and accompanying Durham region's Resound Choir. She was appointed the Artistic Director of the Chamber Music Society of Mississauga in February 2022 and was also the interim-co-artistic director of the Oakville Choir for Children and Youth for the 2021-2022 season. She operates a full private teaching studio, is a member of the College of Examiners with the Royal Conservatory of Music, adjudicates piano competitions across Canada and is Chair of the Music Committee at the Toronto Arts Council.
Duvall holds an Honours BMus and Diploma of Chamber Music from Wilfrid Laurier University, and a Master’s of Piano Performance and Pedagogy from University of Toronto.