Governance

Ed Chwyl has over forty years of business experience, primarily in the energy industry in Calgary and currently serves on the Board of three companies. The Chwyl family have been residents of Victoria since 2001 when Ed retired after a long career in the Calgary oil patch. Their two children have benefited from music lessons, theory and history, and the Collegium program at the Conservatory. Ed previously served as a Vice-President of the Board (2005/06) and is a graduate engineer (University of Alberta, MSc 1968). Ed has served as Chairman of the Calgary YMCA, Chairman of the Petroleum Society, plus various other volunteer positions with Not for Profit organizations in western Canada.

Hon. Roy Cullen earned his B.A. in Business Administration, and a Master of Public Administration. He qualified as a Canadian Chartered Accountant in 1972. Initially elected to the House of Commons in Ottawa in a by-election in 1996, he was re-elected in the 1997, 2000, 2004, and the 2006 general elections. He retired from the Canadian House of Commons in 2008. As a member of the Prime Minister Jean Chrétien’s government, and later under Prime Minister Paul Martin, Mr. Cullen served as chair of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance, as parliamentary secretary to the minister of finance, as parliamentary secretary to the deputy prime minister and the minister for public safety and emergency preparedness; and as chair of the Ontario Liberal caucus. In 2006 he was sworn-in as a member of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada.

Gary Karr is acclaimed as “the world’s leading solo bassist” (Time Magazine) and the first solo doublebassist in history to make that pursuit a full-time career. Since his debut with Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic in 1962, Karr has performed as soloist on six continents with orchestras including the Chicago Symphony, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Hong Kong Philharmonic, Montreal Symphony, Jerusalem Symphony, Oslo Philharmonic, Zurich Chamber Orchestra, and with all the major orchestras of Australia. One of Karr’s proudest achievements is the Bronze Medal he received from the Rosa Ponselle Foundation which recognizes him as an outstanding lyrical musician. Gary is the proud holder of the 1997 Artist/Teacher of the Year Award from the American String Teacher’s Association (ASTA). He also holds the Distinguished Achievement Award (1995) from the International Society of Bassists (ISB).

Shannon von Kaldenberg is a highly respected and regarded advancement professional with extensive experience in fundraising, strategic planning and people management. She has twenty five years of senior management experience, successfully leading small and large staff and volunteer teams. Her diverse career incorporates the education, social service, health care, consulting and the corporate sectors. Shannon has been Chief Philanthropy Officer at the Heart and Stroke Foundation since 2010, and previous roles include Associate Vice-President Alumni and Development and Chief Development Officer, UVic, Assistant Dean External Relations, UBC Sauder School of Business, University Director of Development, UBC, President of the Vancouver Hospital Foundation and Vice President of Development and Communications, United Way of the Lower Mainland. She is a frequent speaker and lecturer with the Association of Fundraising Professionals where she also served on the Board and as Chair, and was a VCM Board member and Chair of the Development Committee from 2008-2010. Shannon served as VCM Board Chair from 2020-2024.

Shelley Williams is a retired lawyer and advancement professional. Prior to being elected Chair in 2024 she chaired the Artistic and Academic Committee and sat on the Executive & Governance Committee for two years. Shelley holds a law degree from UBC and an Arts degree from the University of Alberta. After practicing law for 17 years she retired to raise her family, returning to work as Associate Director of Advancement at an independent school in West Vancouver. Before moving to Victoria, Shelley sat on the boards of the Lions Gate Hospital Foundation, BC Diving, North Shore Dolphins Dive Club and Collingwood School, and was a volunteer with numerous charities. She brings to the Conservatory over 30 years of experience in not for profit organizations, fundraising campaigns and events, alumni relations, and communications and marketing. A life-long music lover, she studied piano and violin for many years and played in a university orchestra.

Michael McEvoy was appointed Information and Privacy Commissioner for BC on March 5, 2018. He previously held the position of Deputy Commissioner to the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner. As Deputy Commissioner, Mr. McEvoy played a key senior leadership role in the enforcement of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA) and the Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA). He was responsible for leading and managing systemic investigations of significant public interest issues, and the development of policy papers and guidance for organizations and public bodies. Mr. McEvoy led British Columbia’s efforts to coordinate actions with regulatory authorities throughout the Asia Pacific region. Mr. McEvoy obtained a Juris Doctorate from the University of Manitoba in 1985 and a Bachelor of Arts in 1980 from the University of Winnipeg. He has been a member of the Law Society of British Columbia since 1986. Mr. McEvoy was a public school trustee for 12 years, including two terms as President of the British Columbia School Trustees’ Association and one term as President of the Canadian School Boards’ Association. He has also served on numerous campaign committees of the Greater Victoria United Way, chairing its 2009 campaign. Mr. McEvoy is married with two grown daughters. He prides himself as a charter member and elite player with the Victoria Grey Leafs’ old-timer hockey team.

Alison McCluskey is a Chartered Professional Accountant with considerable experience in the not-for-profit sector, both as an employee and as a board/committee member. Most recently, Alison was the Director of Finance at the Victoria Foundation and previously was the Director of Finance at Habitat for Humanity Victoria. Earlier in her career, Alison was a Senior Manager in a National CPA firm both in Vancouver and Victoria. Alison has been drawn to the not-for-profit sector from early in her career and through her employment and volunteer work, has experience with a wide variety or organizations, from small local grassroot not-for-profits to large, mature charities and foundations. Alison has served on the Boards of several organizations which include Story Studio Writing Society, South Island Division of Family Practice, Coastline Music Society and Victoria Youth Empowerment Society. Alison was born and raised in Saskatoon, but has lived in Victoria for almost 20 years, and now calls Victoria home. She is passionate about the importance of the Arts in our community and music plays a significant role in Alison’s family life. Both of Alison’s daughters are accomplished musicians and have worked with Daniel Lapp for many years as part of the BC Fiddle Orchestra through the Victoria Conservatory of Music. /p>

Amanda’s varied career has encompassed public relations, communications and marketing for arts organizations on Vancouver Island and Toronto as well as businesses of all shapes and sizes. Through her work in local media and as the co-owner of Spark Strategic Group, she has become well known and connected within both the non-profit and business community in Victoria. Amanda is well versed in crafting engaging campaigns that drive revenue and awareness for brands and a big believer in authentic, honest strategies fueled by the selective and appropriate use of marketing tools.

Neil Barman is an architect in Victoria, BC Canada who originally moved to the city from Montreal approximately 35 years ago. He has worked with a number of architecture firms in Victoria and is now an industry product specialist with Vectorworks, Inc. a company that creates design software for architects, landscape architects, interior designers, and entertainment designers. In his role at Vectorworks he thoughtfully creates a variety of marketing resources to foster brand awareness, produces thought leadership material, guides customers towards the most effective use of Vectorworks software, as well as assists with the development of the software. His professional areas of interest are energy analysis, future-conscious building practices, project collaboration, and presentation methods. He is also a co-designer of Victoria’s first LEED Platinum home, located at Harling Point. En route to practicing architecture he completed degrees in Environmental Studies and Architecture (Waterloo) and Visual Arts (UVic). He has always been interested in the arts and their connections to communities and has previously served on the Board of Intrepid Theatre.

Kirk McNally is a recording engineer, music producer and sound artist living in Victoria, British Columbia on the unceded territories of the Lekwungen-speaking peoples, now known as the Songhees and Esquimalt Nations. He received his Master’s of Music in Sound Recording from McGill University. As a recording engineer he has held positions at the Tanglewood Music Centre (Lenox, MA), Reaction Studios (Toronto, ON), and the Warehouse Studio (Vancouver, BC), working with artists including, The Boston Symphony Orchestra, Bryan Adams and REM. Kirk is the assistant professor of Music Technology for the School of Music at the University of Victoria, where he is the program administrator for the school’s undergraduate combined major program in music and computer science and the graduate program in music technology. His research and creative work has been supported by the Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst (DAAD), the Canada Council for the Arts, the University of Victoria’s Learning and Teaching Centre, the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC).

Jennette Toews’ career has focused on the management of federal and provincial health programs, policies and data across the life course, recently retiring as director of chronic disease surveillance at the Public Health Agency of Canada. She has significant experience in engaging with provincial and territorial governments as well as with Indigenous and non-governmental organizations. She managed the federal maternal and child health programs supporting vulnerable women and children and developed safety and security initiatives for at-risk seniors including initiating the national seniors falls prevention program and the first national report on seniors falls in Canada, which was adopted as a model by the World Health Organization. She has an enduring passion for music and has studied piano, flute, and voice and has taught flute and participated in several music ensembles, including the Calgary Youth Orchestra. Jennette has a deep appreciation for how music can enrich lives and bring community connections.

Kyron Basu is a voice teacher and baritone. He has taught voice at the Victoria Conservatory of Music since 2016 and at the University of Victoria since 2020. He works with students with a broad range of experience levels and ages, and strives to create supportive and encouraging learning environments to nurture students’ love of music. In addition to one-on-one voice lessons, Kyron has taught vocal pedagogy in the VCM’s AIMS program, as well as Lyric Diction (substituting for Kiiri Michelsen).

An active performer in the Victoria area, Kyron has appeared as a soloist with groups such as Victoria Baroque, the Victoria Philharmonic Choir, the Sooke Philharmonic, Pacific Baroque Festival, Bach on the Rock, CapriCCio, and the Victoria Children’s Choir.

Kyron holds an MA in Musicology with Performance and a BMus from UVic, where he studied under Benjamin Butterfield. During his MA, Kyron was a recipient of the SSHRC CGS-M scholarship for his musicological research, exploring the relationship between phonetics and crafting singable translations, particularly of German lieder. Kyron completed his Diploma in Music and AVCM in Vocal Pedagogy at the VCM, where he studied with Ingrid Attrot (voice) and Nancy Argenta (pedagogy).

Bruce Craigie has spent 30 years in the trade and manufacturing industry, during which time he has worked in hospitals, care homes, hotels, factories, and new construction buildings. Since joining the VCM as Maintenance Manager, he has been able to lend his knowledge and skills to several capital projects. He looks forward to being part of the board as Staff Representative.

Tricia Baldwin is a graduate of the Faculty of Music at University of Toronto and the MBA program at the Schulich School of Business, York University, and in addition, studied at the Royal Conservatory of Music. Tricia served as Director of the Isabel Bader Centre for the Performing Arts at Queen’s University, where she co-founded the M.A. in Arts Leadership program and launched impactful initiatives like the Isabel Human Rights Arts Festival and the Ka’tarohkwi Festival of Indigenous Arts. Previously, she was Managing Director of Tafelmusik, spearheading international tours, recordings, and the Tafelmusik Media label.

Most recently, she was Executive Director of the Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre, where her mandate included mentoring a next-generation Indigenous leader to succeed her in leading the organization, and deepening the centre’s role as a cultural knowledge-keeper with the creation of a multi-media Digital Collection of Kwanlin Dün Cultural Knowledge. Ry Moran, Victoria Conservatory Guest Faculty in Music and Reconciliation, served as a consultant on the latter project.

A recipient of the Canada Council’s John Hobday Award, Tricia’s wide-ranging career has included senior posts at a number of high-profile Canadian artistic institutions