The Elora Singers Studio for Ensemble Singing & Conducting

Monday, April 20 to Sunday, April 26, 2026

with Mark Vuorinen, Artistic Director

Molly Netter, Canadian-American soprano & vocal coach,
Anna Ronai, collaborative pianist and coach,
and members of The Elora Singers

Artistic Director Mark Vuorinen invites vocal artists and choral conductors to apply for The Elora Singers Studio for Ensemble Singing & Conducting, from April 20 - 26, 2026. This program has been developed for vocalists whose interests lie in art song, oratorio and ensemble singing and new this year, conductors whose interests lie in choral and ensemble conducting.

Qualified singers (SATB) and conductors will be invited to participate and be coached by Studio Faculty and join the acclaimed Elora Singers in a concert as part of The Elora Singers 2025/2026 season.

Together, singers will explore ways to communicate vocal repertoire more vividly, experience a broad range of vocal repertoire and examine all aspects of style, technique, communication, language, performance skills, and artistry.

Conductors will develop clear technique, deeper musical interpretation, effective rehearsal skills, and confident leadership through direct feedback and hands-on experience.

This year's Studio is generously sponsored by The Arrell Family Foundation.

The Studio for Ensemble Singing & Conducting will be led by The Elora Singers’ Artistic Director Mark Vuorinen, Canadian-American soprano Molly Netter and collaborative pianist Anna Ronai .

The seven-day intensive course includes:

masterclasses
rehearsals
private coaching and mentoring
yoga using the Alexander Technique led by Daniel Cabena, counter tenor
opportunities to observe The Elora Singers in rehearsal
a public recital with other program participants
performance in a Vocal Academy Showcase Concert with The Elora Singers during their 2025/2026 season

The Elora Singers Studio for Ensemble Singing & Conducting Faculty

Mark Vuorinen

JUNO-nominated conductor, Mark Vuorinen is Artistic Director of The Elora Singers, the Elora Festival, and the Grand Philharmonic Choir. He is also Associate Professor of Music at Conrad Grebel University College, University of Waterloo.

A passionate advocate for new music, Mark has conducted world and Canadian premieres by composers including Barbara Assiginaak, Peter-Anthony Togni, John Burge, Timothy Corlis, Jonathan Dove, Reena Esmail, Stephanie Martin, Robinson McClellan, Tawnie Olson, and Karen Sunabacka. His recent concert highlights include Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis, Britten’s War Requiem, Pärt’s Credo and Passio, the Passions of J.S. Bach and the Canadian premiere of Craig Hella Johnson’s Considering Matthew Shepard.

His work has been recognized with numerous awards, among them the Leslie Bell Prize for Choral Conducting from the Ontario Arts Council and a National Choral Award for Outstanding Dissertation from Choral Canada. In 2023, he received a JUNO nomination for Best Classical Album – Large Ensemble for his album Radiant Dawn: Music for Advent and Christmas.

He holds a Master of Music degree from the Yale University’s School of Music and Institute of Sacred Music, and a Doctor of Musical Arts from the University of Toronto.

Mark’s research explores contemporary choral music from the Baltic states, particularly the works of Arvo Pärt and Veljo Tormis. He has lectured internationally, including at the Arvo Pärt Project’s Sounding the Sacred conference in New York City, and his writing about Pärt’s music appears in Circuit Musiques Contemporaines, the Research Memorandum Series of Chorus America, and Principles of Music Composing (Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre).

Molly Netter

Entrenched in a multitude of styles, Canadian-American soprano Molly Netter enlivens complex and beautiful music, both old and new. Noted for her “natural warmth” (LA Times) and “clear, beautiful tone” (NY Times), Molly’s voice can be heard on six GRAMMY-nominated albums since 2017.

Highly sought after as a soloist, recent season engagements include solo debuts with the New York Philharmonic and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Julia Wolfe’s “Steel Hammer” at Carnegie Hall, the premiere of Katherine Balch’s Illuminate with the California Symphony, Reena Esmail’s “the History of Red” with the Albany Symphony, as well as solo appearances with both the Fort Worth and Johnstown Symphonies for Handel’s Messiah. Recent recording releases include David Lang’s “little match girl passion” for solo quartet on Cantaloupe music, gallant music from “the New Spain” recorded in Madrid with Camerata Antonio Soler on Orchid Classics, a video concert of 16th century song with Voices of Music in Berkeley, CA, and Handel’s Israel in Egypt with Apollo’s Fire Baroque Orchestra, which was nominated for a GRAMMY in 2025.

Upcoming solo engagements in the 2025-26 season include Bach’s B Minor Mass with the San Antonio Philharmonic, Mozart’s Mass in C Minor with the Bach Society of St. Louis, a new program with Voices of Music featuring baroque and medieval music with a world premiere, and Praetorius’s Christmas Vespers with Apollo’s Fire, among others. Next season also includes release of Amy Beth Kirsten’s composer portrait album, featuring a world premiere piece written for Netter on self-accompanied clavicytherium alongside works written for Sō Percussion and Sandbox Percussion.

Other performance highlights include the US and Japanese premieres of ‘prayers for night and sleep’ by David Lang conducted by Joe Hisaishi at Carnegie Hall and in Tokyo. Netter has also been presented as soloist by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Boston Early Music Festival, New World Symphony, the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony, the Bang-on-a-Can All Stars, and on tour in Japan, Singapore and Burma under Masaaki Suzuki.

Consistently engaged in early and new music, Molly was a featured curator/performer on Trinity Wall Street’s 2019 “Time’s Arrow Festival,” leading an eclectic evening of Barbara Strozzi paired with newly commissioned works. In 2020 she began commissioning an entirely new repertoire for self-accompanied singer and clavicytherium, working with composers to emphasize the florid voice, early music vocal techniques and improvisation.

Molly holds a BM in composition and contemporary voice from Oberlin Conservatory and an MM in early music voice from the Yale Institute of Sacred Music. She currently teaches on the voice faculty with James Taylor and Dame Emma Kirkby at the Oberlin Baroque Performance Institute.

Anna Ronai

Anna Ronai has performed at major venues in Europe, North America and China, including the Weill Recital Hall of Carnegie Hall in New York, Gläserner Saal, Musikverein, and Schubert Saal, Konzerthaus in Vienna. Anna has collaborated with distinguished singers as Brigitte Fassbaender, Michelle Breedt, Bernarda Fink, Robert Holl, and Members of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra.

Anna is a graduate of the Music University of the Arts Vienna, where she earned two Masters degrees, one in Piano Performance and the other in Collaborative Piano. She maintained positions at the Vienna and Innsbruck Conservatories, and a faculty position for piano, piano chamber music at the Institute for European Studies in Vienna. She has played for master-classes with esteemed artists including Brigitte Fassbaender, Christa Ludwig, Thomas Hampson and Linda Watson.

Anna has appeared and placed in several major Lied Duo competitions such as the Robert Schumann Duo Competition in Zwickau, Germany, the East & West Artists International Auditions in New York, and Schubert und die Moderne in Graz, Austria.

In 2009 Anna moved to Canada, and is a Vocal / Opera Coach at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo.

In Fall 2020 Anna joined Conrad Grebel University College at the University of Waterloo as the piano instructor, where she has also been an instrumental accompanist since 2019.

She is an active performer at concerts and recitals across Ontario and abroad. Performances with the Trio d’Argento include “Music Toronto” (the world-premiere of ”Manidoog” by native composer Barbara Croall). In collaboration with Vienna based Flutist Ulrike Anton and the “Exil.arte” Institute in Vienna she played several concerts at the Holocaust Education week in Toronto and at University of Ottawa. Anna also actively collaborates with Jim Mason and the Wellington Wind Ensemble and Gallery Players, in various recent Chamber Music recitals in the region.

The Elora Singers Studio for Ensemble Singing & Conducting

Monday, April 20 to Sunday, April 26, 2026

Elora/Fergus/Guelph, Ontario

Eligibility

Vocal applicants should have advanced vocal training from a recognized post-secondary music program (undergraduate or graduate program) or the equivalent in training/performance experience.

Conductor applicants should have advanced conducting training from a recognized post-secondary music program (undergraduate or graduate) or the equivalent in conducting, rehearsal, and performance experience.

There is no age limit.

Travel & Accommodations:

Participants are responsible for their own travel and accommodations.

Tuition Fee:

There is no application fee. If you are selected to participate in the Studio, the tuition will be $1000. Bursaries are available to all successful applicants to cover 100% of tuition.

How to Apply

Please complete the application form in the link below.

You will be asked to answer some questions and upload the following information:

Resume, cover letter, and general repertoire list, including any professional ensemble experience.
Audio/Video Links

For singers, include a maximum of three contrasting selections including:

at least one art song
one selection from an oratorio

For conductors, include a video example of yourself leading a choral rehearsal with the camera view facing you and not from behind. You may also include a video of a performance.

3. At least one letter of recommendation from a music professional(s).

Please direct all inquiries to:
Christina Stelmacovich, Manager, Elora Festival & Singers
christina@elorasingers.ca

APPLICATION FORM

The Elora Singers Studio for Ensemble Singing & Conducting

Monday, April 20 to Sunday, April 26, 2026

The Studio for Ensemble Singing & Conducting will be led by The Elora Singers’ Artistic Director Mark Vuorinen, Canadian-American soprano Molly Netter and collaborative pianist Anna Ronai .

The seven-day intensive course includes:

The Elora Singers Studio for Ensemble Singing & Conducting Faculty

Mark Vuorinen

Molly Netter

Read More

Anna Ronai

The Elora Singers Studio for Ensemble Singing & Conducting

Monday, April 20 to Sunday, April 26, 2026

Elora/Fergus/Guelph, Ontario

Eligibility

Travel & Accommodations:

Tuition Fee:

How to Apply

Application Deadline

All application material must be received by 11:59PM EST on March 8, 2026.

All applicants will be notified of their application status once results are finalized.