Julie Shier, bassoon 

Bassoonist Julie Shier has been a member of the Windsor Symphony Orchestra since 1992. She is also a core member of London Symphonia and has played with the Stratford Festival, Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony and Hamilton Philharmonic. When not playing bassoon, she enjoys cycling, swimming, hiking and cross-country skiing.

Peter Shackleton, clarinet 

Peter Shackleton is principal clarinetist of the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra and a member of Music in Common and INNERchamber. He has served as principal clarinetist of Orchestra London Canada, and has performed with Tafelmusik (on historical clarinet) and Les Violons du Roy, as well as with the Milwaukee Symphony, Winnipeg Symphony, Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony and Stratford Festival Orchestras. Peter is currently on the faculty at Wilfrid Laurier University and in the past has held teaching positions at Western University and Lakehead University. Awarded First Prize at the 27^th CBC Radio Competition, he has performed as a soloist with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, National Arts Centre Orchestra, CBC Radio Orchestra (Vancouver), Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra and Tafelmusik. Peter received his Honours Bachelor of Music from Northwestern University and a certificate in Chamber Music Performance from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Matthew Pope, harpsichord 

Matthew Pope, DMA, is a solo and collaborative pianist, adjudicator, and teacher in London, Ontario. A graduate of the DMA program at Western University (London, ON), Dr. Pope's research and performance interests focus on French repertoire of the late 19th- and early 20th- centuries, with a particular focus on the works of Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924) and Claude Debussy (1862-1918).

During his academic career, Dr. Pope studied with John-Paul Bracey, Dr. Brett Kingsbury, and Stephan Sylvestre, and won numerous scholarships and awards, including the UWO Gold Medal for Piano Performance in 2013, and two Ontario Graduate Scholarships (2014 and 2018). He also spent three weeks studying with Jean-Paul Sevilla in France during the summer of 2012, and is a former student of pianist, Ron Greidanus (Georgetown, ON). Dr. Pope enjoys working in collaborative settings as a pianist and orchestral continuo player (on both harpsichord and organ) and has worked with conductors Lydia Adams, Charles Demuynck, Mervin Fick, Ron Greidanus, Simone Luti, Dr. Patrick Murray, Tyrone Paterson, Stephane Potvin, and Robert Raines (1947-2011).

Matthew is an avid performer as a pianist, harpsichordist, and organist, and has performed as a soloist and/or ensemble player with numerous groups in the GTA, including the Georgetown Bach Chorale, the Bach Elgar Choir (Hamilton, ON), the Masterworks of Oakville Choir, the Oakville Chamber Orchestra, the Mississauga Chamber Singers, and the Brampton Symphony Orchestra, and Kammerchor London and Magisterra Soloists in London, ON. In addition, Dr. Pope is President for the Ontario Registered Music Teachers Association's London Branch, and is the Music Director and Board Member for Luke's Place, a mission of the Anglican Diocese of Huron, located in London, ON, which focuses on serving the student community where the mission is located.

Francine Kay, piano 

Noted for “an extraordinary range of color” (Montreal Gazette), and “poetic brilliance” (Toronto Star), Canadian pianist Francine Kay has performed extensively as a soloist and chamber musician in Europe, North America, and Asia, at venues such as Carnegie Hall’s Stern Auditorium and Weill Recital Hall, Lincoln Center Rose Studio, Salle Gaveau, The National Gallery, Roy Thomson Hall, The Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concerts, and Bargemusic. Francine Kay made her New York debut at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall as the winner and Recitalist of the Year of the New York Pro Piano Competition.

She has been soloist with orchestras such as the Toronto Symphony, the Princeton Symphony, the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra, Orchestra London, the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony, Symphony Nova Scotia, the Victoria Symphony and Sinfonia Toronto among others, under conductors such as Georg Tintner, Mark Laycock, Nurhan Arman, Agnes Grossman, Kevin Mallon, Ermanno Florio, Arpad Joo, Jonathan Yates, and Simon Streatfeild. She has performed at festivals such as the Saratoga Performing Arts Center, Music Mountain, the Banff Summer Festival, the International Course of Interpretation in Poland and the 60th annual Chopin Festival, Czech Republic.

Francine Kay’s recordings have received international acclaim, including a Juno Award nomination and a Star of the Month selection from Fono Forum, Germany.

Ms. Kay’s performances have been broadcast on NPR, the BBC, WFMT, Radio France, and the CBC.

Ms. Kay enjoys collaborations with such groups such as the Penderecki, Avalon, Harlem and Arianna String Quartets, Trio Arkel, Cantata Profana and the Richardson Chamber Players.

Ms. Kay received her Bachelors and Masters degrees at the Juilliard School, the Artist Diploma from the Glenn Gould School and the Doctor of Musical Arts at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Her principal mentors include Gilbert Kalish, Marek Jablonski, Gyorgy Sebok and Leon Fleisher.

She was the recipient of the Women’s Musical Club of Toronto Career Development Award, the Chalmers Award, and grants from the Canada Council.

Francine Kay is a member of the piano faculty of Princeton University. Ms. Kay is also a piano faculty artist at the Zodiac Academy and Festival held in the south of France every summer.