For almost 130 years, the Blackstone-Ipswich Cambrian Choir and its associated ensembles have been led by a succession of talented, dedicated conductors and accompanists who have shared a vision of creating and developing choirs capable of maintaining the highest traditions of choral singing, through their vision and foresight.
Today, our artistic team continues to give unselfishly of their time and talents to add to the heritage that has been handed down to us and to create a legacy for future generations.
Meet Our Artistic Team
David was the recipient of the Seventh National Sydney Symposium Choral Conducting Scholarship, which saw him spend two months of 2015 in the United Kingdom, observing and working with some of the best conductors and choirs in London and Cambridge. Closer to home, he has participated in conducting workshops with the Sydney Chamber Choir and Symphony Australia.
David’s conducting experience spans much of the great choral repertoire, from the Baroque and Classical, the Romantic, to the Modern era. He directed the World Premieres of Matthew Orlovich’s The Blue Gum Forest and Elliot Rentoul’s Love, the Southern Hemisphere Premieres of Karl Jenkins’ Te Deum and Roman Hurko’s Requiem/Panachyda for the victims of Chernobyl, the Australian Premiere of John Tavener’s Mother and Child, and the Queensland Premieres of Karl Jenkins’ Requiem and Arvo Pärt’s Seven Magnificat Antiphons.
In addition to his roles on the podium, David continues to be an active member of Canticum Chamber Choir and Fusion Vocal Ensemble, and a regular guest singer with the Brisbane Chorale and The Australian Voices. He was a Lay Clerk in the St John’s Cathedral Choir for ten years, and has performed with all of Brisbane’s major choirs. David has also been a guest singer with the Adelaide Chamber Singers, the cathedral choirs of St Paul’s, Melbourne, and St Peter’s, Adelaide, and the London Symphony Chorus.
ensembles, and won the Hilda Woolmer Prize in Accompaniment. She has also taught piano for nearly 20 years in Brisbane, and accompanies many young students for their AMEB exams.
Emma took up the pipe organ during her undergraduate degree, learning under Christopher Wrench, and then went on to a Postgraduate Diploma in pipe organ, while working at various churches around Brisbane. She currently works at St Augustine’s Anglican Church in Hamilton, playing the organ and leading the choir.
Emma also is a keen swing dancer. With her husband, Rob, she has won the Australian Balboa Championship several times, and now runs the Corner Pocket Swing school. In her spare time, she enjoys building LEGO, gardening, baking and crochet.
During the time spent with her various choral programs, Michelle has further developed her skills as an accompanist and is frequently asked to accompany choir rehearsals and performances, as well as many solo competitors in eisteddfodau.
Michelle has been involved with the Blackstone-Ipswich Cambrian choir for many years, beginning as a chorister in the Youth Choir in 1995. Whilst currently taking time out from performing with the Senior Choir in order to spend time with her young family, she is delighted to be able to continue conducting the Junior Cambrian Choir and the Cambrian Youth Choir. This has provided Michelle with opportunities to encourage young people to enjoy choral music and to continue their participation in music as they grow and develop.
She has been a very proud member of the Blackstone-Ipswich Cambrian Choir for many years, having joined the choir in the late 1970s. During her early years with the choir she enjoyed roles in musicals such as Sound of Music, Brigadoon, and Camelot, and also accompanied the Junior Cambrian Choir, with Blodwyn Whitehead as choral director, for a period in the 1980s. After a lengthy absence due to the demands of a busy and growing family, Bronwyn returned to the Cambrians in 1996 to accompany the Junior Choir and later that year assumed the role of accompanist for the Cambrian Youth Choir, beginning a new partnership with Berniece Hicks as choral director.
Bronwyn is very proud to have seen her four children Matthew, Adam, Ben and Erin proceed through the ranks of the Junior, Youth and Senior choirs. She remains committed to encouraging, in all young people, a love of singing and choral music.