Our Team

 

Elizabeth Choo, Vocal Coach
A graduate of Melbourne University, Elizabeth completed her Bachelor of Music in 1997 and was a teacher of singing and choral conductor at both Loreto Mandeville Hall Girls School and Mater Christi College in Melbourne prior to moving to Brisbane in 2003.

Whilst in Brisbane, Elizabeth completed a Postgraduate Certificate in Music Studies (Vocal Pedagogy) at Griffith University. She was appointed conductor of The Children's Chorus of Griffith University's Young Conservatorium Programme as well as vocal coach for Brisbane Birralee Voices. During this time Elizabeth continued vocal teaching at both Mt St Michael's College and Macgregor High School.

Since moving to Sydney in late 2004, Elizabeth has taken on singing students at Kambala Girls School and has been enjoying her association with Sydney Children's Choir where she has been taking vocal coaching classes

Jason Noble, Sight Singing & Aural Skills Tutor
Jason Noble is a freelance clarinettist, performing with ensembles such as Offspring Ensemble, Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra, Sydney Opera House Orchestra, and Aark, amongst others. He has toured throughout Australia, Holland, Poland and the U.K, and performed at festivals such as the Warsaw Autumn Festival, Aldeburgh, Sydney Sydney Spring and Sydney Film Festival. Jason has also recorded extensively for ABC Classic FM.

Jason is currently teaching at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music in the Musicology Department, and with the Sydney Children's Choir. When not performing or teaching, he can be found spiking on the volleyball court.

Ben van Tienen, Conductor & Pianist
Ben van Tienen is currently studying at Sydney Conservatorium of Music, where his tutors include Stephanie McCallum, Josephine Allan and David Miller. He has worked as a repetiteur and pianist for many organisations, including Sydney Symphony, Sydney Children's Choir, Sydney Philharmonia Choirs & Orchestra, and Pacific Opera. This year his work with these groups has included El Nino (John Adams), Children's Crusade (Britten), The Damnation of Faust (Berlioz), and Cosi fan Tutte (Mozart).

Ben also devotes much of his time to new music and opera, and has worked as a repetiteur on the Australian Premieres of Hydrogen Jukebox by Philip Glass and The Master Builder by Manolis Kalomiris, as well as the world premiere of Tesla: Lightning in his Hand by Con Koukias. In 2003, Ben conducted the New Music Ensemble at the Tasmanian Conservatorium; and last year he recorded two works by Tasmanian composer Matthew Dewey for ABC Classic FM.

Ben was the accompanist in residence for the 12th Australian Flute Convention, and the inaugural Festival of Voices in Tasmania; and he participated in the 2005 Ronald Dowd Memorial Summer School for young opera singers and repetiteurs, under the direction of Victor Morris (formerly of the ENO.)

Elizabeth Vierboom, Conductor

Elizabeth Vierboom studied music at the NSW Conservatorium of Music and the University of Sydney. Majoring in violin and pipe organ, she played and toured with the Australian Youth Orchestra and the Sydney Youth Orchestra before teaching high school and primary school music. During this time Elizabeth continued to develop her interest in choral music, which originated in her high school days with conductor Richard Gill, whose energy and love of singing was infectious.

 

Having accompanied and sung in choirs for many years, Elizabeth’s move to choral conducting was an obvious next step. Attending summer schools, studying with international choral conductors, listening to and watching great choirs and conductors has been inspiring for Elizabeth. She has conducted and worked with singers in schools and communities around NSW; founded the St Mary’s Cathedral Girl Choristers; been invited to guest conduct mass choirs at music festivals and worked with Sydney Children’s Choir and Gondwana Voices in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth.

 

Elizabeth is currently Director of Junior School Music at Barker College in Sydney and conducts their award-winning choirs from Years Three to Nine that regularly tour. She is also a passionate advocate for Australian choral music and has commissioned new works for young choirs by young and emerging Australian composers.

Sally Whitwell, Conductor & Pianist
Pianist Sally Whitwell maintains a busy freelance career as performer, teacher and arranger in a variety of styles encompassing everything from classical music and new Australian commissions right through to showtunes and pop.

She has worked with many organizations including Gondwana Voices, Sydney Children's Choir, Sydney Philharmonia Choirs, Musica Viva, Cantillation, Sydney Gay and Lesbian Choir and Australian Pop Choirs. Sally has also been involved with various educational programs at Sydney Conservatorium Access Centre, NIDA, University of Western Sydney, Symphony Australia, Youth Music Australia, Australian Theatre for Young People, Australian National Braille Music Association and Bondi Wave (the alternative music course). She has performed with Sydney Symphony Orchestra, the Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra and Sinfonia Australis. A trained dancer of some years experience, Sally has enjoyed working as dance accompanist for Opera Australia, Bangarra Dance Theatre, The Australian Ballet School, Royal New Zealand Ballet and Sydney Dance Company. Sally also performed as keyboardist and wandering on-stage accordionist in the 2003 Sydney Dance Company production of Graeme Murphy's dance musical Tivoli.

Sally has toured widely with various ensembles in the UK, Europe, the United States, Central America, Japan, New Zealand and throughout Australia. She has appeared on several recordings for ABC Classics both as an ensemble musician and as a soloist, notably on the "Classic 100 Piano" and "Felix and me", as well as recordings for broadcast on ABC Classic FM. Sally has enjoyed performing with world music band Sirocco as well as with various new music ensembles including Halcyon, "Ensemble Offspring and Aark.
With soprano Nadia Piave, she forms one half of art song/cabaret duo "une fois seule!". They have appeared recently in sellout shows for Musica Viva's concert series menage in the Arthouse Hotel and also as part of the concert series House Music presented by the Historic Houses Trust.

 

Amandine Petit, Conductor
French-born Amandine Petit completed a Master’s degree in musicology at the Université Marc Bloch and studied singing at the Conservatoire of Strasbourg before moving to Australia in early 2007.  In France she has had several years of experience as a vocal coach, musicianship teacher and choral conductor. 

As a performer, She has been a regular member of the Chamber Choir of Strasbourg, touring with the group to Senegal, Germany and Switzerland.  Her specialization in both early and contemporary music led her to co-create the all-female vocal quartet Sotto Voce in 2003. In the same year she also represented France as the anthem singer for the Rugby World Cup.  Other performance highlights include Berlioz’s Les Troyens at Opera du Rhin, L’Amour de Loin by Saariaho in Lebanon and various film and television score recordings.  Since arriving in Sydney Amandine has sung with Sydney Chamber Choir and Eminence Symphony Orchestra.

 

Dan Walker, Conducting Fellowship
Composer, arranger and performer Dan Walker is quickly building a reputation as one of Australia’s most promising young artists. He has had works commissioned and performed by such groups as the Sydney Symphony, Gondwana Voices, Queensland Youth Choir, The Murrumbidgee Symphony Orchestra and Sydney Philharmonia Choirs. 

In 2003 Dan was the Sydney Children’s Choir composer-in-residence and in that year also created new choral arrangements of the National Anthems for the Rugby World Cup. Recent work includes: The Arafura, written specifically for Gondwana Voices and premiered in Mexico City as part of the 2004 Songbridge festival; Hopes and Dreams, written as part of the Australian National Day celebrations at the 2005 World Expo in Nagoya, Japan; various orchestral and choral arrangements for ABC Classics and a new arrangement of Advance Australia Fair written for the official Darling Harbour 2005 Australia Day celebrations.

As a performer Dan is a regular member of both Sydney Chamber Choir and Cantillation.  He has also been a member of Baroque Opera Company Pinchgut for two years and is currently also a guest member of the Song Company. Dan Walker is currently taking part in a two year conducting fellowship with the Sydney Children’s Choir and Gondwana Voices, made possible with by support of the Australia Council for the Arts.

 

Sally Collett, Music Craft Teacher
Sally has been teaching Piano, Music Theory, Musicianship, and Music Craft from her studio on Sydney’s North Shore for over a decade. Her students regularly earn distinction certificates in AMEB examinations, and among them are several recipients of music scholarships to prestigious Sydney schools. As well as an L.Mus.A in piano performance, Sally has received a Bachelor of Music with first class honours from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. She has worked in schools teaching music at both the primary and secondary level, initially in England, then back in Sydney where she served as Junior School Music Coordinator at Ravenswood School. Sally has a particular interest in choral music and musical theatre and she has performed with numerous choirs and community theatre companies.

 

Board of Directors

 

Lyn Williams OAM Artistic Director
Jennifer Alexander Chairman
Nicholas Bailey
Claire Duffy
Jane Freudenstein
Nicholas James
Suzie Lee
David Longmuir

Alexandra Cameron, General Manager (Mon – Fri)
alexandra@gondwanavoices.com.au

Michael Stapleton, Sydney Children’s Choir Manager

(Tue – Sat)
michael@gondwanavoices.com.au

John Nolan, Artistic Administrator (Mon – Fri)
john@gondwanavoices.com.au

Vivienne Rawlinson, Philanthropy Manager (Mon – Wed)
vivienne@gondwanavoices.com.au

Louise Nutting, Administration & Communications Assistant
(Tue & Wed)
louise@gondwanavoices.com.au

Cassandra Bayley, Accounts Administrator (Mon)
admin@gondwanavoices.com.au