Faculty Bios
Dr. JARED BURROWS – jazz studies
Jared was born and raised in Vancouver, BC, Canada. As a jazz and chamber musician, he has performed extensively on the concert stage, festivals, radio and television throughout Canada and the USA. He holds a Master of Music Degree in Jazz Studies from the University of Oregon and a Ph.D. in Arts Education from Simon Fraser University. Jared is on faculty and teaches in the jazz studies program at Capilano University., and is an instructor at Simon Fraser University and Douglas College.
CHERYL CARRUTHERS – piano
Cheryl has a Bachelor of Music degree in Piano from the University of Toronto. As well she studied accompaniment and coaching in Vienna. Cheryl’s busy schedule includes teaching privately as well as at our School, rehearsing and performing with musical theatre groups, as well as maintaining her own studio in Vancouver.
FRED CHU - violin, viola
Fred Sinyi Chu has a long established career as a violinist and educator. Fred became concertmaster of the Central Opera, Beijing, China in 1983. In 1986 he became the concertmaster of the Chicago Civic Orchestra under the baton of the late Sir. Georg Solti. He served as concertmaster of the Northwest Indiana Symphony Orchestra from 1993-1997. While in Chicago Fred finished his Master’s Degree of Music Performance and Music Education from Chicago Music College in 1992, where he studied with Cyrus Forough, a student of David Oistrach and assistant of Joseph Gingold. He was appointed as director of String Department of the Vandercook Conservatory of Music in 1995. and performed with Ensemble D’Accord. . Fred was also the founder of the Beverly Youth Orchestra, and served as a faculty member at the String Festival of Avila, in Spain 2001.
Fred currently resides here in Vancouver and teaches stringed instruments at the Holy Rosary School in Edmonds and Gene Nastri School in Mukilteo Washington. He also serves as the concertmaster of the Everett Symphony Orchestra. Fred is active as a string clinician and adjudicator throughout BC and Washington State.
BERNIE DUERKSEN – piano
Bernie holds a Masters in Performance (piano) from UBC. In a career spanning twenty years, Bernard Duerksen has established himself as a reputable and respected pianist and teacher. He has appeared in concert with many leading west coast musicians, including Ian Hampton, cello, Arthur Polson, violin, Brenda Fedoruk, flute, Gene Ramsbottom, clarinet, Jesse Read, bassoon, Steve Denroche, French horn and Chris Robertson, trumpet. Mr Duerksen has been actively teaching throughout his career. Mr Duerksen also teaches at the Langley Community Music School.
THOMAS EVDOKIMOFF - guitar, music theory
Thomas Evdokimoff is a classical guitarist based in beautiful Vancouver, Canada. He has studied guitar with Robert Hamilton at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto Canada (c. 1985-90), and with Michael Strutt and Alan Rinehart in Vancouver (c. 1990-5). He has performed in numerous masterclasses for prominent musicians including guitarists David Tannenbaum and David Starobin lutenists Nigel North and Paul O’Dette, baroque violinist Jaap Schroeder, and harpsichordist Albert Fuller.
Thomas holds a Master of Arts in music theory from the University of British Columbia (1997). He is currently on faculty at the Delta Community Music School where he teaches guitar and music theory. He has also taught at the Vancouver Academy of Music, and been a part of several arts organizations in Vancouver including: the period instrument group The Burney Ensemble, new music group Standing Wave, and Kuroshio flute and guitar duo.
Thomas performs in recital and for special occasions as a soloist and in chamber ensembles. His solo repertoire covers all style periods: from Renaissance to Modern, European to South American, as well as solo arrangements of jazz standards, Broadway, and film music, and contemporary classics.
ANN GOLDEN FISHER - voice
Mrs. Fisher holds a BMus (voice), and a Lic. Mus. (Education) from McGill University. She did further studies in Boston, Tanglewood, Salzburg and Aspen. As a soloist she has sung professionally across Canada in opera, oratoria and musical theatre, and has given over two dozen solo recitals for CBC radio. She has taught at several universities, including McGill, UOttawa, UToronto and Mount Royal College in Calgary. For a number of years Mrs. Fisher has been on staff at Vancouver Academy of Music. She is a member of the Board of Directors of the Delta Arts Council, and her busy schedule includes adjudicating and giving workshops throughout B.C.
TATYANA KRAVSUN - violin
Tatyana is an experienced teacher in both Suzuki and traditional styles. She is European trained with a Master of Music performance and music education from the Donetsk State Conservatory. Tatyana has over twenty years of experience in music teaching. She is currently a freelance violinist in Vancouver and teaches at the Allegro Music School in Vancouver and at the Richmond Music School.ol.
SUZANNE KLUKAS – piano
Suzanne holds a Master’s degree in piano chamber music from the Hochschule fur Musik und darstellende Kunst in Graz, Austria, and a BMus. in Piano Performance from UBC. She has coached with Anja Lechner, Tobias kuhne and Philipe Muller, and has performed in Canada, Austria, Italy, Poland, and at the Slovernian Chamber Music Festival. Suzanne is presently both a Instructor of Piano and Faculty Choral accompanist at Trinity Western University.
JOHN LITTLEJOHN - violin
Adidam (John H. Littlejohn), which stands for All Day I Dream About Music, is a violinist/producer/performer whose love and knowledge of different forms of music has given him a unique style and sound. A native of Lansing/Midland, Michigan, he began studying the violin at age 10 in a public school system and began private lessons at 16. He holds degrees from the University of Michigan School of Music (BM, violin performance, 2000) and the Peabody Conservatory (MM, violin performance, 2002; GPD, violin performance, 2004). He has studied with Herbert Greenberg (Peabody Conservatory), Anthony Elliott (Univ. of Mich.), Stephen Shipps (Meadowmount Trio), Andrew Jennings (Concord Quartet), and Yizhak Shotten (viola, Univ. of Mich.). He is currently a member of the Infinitus String Quartet and a faculty member at the Austin Chamber Music Center. He has served as the concertmaster of the Newark Symphony and has been a member of the Baltimore Opera Orchestra, Darin Atwater’s “Soulful Symphony,” and The Young Eight String Octet. Solo engagements include performances with C.O.S.M.I.C., a European tour with the International Youth Symphony Orchestra in 2003, and recitals throughout the U.S. and Europe. He has also performed with great musicians like Take 6, The Clark Sisters, Branford Marsalis, Melba Moore, Joshua Bell, Gil Shaham, Oleta Adams, Beverly Crawford, Richard Smallwood, and Regina Carter.
MICHAEL MORI - voice
Michael completed his Bachelor of Music in Opera and Masters Degree in vocal performance at the University of British Columbia. Michael also performed for two years with the University Singers as well as toured Eastern Canada, the Czech Republic, and Germany with the UBC Opera Ensemble. Some of his roles in the past few years include Papageno in The Magic Flute, Guglielmo in Cosi fan tutte, Schaunard in La Boheme, and most recently Sir Joseph Porter in The H.M.S. Pinafore. He is currently a member of the Vancouver Opera Chorus and the professional chorus Musica Intima,.
BRAD MUIRHEAD – band, trombone
Brad is well known to audiences across Canada and Europe for his powerful sound and inventive improvising and has been actively contributing to the Vancouver music scene since 1980. He has recorded and toured extensively with his own groups Primal Orbit and Brass Roots as well as Vancouver’s three most important large jazz ensembles: the NOW Orchestra, Hugh Fraser’s VEJI, and the Hard Rubber Orchestra. He has been heavily involved with the Vancouver improvised music scene, composing for, recording and performing with numerous small and large ensembles, both as a leader and sideman. In addition to organizing Koan, he has recently been working on composing for and co-leading the East Van Jazz Orchestra with Jared Burrows. He is an active music educator teaching individual and class brass lessons and band clinics, as well as being involved with many workshop situations in capacities ranging from clinician & adjudicator to producer and musical/artistic director, including the Banff Jazz Workshop, the Vancouver & Victoria International Jazz Orchestra Workshops and more recently, the successful, and continuing, Renfrew Community Performance Project.
BO PENG - cello
Bo Peng received his Bachelor of Music in Cello Performance from the University of North Texas, a Master of Music from the Eastman School of Music, as well as a Performer’s Diploma from Indiana University where he studied with distinguished cellist Janos Starker. His teachers also included renowned cellists Steven Doane, Carter Enyeart and Marc Johnson. Mr. Peng was a two-time winner of the Music Teacher National Association Competitions (Strings Division), he also won 3rd prize in the International Chamber Music Competition held by the Czech Radio “Spring of Prague”. Mr. Peng’s teaching experiences include being a sectional coach for the Dallas Youth Orchestra, and teaching cello in the Dallas Private School District. Currently, Mr. Peng is the cello teaching assistant at the University of British Columbia where he is completing his Doctoral Degree in Cello Performance.
GARTH PRESTON - piano
Garth has a Bachelor of Music from Brandon University and a Master of Music degree in music theory from UBC. He has performed in various groups and as a solo performer (guitar, piano, voice) in a variety of genres – classical, jazz, folk and country rock. As well as the traditional Conservatory repertoire, Garth teaches pop and jazz using leadsheets, whereby students learn about harmony, improvisation and arranging.
STEPHEN ROBB - clarinet, saxophone, Music Director
Stephen is an accomplished clarinetist, saxophonist and pianist performing both classical chamber music and jazz idioms, performing the gamut from classical clarinet, chamber and orchestral repertoire to jazz standards, original compositions and free improvisation. His orchestral arrangements have been performed by the Delta Youth Orchestra, Clyde Mitchell and the Sinfonia of the North Shore (North Vancouver), Pacific Symphonic Wind Ensemble, Richmond Community Orchestra , and others. Stephen serves as the Music Director of the Delta Community Music School and the Delta Youth Orchestra and teaches at the Richmond Music School.
CHRIS ROBERTSON - trumpet, brass
Canadian trumpeter Christopher Robertson (B.Mus, University of Victoria,1977) was born and raised in the lower mainland of British Columbia. He studied with Vincent Cichowicz, Chicago Symphony and with Maurice Murphy, principal trumpet London Symphony. he has recorded extensively for the Vancouver Symphony and CBC. He has also performed with these and many other companies including the Vancouver Opera, Royal Ballet UK, Royal Winnipeg Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, Theatra Alla Scala Milan, the Covent Garden Chamber Orchestra and Chor Leoni men’s choir. Mr. Robertson enjoys traveling and has performed concert tours in every province and territory in Canada. International tours include the former Soviet Union, India, Hong Kong, Austrailia, Japan, the USA, Holland, and England. Mr. Robertson also conducts the Richmond Community Orchestra.
BRENNAN SAUL – drums and percussion
Brennan completed his diploma in Jazz Studies at North Texas State University and a Bachelor of Arts at UBC. He is a seasoned performer and a regular member of several local bands as well as pervious experience performing for the Princess, Norwegian and Carnival Cruise Lines He has been teaching for more than ten years and has recorded with various local musicians including Malcom Aiken, Brasstronaut, Courdory Kid and Jimmy Zee.
MARIYA UDOVENKO – piano
Mariya received her Bachelor and Masters of Music degrees from the Odessa State Conservatory in the Ukraine where she also became an assistant professor of Piano and a vocal coach. In 1987 she was awarded the second prize of the National Competition of Chamber Music in Kiev. From 1992 until 1998 she was the Artistic Director of the National Theatre of Ballet and Opera in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. Mariya is also on faculty at the Pacific Academy of Music and is in much demand as both a teacher and accompanist. Mariya is a very energetic and keen musician, and speaks five languages.
JOHN WALSH - electric guitar/ bass, double bass
John started in the music industry 16 years ago playing rock guitar & opening for bands like 54-40 & Great Big Sea. Eventually he picked up the bass and his interest in jazz lead him to study at Vancouver Community College where he received his diploma. From there he moved on to McGill University in Montreal where he received his bachelor’s degree in jazz performance on upright bass. He studied with Laurence Mollerup, Alec Walkington, Marc Denis & Remi Bolduc. Acting as a side man in various projects, John is prominent in the music scene in Vancouver. His passion for music keeps him playing, touring & teaching.
SARAH WESTWICK - violin, suzuki classes, Colourstrings
Sarah Westwick began studying the violin at age three at the Vancouver Academy of Music. She went on to earn a Bachelor of Music in performance from U.B.C. She has also studied music in London England, at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing and at the Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts in Prague. She is a member of the Vancouver Opera Orchestra, is a freelance violinist and enjoys playing chamber music. She has teacher training qualifications and experience in both the Suzuki and Colourstrings methods, and now also has experience as a parent of children in Colourstrigs and Suzuki lessons