VIVA Singers Toronto

VIVA was founded in 2000 by Carol Woodward Ratzlaff in response to widespread cuts to public school arts programs. As a lifelong vocal music educator, she believes that every person should have access to a singing experience. With this in mind, VIVA is committed to putting chorister voice at the forefront of our organization through the core values of performance artistry, vocal music education, inclusion, leadership and mentoring, and community. VIVA offers diverse musical programming - including regular performance and international touring opportunities, chorister composition collaborations, digital musical literacy, Orff - based creation activities, and commissioned works and partnerships with distinguished musicians and composers. Ongoing partnerships include those with The National Ballet of Canada, The Toronto Consort, Jumblies Theatre, and Trinity-St. Paul’s Centre for Faith, Justice and the Arts. VIVA’s Choral Mentoring and Leadership Program provides young leaders and aspiring educators with opportunities to assist and instruct singers of all ages and needs. This unique program is essential to VIVA’s structure, as from it are drawn Teaching Assistants, Conductors and Vocal Coaches to work with singers in most of our choirs. VIVA’s responsive pedagogy and innovative approach is readily adaptable for "at home learning". Our seven choirs bring people of all ages, all abilities, and all levels of musical experience together through the power of choral music. We continue to push boundaries by applying current research in vocal pedagogy (including transgender voices, changing adolescent voices, supporting aging voices, etc.), vocal music education, inclusion studies, and academia to best meet the needs of our singers. At the heart of VIVA’s family of choirs is the Every Voice Matters Chorus, a chorus of teens and adults with disabilities. We continue to advocate for all voices, and push for inclusivity to ensure that anyone who enjoys music is welcomed.