Art and Music Safari (Ages 6-10)
Offered exclusively at our Westhills location, kids ages 6-10 can explore their creative potential in both the visual arts and music! Visual art activities (10am-11am) include learning to express musical thoughts through color and texture and/or developing and decorating a unique musical instrument. Musical activities (11am – 12pm) include exploring the many types of sounds […]
Instructor TBA
Certificate in Music Technologies
The Music Technologies certificate is a series of seven courses which may be taken part-time over three semesters. You will study basic software and hardware technologies and explore practical applications of technologies, gaining fluency with the four pillars of music technology required by today’s music workplace:
Application Deadlines
Please submit two applications for the Certificate in Music Technologies program: a Camosun application form as well as a Victoria Conservatory of Music application.
Apply by August 15 to start in September
Apply by December 1 to start in January
Apply by April 1 to start in May
Admission is offered to qualified applicants on a first-come, first-served basis. Qualified applicants whose application is received after the deadlines above will be offered placement through waiting-list for a specified future term.
Admission requirements
Minimum Music Competency
When you apply, you must demonstrate Minimum Music Competency in one of two ways:
Option 1: Coursework
Submit sealed original or certified copy of a postsecondary transcript showing successful completion of coursework equivalent to or exceeding the requirements for Minimum Music Competency along with the application to the Victoria Conservatory of Music.
Camosun/VCM options: a C in MUSC 111 or equivalent and a C in MUSC 120 or equivalent
Option 2: Music Department Entrance Examination
For an additional fee, complete a Music Department Entrance Examination, through the Victoria Conservatory of Music, demonstrating fluency with the written and aural rudiments of music theory and understanding of the musical trends and styles in the history of Western music over the past two millennia.
If the original or certified copy of a postsecondary transcript does not accompany your application to the Victoria Conservatory of Music, it will be assumed that you are requesting a Music Department Entrance Examination and will be charged the associated assessment fee. Minimum Music Competency must be demonstrated in full prior to the application deadline and before admission to the program will be granted.
For all inquiries regarding this program option, contact the Director of the Department of Postsecondary Studies at the Victoria Conservatory of Music.
Program participation requirements
Students are required to have the appropriate computer, software and hardware for the program. For details see What it Costs.
Completion requirements
To qualify for the Certificate in Music Technologies you must successfully complete all required courses and achieve an overall cumulative GPA of at least 2.0.
Jonathan Haek
Jonathan Haek is a composer and flutist originally from Portland, Oregon. Dr. Haek is the Director of the School of Music Technology and Creativity at the Victoria Conservatory of Music. He currently teaches Aural Skills courses for the VCM’s Department of Postsecondary Studies, and is the designer, developer, and instructor of the new postsecondary Certificate of Music Technologies program offered in partnership with Camosun College. Jon’s interests lie at the intersections of music, math, and technology. His projects have involved collaboration with modern dance choreographers, free improvisation, interactive and computer music composition, and Fibonacci numbers as compositional tools. Dedicated to […]
Getting Creative with Ableton Live
Ages: Youth 13+ This immersive hands-on class, under the mentorship of electronic music producer and artist Nathan Jonson, is for students of all abilities who want to learn and explore the many cool features of Ableton Live 11 and Push. Over four 2-hour classes, students will work individually and collaboratively on their projects as they […]
Nathan Jonson
Nathan Jonson is an electronic music producer and composer who has been releasing music internationally for almost 2 decades as a solo act and as a part of numerous group projects. Live performance and DJ tours have taken him to the United States, all over the UK and Europe, Russia, and through Asia while teaching production masterclasses along the way. At the VCM Nathan specializes in teaching Ableton. […]
History
Music History classes are suitable for all students, from school age through to adults and seniors, either as a complement to studio instruction, or simply for music appreciation. Courses offered integrate into all of our theory classes up to level 8. As of level 9, three levels of advanced History classes are offered. All classes align with the RCM’s 2016 theory syllabus and prepare students to write the corresponding History examinations held in May.
Robert Holliston
Robert Holliston studied at the Victoria Conservatory of Music under Robin Wood and Winifred Scott Wood, and at the University of British Columbia under Robert Rogers. As an accompanist and chamber player he has performed throughout Canada and the USA, England and New Zealand, and has been heard frequently on CBC-Radio. He has recorded CDs with the popular salon ensemble Viveza, trombonist Ian McDougall, tenor Ken Lavigne, his brother Tom Holliston, Show Business Giants, and members of the Hornby Island Ensemble. Robert has collaborated with many of Canada’s leading singers, including Richard Margison, Benjamin Butterfield, Judith Forst, Nathalie Paulin, Susan (…)
Masterclasses, Workshops, and Jams
Master Classes, Workshops and Jams are an invaluable way to learn from some of the very best musicians in the world and each other. The VCM has a wide variety of opportunities in each of our Program Areas and Departments.
For more information contact the Victoria Conservatory of Music: 250.386.5311 | [email protected]
Robert Holliston
Robert Holliston studied at the Victoria Conservatory of Music under Robin Wood and Winifred Scott Wood, and at the University of British Columbia under Robert Rogers. As an accompanist and chamber player he has performed throughout Canada and the USA, England and New Zealand, and has been heard frequently on CBC-Radio. He has recorded CDs with the popular salon ensemble Viveza, trombonist Ian McDougall, tenor Ken Lavigne, his brother Tom Holliston, Show Business Giants, and members of the Hornby Island Ensemble. Robert has collaborated with many of Canada’s leading singers, including Richard Margison, Benjamin Butterfield, Judith Forst, Nathalie Paulin, Susan (…)
Emily Nagelbach
Emily Nagelbach, Faculty Department Head, Winds and Brass, Conservatory School of Classical Music. Emily is second flute/piccolo with the Vancouver Island Symphony and principal flute of the Palm Court Orchestra. As a freelance musician, she has performed with many orchestras, including the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, Victoria Symphony Orchestra and Pacific Opera Victoria. Emily holds an AVCM from the Royal Conservatory of Music (Toronto), a B.Mus. in Performance and Theory from Wilfrid Laurier University and a M.Mus. in Performance from the University of British Columbia, studying with Amy Hamilton, Lorna McGhee and Camille Churchfield. As a teacher, Emily thoroughly enjoys teaching flute and piccolo to students of all ages and abilities. Her students are part of a vibrant and active studio, performing regularly in recital, masterclass, festivals, and exams. […]
Daniel Lapp
Daniel Lapp is a world-renowned singer, multi-instrumentalist, composer, teacher, archivist, band leader, sideman, producer, promoter and – no kidding – the list goes on. And like the true-blue Canadian he is, Daniel does it all with trademark energy and warmth. As a fiddler, jazz trumpeter and singer/songwriter, Daniel Lapp has played on over 100 albums and performed across Canada, United States, Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales, Finland and Germany with some of the world’s most renowned Folk and Jazz musicians. Daniel is the winner of the B.C. Fiddle Championship and has appeared as a soloist with the CBC Chamber Orchestra as well as (…)
David Visentin
David Visentin is widely known throughout Canada as a performer, conductor, pedagogue and arts administrator whose leadership and creative experience in the performing arts has successfully advanced classical music from coast to coast. In 2011, founded Sistema Toronto and was appointed as the organization’s President and CEO. Sistema Toronto is a free and uniquely immersive after-school social program through music for at-risk children and youth, modeled after the highly successful program known as el Sistema. For six years, as dean and associate dean of The Glenn Gould School and Young Artists Performance Academy of The Royal Conservatory of Music, David […]
Simon MacDonald
Simon MacDonald began playing the violin at age seven, here in Victoria, British Columbia. Following studies with Frona Colquhoun and Sydney Humphreys, Simon earned his AVCM Teacher and Performance Diploma from the VCM, Bachelor’s degree from New England Conservatory in Boston, and Master’s degree from the Schulich School of Music, at the University of McGill, in Montreal. Simon’s musical education also included performing at music festivals in Europe and North America, including Schleswig Holstein Music Festival (Germany), The Festival of Two Worlds (Italy), the Spoleto Festival (Charleston, South Carolina), Tanglewood Music Festival and Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival (Massachusetts), and at ArtSpring Festival on Salt Spring Island. […]
Daniel Brandes
Daniel Brandes has been a faculty member at the Victoria Conservatory of Music since 2015, where he has worked and taught in a number of areas. He teaches theory and ear training courses and lessons in the Postsecondary and Music Technology & Creativity program areas, as well as the Creative Impulse, a course focusing on cultivating creative practices. Additionally, Daniel is the program director and lead choir director for the VCM’s ChoirKids program delivered tuition-free through VCM Children’s Music Outreach into underserved schools in the Capital Regional District. As of July 2021, Daniel is the Artistic Director of the VCM’s […]
Online VCM Composition Clubs
VCM Composition Clubs: Online composing classes for students ages 9 and up The VCM Composition Clubs are small groups of student composers who get together online to work on group projects, share their personal projects for encouraging and helpful feedback from the instructor and other members. We also discuss all things composition, and (perhaps most […]
Please contact the Instructor prior to registering by calling our front desk at 250-386-5311.
Marco Neri
Composer, active teacher and pianist Marco Neri examines music from an interdisciplinary perspective with the help of new technologies. He completed his M. Mus from the University of Victoria, and B. Mus. from the National Autonomous University of Mexico, Mexico City. In 2014, he attended piano and composition courses at Université Paris Sorbonne, France. His music has been performed in music festivals, contemporary dance festivals and theatre festivals in Canada, the United States, Mexico, Cuba, Spain, Belgium and France. […]
Songwriting Skills & Strategies: Sources of Inspiration
This round of our Songwriting Skills & Strategies program will be an exploration of the many different places inspiration can be found. Students will explore a variety of interdisciplinary methods of activating creativity, including: Painting, still life writing exercises, collaboration and more. Through these exercises, students will discover new ways of shaping inspiration into song! […]
Colleen Eccleston
“Victoria’s Colleen Eccleston is a remarkable singer. She is a gifted songwriter and a very strong rhythm guitarist. Her on-stage ebullience makes her concerts a delight, but she can switch from a carefree song about life on the road to a sobering tale of environmental or interpersonal damage with consummate ease” – The Rogue Folk; “A dangerous blend of skillful song writing and gorgeous vocals makes Colleen an artist whose work is timeless and a must have for any true music aficionado’s collection.” – Naomi De Bruyn, Linear Reflections. After 14 years with The Ecclestons and many adventures on the road (…)
Songwriting Skills & Strategies: Title to Strong Finish
What’s the secret to shaping and finishing songs that listeners want to hear over and over again? In this course we’ll use use inspiring creative exercises to craft great song titles, and learn how to write memorable songs that finish strong. Whether you’re a beginning or an intermediate writer, this course will help you find […]
Wynn Gogol
Wynn Gogol is a music producer, mixer, educator and author who enjoys working in a wide range of genres and styles. With more than twenty years of experience, his work has received Juno nominations, a Maple Blues Award and a Canadian Folk Award. Wynn joined the VCM in 2017 to teach the newly developed postsecondary Diploma in Music Performance course “Composing as Singer-Songwriter”. As a faculty member of the VCM’s School of Music Technology & Creativity, Wynn has since expanded his involvement with the VCM to include teaching digital school notation, as well as recording, mixing, and editing, as part of the VCM’s new Music Technology Lab programming currently under development. […]
Songwriting Skills & Strategies: Writing Better Lyrics
Is there an ideal way to write lyrics that lead to inspiring songs? This course will help you write strongly and clearly in your own unique voice, as you learn how to generate better ideas and craft satisfying lyrics. Explore ways to shape language, rhythm and rhyme into vivid verses, refrains, and bridges. Whether you’re […]
Wynn Gogol
Wynn Gogol is a music producer, mixer, educator and author who enjoys working in a wide range of genres and styles. With more than twenty years of experience, his work has received Juno nominations, a Maple Blues Award and a Canadian Folk Award. Wynn joined the VCM in 2017 to teach the newly developed postsecondary Diploma in Music Performance course “Composing as Singer-Songwriter”. As a faculty member of the VCM’s School of Music Technology & Creativity, Wynn has since expanded his involvement with the VCM to include teaching digital school notation, as well as recording, mixing, and editing, as part of the VCM’s new Music Technology Lab programming currently under development. […]
Songwriting Skills & Strategies: Writing From Different Angles
You want to write a song – but where do you start? With rhythm, melody, lyrics or chords? In this course we will look at songwriting from different starting points. The ability to write from different angles helps to keep you from getting stuck in the same old patterns and helps you to get inspired […]
Colleen Eccleston
“Victoria’s Colleen Eccleston is a remarkable singer. She is a gifted songwriter and a very strong rhythm guitarist. Her on-stage ebullience makes her concerts a delight, but she can switch from a carefree song about life on the road to a sobering tale of environmental or interpersonal damage with consummate ease” – The Rogue Folk; “A dangerous blend of skillful song writing and gorgeous vocals makes Colleen an artist whose work is timeless and a must have for any true music aficionado’s collection.” – Naomi De Bruyn, Linear Reflections. After 14 years with The Ecclestons and many adventures on the road (…)
Sound Advice Theory & Ear-Training Classes
Sound Advice is a complete theory and musicianship program where theory, ear training, sight-reading, music history and composition are integrated to develop musical literacy. Where applicable, students are prepared for the theory and ear training components of instrumental/vocal examinations, high school credits, and postsecondary theory placement but the main reason to take Sound Advice theory […]
Contact the coordinator for all registration placement and schedule information:
Crystal Wiksyk, Theory Coordinator: [email protected]
Crystal Wiksyk
Crystal Wiksyk is a theory and musicianship instructor at the Victoria Conservatory of Music, where she coordinates the Classical Music Theory program within the Ann & George Nation Conservatory of Classical Music. Crystal teaches group classes as well as individual lessons at the VCM, and has taught theory and musicianship classes for the VCM/Camosun College Diploma program. She is the co-author of three publications for the Royal Conservatory of Music, and also leads the Music Theory programming for the VCM’s Summer Academy. Crystal is a Royal Conservatory certified theory teacher and long-time member of the BC Registered Music Teachers Association.
Christine Donkin
I am a Canadian composer, and I teach theory and composition at the Victoria Conservatory of Music. Although my explorations into music composition began as a solitary pursuit, I have in recent years had the honour of collaborating with a wide variety of instrumentalists, vocalists, writers, and fellow composers. I have never specialised: I compose music for students and amateurs as well as for professionals. With the passage of time, my focus is shifting from my own development to that of young people who want to express themselves creatively through music.
Rachel Hill
A graduate from the University of Victoria with a Bachelor of Music Degree, Rachel Hill also holds a Music Diploma in piano and voice from Douglas College in New Westminster. Her teaching career began at the age of 19 when she was selected for the music teacher apprenticeship program at an established music studio in Surrey, BC. Her established teaching practice includes knowledge of a wide variety of curriculum, individualised to meet the musical preferences of her students which range from classical to contemporary. She endeavours to pass on her enthusiasm and love of music to her students who range from the very young to adults.
Anna Cal
ANNA CAL is trained in the famous tradition of Russian piano schools. She studied at the Rimsky-Korsakov Conservatory in St. Petersburg with well-known Russian performers and professors including Vitaly Berzon, Pavel Yegorov and the late Helen Shishko. She holds Master degrees with high distinction in three fields: piano performance, piano pedagogy and collaborative piano. After studying in Russia, Anna spent two years in Rome, Italy where she worked as a soloist and a voice coach. Anna is a senior teacher at the Victoria Conservatory of Music where she teaches piano, piano pedagogy and collaborative piano. She is Director of Collaborative piano and Interpretation in German Lieder Projects. Anna is a frequent performer in Victoria as a soloist and in collaboration with vocalists and instrumentalists.
Thilo Schaller
Thilo Schaller teaches Music Technology courses as part of the VCM/Camosun Certificate in Music Technologies, and works with students via the Camosun Distributed Learning Platform (Desire2Learn). Thilo composes autonomous music as well as for various media contexts. His works have been performed in England, Scotland, Germany, the Netherlands, Austria, Tanzania, Spain, Canada, and Italy. Thilo’s music is often described as contemporary and accessible. His first score for Canadian film was nominated for the Alberta Film and Television Awards in 2014. […]
Daniel Brandes
Daniel Brandes has been a faculty member at the Victoria Conservatory of Music since 2015, where he has worked and taught in a number of areas. He teaches theory and ear training courses and lessons in the Postsecondary and Music Technology & Creativity program areas, as well as the Creative Impulse, a course focusing on cultivating creative practices. Additionally, Daniel is the program director and lead choir director for the VCM’s ChoirKids program delivered tuition-free through VCM Children’s Music Outreach into underserved schools in the Capital Regional District. As of July 2021, Daniel is the Artistic Director of the VCM’s […]
Robert Holliston
Robert Holliston studied at the Victoria Conservatory of Music under Robin Wood and Winifred Scott Wood, and at the University of British Columbia under Robert Rogers. As an accompanist and chamber player he has performed throughout Canada and the USA, England and New Zealand, and has been heard frequently on CBC-Radio. He has recorded CDs with the popular salon ensemble Viveza, trombonist Ian McDougall, tenor Ken Lavigne, his brother Tom Holliston, Show Business Giants, and members of the Hornby Island Ensemble. Robert has collaborated with many of Canada’s leading singers, including Richard Margison, Benjamin Butterfield, Judith Forst, Nathalie Paulin, Susan (…)
Studio Instruction – Music Technology Subjects
Sign up for lessons in Music Technology, including Digital Notation, Digital Audio Workstation (DAW), Sequencing, and Virtual Instruments!
Lesson Tuition Rates vary according to instructor ($55 - $85/hr)
Once you have found an instructor, ask about building your own Online Group! Group classes must have a minimum of four enrolled, and cost $17.20 per student per hour.
Wynn Gogol
Wynn Gogol is a music producer, mixer, educator and author who enjoys working in a wide range of genres and styles. With more than twenty years of experience, his work has received Juno nominations, a Maple Blues Award and a Canadian Folk Award. Wynn joined the VCM in 2017 to teach the newly developed postsecondary Diploma in Music Performance course “Composing as Singer-Songwriter”. As a faculty member of the VCM’s School of Music Technology & Creativity, Wynn has since expanded his involvement with the VCM to include teaching digital school notation, as well as recording, mixing, and editing, as part of the VCM’s new Music Technology Lab programming currently under development. […]
Jonathan Haek
Jonathan Haek is a composer and flutist originally from Portland, Oregon. Dr. Haek is the Director of the School of Music Technology and Creativity at the Victoria Conservatory of Music. He currently teaches Aural Skills courses for the VCM’s Department of Postsecondary Studies, and is the designer, developer, and instructor of the new postsecondary Certificate of Music Technologies program offered in partnership with Camosun College. Jon’s interests lie at the intersections of music, math, and technology. His projects have involved collaboration with modern dance choreographers, free improvisation, interactive and computer music composition, and Fibonacci numbers as compositional tools. Dedicated to […]
Nathan Jonson
Nathan Jonson is an electronic music producer and composer who has been releasing music internationally for almost 2 decades as a solo act and as a part of numerous group projects. Live performance and DJ tours have taken him to the United States, all over the UK and Europe, Russia, and through Asia while teaching production masterclasses along the way. At the VCM Nathan specializes in teaching Ableton. […]
Jan Randall
Jan Randall is a pianist, who played entirely by ear from childhood, started working in blues and pop music bands while still in high school, and after receiving formal classical and jazz training as a composer and arranger went on to spend a decade in theatre before moving on to make a career of composing sound tracks for broadcast. Jan has been the head song writer since 2011 for the hit CBC radio series “The Irrelevant Show.” He wrote songs and doubled as musical director for comedy shows with Second City in the early 80′s, where he collaborated with such (…)