Coach

Simon Rivard is one of the most sought-after conductors on the Canadian music scene, as evidenced by his most recent appointment as Music Director of the Edmonton Opera, the first in the company’s history. 
This upcoming season sees Rivard on the podium for reengagements with Orchestre symphonique de Montréal and Orchestre symphonique de Québec, as well as mainstage débuts at the Toronto Summer Music Festival and Opéra de Montréal in Puccini’s La bohème. Simon returns to his position at Edmonton Opera, conducting Strauss’ Die Fledermaus, Bartók’s Bluebeard’s Castle, and Aquarius: Songs of the Stars. He also continues his collaborations with Toronto-based chamber ensemble The Happenstancers in projects spanning from early baroque to modern experimental.
From 2018 to 2022, he held the title of RBC Resident Conductor of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, where he was mentored by Music Director Gustavo Gimeno and Conductor Laureate Sir Andrew Davis. Since 2019, he has been an Equilibrium Young Artist, as part of Canadian soprano and conductor Barbara Hannigan’s mentorship program for early-career professional musicians. Born in Montréal, Rivard studied violin performance with Anne Robert and orchestral conducting with Raffi Armenian at the Conservatoire de musique de Montréal. He completed an MMus in Orchestral Conducting at McGill University under Alexis Hauser and Guillaume Bourgogne.

A native of East Angus, Québec, Robin Doyon was appointed Principal Trumpet of the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra in September 2008. Since that appointment, he
has appeared as soloist with the ESO, as well as the Red Deer Symphony and the Alberta Baroque Ensemble.
He received his Bachelor and Masters Degrees in Classical Interpretation at the University of Montréal with Jean-Luc Gagnon. He has studied with many masters of the trumpet, including Allen Vizzutti, Jens Lindemann, and
James Thompson. In 2002, he was Laureate of the National Music Festival, the Montréal Symphony Orchestra Competition, and the Radio-Canada Young Artists Competition.

Mr. Doyon has also been the recipient of numerous other prizes, including the 2007 prix avec Grande distinction from the Montréal Conservatory of Music. He has been a member of the Grand Ballet of Canada Orchestra, and is a regular performer with the Montréal Symphony Orchestra, the National Arts Centre Orchestra, and the Laval,
Longueuil, and the Metropolitan orchestras. He also performed with the Contemporary Ensemble of Montréal and the Contemporary Music Society of Québec. Robin currently teaches at the University of Alberta.

Canadian violinist Robert Uchida has been acclaimed for his “ravishing sound, eloquence, and hypnotic intensity” (Strings magazine). Robert joined the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra as Concertmaster in 2013, after holding the same position with the Nova Scotia Symphony Orchestra. He has also been invited to perform as Associate Concertmaster with the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra during the 2005-2006 season. As a guest conductor, he has collaborated on projects with the Netherlands Radio Chamber Philharmonic, the Royal Flemish Philharmonic, and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra.

Robert’s CD recordings include Tim Brady’s Requiem 21.5: Violin Concerto, released by Centrediscs and awarded Classical Recording of the Year by the ECMA, as well as Andrew Violette’s Sonata for Unaccompanied Violin, released by Innova Records.

As a passionate educator, Robert is a professor at the University of Alberta and has also taught at Acadia University, the Manhattan School of Music, and as part of the Young Artists Program at the National Arts Centre of Canada.

He performs on a rare 1770 Guadagnini violin with Thomastik-Infeld Vision Solo Titanium strings from the Austrian manufacturer Thomastik-Infeld.