Raised in a musical family; Duke started playing the piano at an early age. At age 10 he made the switch to violin and began with the Suzuki method and later studied with Isidor Desser, a renowned orchestral player with the Toronto Symphony, at the Royal Conservatory of Music. Duke enjoys playing at church functions, and he is currently a member of the Edmonton Philharmonic Orchestra.

Updated bio coming soon…

Svitlana has many years of experience as an instructor and professional musician in both piano as well as violin.

After graduating from the Dniepropetrovsk Academy of Music in Ukraine, with a degree in pedagogue and performance, Svitlana, taught in the string department at the Academy. She performed in the Dniepropetrovsk Regional Philharmonic Orchestra , The Radio and Television Orchestra in Kiev and upon relocating to in Cairo she was a principle in the Cairo Symphony Orchestra. Her performance career has included tours of France, Germany, Croatia, China, Korea and Dubai.

Svitlana has trained many award winning students including winners of the International Katarovich Competition and is dedicated to inspiring a love of music in her students of all ages.

Lucy graduated from the University of Toronto with her Bachelor’s Degree with Honours in French Horn Performance, and holds a Professional Counsellor Diploma, Life Coaching Certification and Life Skills Facilitation Certification from Rhodes Wellness College in British Colombia. Lucy is an alumnus of the National Youth Orchestra of Canada, The University of Toronto Symphony Orchestra and the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra, and is an active freelance musician.

Lucy has spent time working with the National Youth Orchestra of Canada, the Brott Music Festival, the Kawartha Youth Orchestra, the University of Toronto Brass Faculty and more offering workshops and counselling services. Lucy was also thrilled the present at the 2022 International Women in Brass Conference in Denton, Texas, on integrating a trauma informed approach to music education.

Jocelyn recently graduated in April 2021, with a Bachelor of Music from the University of Alberta. She has studied under the direction of Robert Uchida, concertmaster of the ESO, and Guillaume Tardiff, Associate Professor and String Area coordinator of the University of Alberta. She has studied internationally with Lin He, Associate Professor of Louisiana State University and violinist with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Gregory Lee, Concertmaster of the Oklahoma City Philharmonic and Lynn Kuo, Assistant Concertmaster of the National Ballet of Canada Orchestra.

Along with violin, Jocelyn plays the piano, flute, and alto saxophone. She has taught violin in the Music Enrichment program to both children and adults, and has been told that she is a patient and caring teacher. She is excited to teach at VCPA and is looking forward to helping her students develop their musical skills and a joy for playing!