Tim Chung Principal Conductor
Tim began his music training as a Choral Scholar at St Andrew’s Cathedral School and has devoted most of his life to teaching, conducting and singing. He has founded and directed many Sydney-based ensembles including the Willoughby Symphony Choir (chorus master/conductor), Coro Innominata (guest conductor), the Joubert Singers (musical director), Sydney Philharmonia Choirs (chorus master), VOX (foundation artistic director/conductor), Polyphony (founding artistic director/conductor) and Sydney University Musical Society (guest conductor/assistant chorus master).
He has also conducted Handel’s Messiah, Joseph and the Amazing Colour Dreamcoat (2007, 2011) The Sound of Music (2008) and Oliver (2009) for Artes Christi Performing Arts in the Seymour Centre, Sydney. In 2010, he was the Musical Director for MACKILLOP – The Musical, a season of 13 performances in Sydney and Melbourne to coincide with the canonisation of Australia’s first saint. He most recently conducted 8 performances of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s JOSEPH And The Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat, starring Gary Pinto, Jason Stevens and Joanna Cole. Tim is also conductor of the 400 voice Radio Community Chest Combined Church Choir’s annual performance of Handel’s Messiah. He is the fifth conductor to be appointed in the 71 year history of this popular event which is held in the Sydney Town Hall each December.
As a freelance singer, he has performed extensively in Sydney, Melbourne, Newcastle and Regional NSW and is regularly engaged as a soloist with the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra and Choir (Allegri, Buxtehude, Vivaldi, Handel, Mozart) under the direction of Paul Dyer, the alto soloist in over 30 cantatas for the Sydneian Bach Choir Cantata Series at Sydney Grammar School, Sydney University Graduate Choir (Bach, Handel, Charpentier), Coro Innominata (Purcell, Vivaldi, Bach), Newcastle University Choir (Messiah soloist 2004-8), Joubert Singers (Mozart, Haydn), St Andrew’s Cathedral Choir (Messiah soloist since 2003), The Marais Project (National Viol School), Recital with Tommie Andersson (Lute Songs), St Mary’s Cathedral Choirs (Handel, Mozart), Willoughby Orchestra and Choir (Purcell), Leichhardt Espresso Chorus (Orff), the SBS Youth Orchestra (Handel, Vivaldi), Sydney Sings Messiah (Town Hall), Orange Regional Conservatorium of Music (Messiah), the early music group La Folia, Thoroughbass, Consort 8 and The Renaissance Players. As a professional chorister, Tim has performed in numerous recordings and concerts with Cantillation for ABC Classics and the SSO, Pinchgut Opera (Handel, Purcell), the Song Company (Sydney Entertainment Centre with “The Priests”) and ACO Voices (Australian Chamber Orchestra). He was the countertenor soloist for the 2011 ABO season of “Celestial Vivaldi” in the Sydney and Melbourne Recital Hall. He is currently the Principal Conductor of the Macquarie University Singers, and after 20 years as Master of the Chapel Musick (Trinity Grammar School), Tim is now on staff at The King’s School and MLC School music departments.
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Joy Lalchere, MUS Rehearsal Accompanist
Joy Lalchere has been the regular accompanist for the Macquarie University Singers since 1988, and for the Willoughby Symphony Choir since 1995. In both she has been involved in concert performances as both pianist and harpsichordist. After graduating with degrees in piano performance and teaching from Sydney Conservatorium of Music and Sydney Teacher’s College, she spent several years with the Department of Education as a specialist music teacher in secondary schools.
Joy has worked with Sydney Philharmonia, Sydney University Musical Society, several community musical societies and with the Department of Education as a rehearsal pianist for the combined State Schools’ Choir.
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