Co-musical director, band

Lyndsey Mitchell is a dedicated music educator who believes that music can and should be used as a vehicle for both individual and community development. She is committed to creating supportive, inclusive spaces where learners develop their technical and artistic abilities, engage in critical thinking, build confidence, and explore music as a means for self-expression and personal growth.

Lyndsey studied flute at Acadia University, earning undergraduate (BMus ‘12, BEd ‘14) and graduate (MEd ‘19) degrees in music education. After graduating in 2014, she moved to northern Alberta, where she developed the wind and vocal music programs at Charles Spencer High School. During this time, she discovered an unexpected love for choir and musical theatre, routinely bringing ensembles to the Alberta Music Festival Association’s provincial festival and directing full-scale musical productions each year. While working in Grande Prairie, she received Swan City Rotary’s Excellence in Education award and served on the Fine Arts Advisory Committee for Grande Prairie Regional College (now Northwestern Polytechnic).

Since returning to Nova Scotia in 2021, Lyndsey has been involved with Acadia University’s music programs, mentoring future music educators through its Bachelor of Education program, and, more recently, joining the Summer Music Academy as co-director. She is also the youth coordinator for Quick As A Wink Theatre Society and serves as a member-at-large for both the Nova Scotia Band Association and the Nova Scotia Music Education Council. Currently, she teaches music, drama, and computer programming at Horton High School in Greenwich, Nova Scotia.

When she is not in a rehearsal, Lyndsey can be found tackling DIY projects around the house or spending quality time with her beloved rescue animals.

Co-musical director, Saxophone

Tristan De Borba is a classical and contemporary saxophonist and conductor and is quickly
gaining a reputation as an innovative and engaging musician.

He is Assistant Professor at Acadia University in Wolfville, Nova Scotia where he teaches
saxophone, conducts the Acadia University Symphonic Band and String Orchestra, and teaches
musicianship.

Tristan has a strong interest in the music of our time. He is a member of the Alkali Collective, a
Halifax-based new music ensemble dedicated to the creation, performance, documentation, and
educational outreach of 21st century music. Tristan also performs with the Strum-De Borba duo
with fellow saxophonist Nicole Strum. Tristan is a founding member of the Brogue Saxophone
Quartet which has performed extensively throughout the maritime provinces since 2013. As a
soloist, Tristan’s recording of Derek Charke’s Wired and Wound with pianist Simon Docking
can be found on the ECMA nominated recording “Live Wired” (Centrediscs, 2015). He also
appears as saxophone soloist on “In the Wide Awe of Wisdom” featuring the choral music of
Paul Halley (Pelagos, 2017). In 2021, Alongside pianist Mary Castello, Tristan released a video
recording of Fernande Decruck’s Sonata and William Grant Still’s Romance. As a conductor and
educator, Tristan is increasingly in demand as a clinician and adjudicator of bands and
orchestras.

Dr. Tristan De Borba earned a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Toronto and
a Master of Music degree from the University of British Columbia. When taking a break from a
busy performing and teaching career, Tristan can be found alongside his wife Sara and their dogs
Lua and Sasi exploring beautiful Nova Scotia.

Website
www.tristandeborba.com

Nathan Beeler - Concert Band, Celtic Music

Nathan Beeler is a musician, music educator, and conductor from Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. He is currently the Vice-Principal of Halifax Regional Arts, one of Canada's largest publicly funded fine arts education organizations. Nathan has been a music educator for thirty-four years.

Nathan holds a bachelor's degree in music education from Acadia University and a master's in conducting from the University of Manitoba. He will complete all requirements for the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in April of 2025 from Boston University. He is a regular guest conductor with the Nova Scotia Youth Orchestra and has conducted many noted ensembles in Halifax, including Scotia Brass, Dalhousie University Wind Ensemble, and Nova Sinfonia. Nathan is in demand as an adjudicator, clinician, and speaker. Nathan studied conducting with Dr. Greg Burton, and Earl Stafford, former music director of Canada's Royan Winnipeg Ballet.

Nathan is the author of Everything Matters: Fifty Essays on Music Education and is the recipient of the Prime Minister's Award for Teaching Excellence, one of Canada's top awards for educators.

Flute

Taiwanese-born Canadian flutist Jack Chen lives and performs in Halifax/Kjipuktuk, Nova Scotia. Jack’s love of chamber music has brought him to the stages of concert series all across the Maritimes, and he has premiered works by many Canadian composers. He appears frequently with Symphony Nova Scotia, Scotia Chamber Players, Cecilia Concerts as well as Inner Space Concerts, a chamber concert series he founded in 2014.

Jack earned his degrees in flute and early music performance from Indiana University and the University of British Columbia. He has shared the stage with artists such as Jeanne Lamon, Bobby McFerrin, and Sir James Galway and has also appeared in numerous PBS television music specials and tours.

In addition to performing, Jack is the Artistic Director of Inner Space Concerts (InnerSpaceConcerts.ca), is on faculty at the Acadia University School of Music, and is the General Manager of the Nova Scotia Youth Orchestra. While not playing the flute or teaching, Jack can be spotted enjoying the great outdoors of the east coast kayaking, biking and skiing!

Band, Trumpet

Holly Hartlen (BMusEd Dalhousie University 1995, MEd Acadia University 2017) is a native and resident of Truro, N.S. and a proud product of the Truro & District Schools Band Program. She was employed by a number of reserve and regular forces military bands, including the Band of the Ceremonial Guard, the Canada Remembers Band- formed in recognition of the 50th Anniversary of D-Day (in Canada, England and France), and the Land Forces Atlantic Area Militia Band. She currently plays trumpet with the Hubtown Big Band, The Glass Winds Ensemble and The Nova Brass Quintet. Holly has been teaching instrumental and classroom music since 1995. She now teaches roughly 400 students at Central Colchester Junior High, in Onslow, NS. She is a firm believer in the fundamental importance of arts education, especially in music, for all humans aged 0 to 125.

Band, Trombone

Stephen Hartlen studied trombone at Acadia University graduating with a Bachelors degree in Music Education in 1990 and a Masters degree in Curriculum Studies (Music Education Focus) in 2014. He has also studied at the Banff Centre in Banff, Alberta. Steve has been teaching in the Nova Scotia public schools system for the past 33 years directing bands at Parrsboro Regional High, Hants East Rural High & New Glasgow Junior High School and is currently teaching at New Glasgow Academy. Steve is the president of the Nova Scotia Band Association, has served as a member of the Canadian Band Association executive and is the chair of the Nova Scotia Music Education Council. He is a former assistant conductor of the Nova Scotia Youth Wind Ensemble and he has been a longtime member of the Acadia University Summer Music Faculty. As a trombonist and a vocalist Steve has performed with a variety of ensembles including the Nova Scotia Youth Orchestra, Symphony Nova Scotia, the Halifax Camerata Singers, Incantatus Chamber Choir and the Helios Vocal Ensemble. Stephen currently performs with the Nova Brass Quintet as well as the Hubtown Big Band. He lives in Truro with his wife Holly and is the proud father of three musicians; Noah, Claire and Owen.

Band, Community Band

Dr. Mark Hopkins is a Professor in the School of Music at Acadia University in Wolfville, Nova Scotia. In addition to leading the Wind Ensemble, Dr. Hopkins teaches undergraduate and graduate Conducting, Instrumental Music Education courses, SoundPainting, and chamber music courses.
 
Dr. Hopkins is in demand as a guest conductor and music education consultant. Since 2003 he has collaborated with Dr. Gillian MacKay as Artistic Co-Director of the Denis Wick Canadian Wind Orchestra, which selects players through annual national auditions. He is Artistic Director of the Nova Scotia Youth Wind Ensemble (2008-2011, 2013-present), and is Past-President of the Nova Scotia Band Association. In May 2019 Dr Hopkins received the National Band Award from the Canadian Band Association and was awarded an Established Artist Award from Arts Nova Scotia in 2016 for his leadership as a conductor of new music projects, including “Shattering the Silence”, an innovative new music festival.  His work as a conductor has been recorded on LIVE WIRED (2015) and In Sonorous Falling Tones (2017, nominated for a 2018 East Coast Music Award). In Canada, he has guest-conducted bands and orchestras in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island, and led the National Youth Band of Canada in 2019. Abroad, he has led collegiate and professional performances in the United States, Bermuda, Hong Kong, China, Japan, Italy, Switzerland, and Romania.
 
A native of Toronto, Dr. Hopkins graduated from the University of Toronto (B.Mus. Ed.), the University of Western Ontario (B. Ed.), the University of Calgary (M.Mus. Conducting), and the New England Conservatory (D.M.A. Wind Conducting).  While attending New England Conservatory he served as Assistant to Frank L. Battisti and was awarded the Gunther Schuller Medal at graduation. Prior to his appointment at Acadia University Dr. Hopkins led ensembles and taught at the University of Calgary and Hanover College in Indiana (1999-2005). Dr. Hopkins taught music in high schools for twelve years, including seven years of service as Chair of the Music Department at Upper Canada College in Toronto. His professional work as a Conductor spans the full range of ensembles and genres.

Guitar, Bass Guitar, Rock Band

Lydia Langille is a composer, performer, and educator based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. She studied Music composition at Acadia University, and has written for ensembles of varying style including symphony orchestra, jazz big band, gamelan, and indie math rock. Lydia plays guitar and bass and currently writes and records electronic music under the moniker ‘embedme.’ She writes, plays, and sings in art rock band ‘Moonkick,’ and plays with other Halifax bands ‘Isaac Marr and the Rightful Heirs,’ and ‘Jesse Jessome and the Cost of Living,’ as well as the gamelan ensemble ‘OMBAK’. She also has experience with music recording/production, podcast production/editing, and is trained in music software including Ableton, Sibelius, and Max MSP.

Find Lydia’s work at https://www.lydialangille.com/audio

Trumpet

James LeBlanc is an Applied Instructor at the Acadia University School of Music where he teaches trumpet. James studied trumpet with Ed Carroll at McGill University (B.Mus.), and Karen Donnelly at the University of Ottawa (M.Mus). He has performed with groups such as the National Arts Center Orchestra, the Ottawa Symphony Orchestra, and the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra. While in the Army Reserve James performed with the Ceremonial Guard Band, Central Band of the Canadian Armed Forces, La Musique du Royal 22e Régiment, and the Stadacona Band of the Royal Canadian Navy. In addition, James is an educator with the Halifax Regional Center for Education where he teaches music, and band.

Horn

Hornist Mary Lee trained at the University of Toronto, in the city where she was born and raised. She has had many inspirational teachers, and credits the Toronto public school music programs for giving her a strong start. After completing her undergraduate degree, Mary packed up her horn and moved to the Netherlands where she spent a year at the Utrecht Conservatory, furthering her horn and orchestral studies. A winding road led Mary to Banff and Freiburg, Germany, for summer studies, then on to Israel to play with the Israel Sinfonietta, and finally to Halifax, where she has long since resided, playing with Symphony Nova Scotia and teaching the horn at Acadia University and the Maritime Conservatory. Mary greatly enjoys her work with horn students of all ages, which includes coaching the Nova Scotia Youth Orchestra and teaching at the Acadia band camp.

Mary is also a founding member of the woodwind quintet Fifth Wind, and playing with this group has led to many wonderful adventures in chamber music, and  connections with young musicians throughout the province of Nova Scotia.

Sarah MacDonald is a Glace Bay based educator, conductor, flutist, and singer. Believing in
lifelong learning, Sarah has participated in several wind and choral conducting symposiums
across both Canada and the United States. She recently graduated with a Master of Arts
degree in Music Education from the University of Toronto where she completed graduate
level Advanced Wind Conducting courses with Dr. Gillian MacKay. Sarah also holds a
Bachelor of Music from Mount Allison University, a Bachelor of Education from Acadia
University, and a Diploma in Education (Counselling) from Cape Breton University. Working
from Glace Bay High School, Sarah directs their Concert Band and Jazz Band and teaches a
variety of music classes. In 2023, Sarah was named as the recipient of the Nova Scotia Band
Association’s Distinguished Band Director award.

In addition to being the 2021-2022 Resident Conductor with the Nova Scotia Youth Wind
Ensemble, Sarah has conducted the Nova Scotia Junior Wind Ensemble, the Second Wind
Community Concert Band, and was a featured conductor in both the Halifax and Cape Breton
Community Band Festivals. A frequent guest conductor with the Cape Breton Orchestra,
Sarah had the privilege of conducting the CBO in performance alongside renowned Canadian
artists Heather Rankin and Beòlach in the 2019 Celtic Colours International Festival. Sarah is
a committee member with the Nova Scotia Youth Wind Ensemble, a member at large with the
Nova Scotia Band Association, and was a member of the Nova Scotia Community College’s
Music For Life: Ron MacKay Adult Community Concert Band teaching staff.

Prior to her teaching career, Sarah was an Academic All Canadian athlete at Mount Allison
University. She enjoys drawing parallels between music and sport and is fiercely committed
to providing students with the opportunity to internalize resilience, to think critically, and to
gain confidence in their ability to effect positive change in the world through music.

Saxophone

Andrew MacKelvie is a saxophonist, improviser, bandleader, and educator based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. He plays in many bands ranging in styles from rock, ambient, and free jazz such as SCIONS, Bethany, Transatlantic Zodiac Ensemble, the 6 Star Revue, and formerly with Jerry Granelli. He runs projects such as New Hermitage, Many Worlds, and Borrowers, in addition to playing solo under his own name.  In 2023 he was a soloist with Symphony Nova Scotia for the premier of his symphonic composition Treize Trieze, a concerto for saxophone and drum kit. He teaches P-12 music at the Hydrostone Academy. He has a degree in jazz studies, an education degree from Memorial, and was mentored by Jerry Granelli in improvisation and education for over a decade until his passing in 2021. He met Jerry in 2008 when he first attended the Creative Music Workshop. He has been involved with the CMW since 2008 where he is currently a faculty member. In his free time, Andrew co-runs the independent record label Watch That Ends The Night.

Drums, Percussion

Cape Breton percussionist Tyler McDonald works as a full time musician and teacher based in the Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia. He has collaborated with many artists across Nova Scotia in both live and recorded settings including Freya Milliken, Avalon & The Pyramids, Sarah McInnis, The Sundries and Mark Riley.

Amidst various freelance projects as a drumset performer, Tyler also engages with music in classical, traditional/folk and contemporary settings playing mallet percussion, timpani, and multi-percussion setups. A graduate of Acadia University’s music program, he recently studied under Barbara Hannigan at the 2023 EQ Seminar at the Lunenburg Academy of Music where he collaborated and performed with musicians and composers from around the world.

As a teacher, Tyler has previously worked in Elementary, Middle, and High Schools, and currently runs a private teaching studio. He also works with local co-op Music in Communities, running after school music programs, youth open mic events, music camps, and concerts throughout the Annapolis Valley.

Woodwinds, Jazz Band

Brad Reid is a regular performer in the pit orchestra at Halifax’s Neptune Theatre, having worked on Little Shop of Horrors, Disney’s Frozen, and many more, since 2012. In early 2020 he returned from a year of touring the US, Canada, Mexico, and Russia with the Cirque du Soleil show CRYSTAL, an ice show, where he performed on clarinet, saxophone, and guitar, while skating. He’s performed in the Halifax Jazz Festival numerous times, with his own groups, along with the Back Alley Big Band, and the Brogue Quartet, and has performed with Symphony Nova Scotia, and the Stadacona Band. Brad studied the saxophone at St. Francis University, earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Music (Jazz), and studied privately on other woodwinds with various teachers. After university, Brad worked as a musician and bandleader on cruise ships for seven years, visiting more than 20 countries, sailing across both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, through the Panama Canal twice, and past an erupting volcano in Italy.

Clarinet

Eileen Walsh has been thrilled to play Second Clarinet and Bass Clarinet with Symphony Nova Scotia since October 2007. Formerly the associate principal and E-flat clarinet with the South Bend Symphony, Eileen earned her master of music degree and performer diploma from Indiana University, and her bachelor's degree at UBC. Currently, Eileen is on faculty as a clarinet instructor at Acadia and Dalhousie Universities, as well as at the Maritime Conservatory of Performing Arts. She performs regularly on the Music Room Chamber Music Series and Scotia Festival of Music, the Shattering the Silence new music festival at Acadia, and the Charlottetown Festival.