Adjudicators
Eric Hudspith
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Eric Hudspith is an accomplished conductor and double bass player. He recently retired from York Region District School Board where he was the Department Head of Music at Alexander Mackenzie High School, a regional Arts school. He has conducted ensembles of all ages and types, including York Symphony Orchestra, concert bands, chamber orchestras, jazz bands, and choirs. His performing groups have regularly been invited to Music Fest nationals, and his chamber orchestra placed second in the Kiwanis Music Festival Ontario finals. Eric founded and acted as music director of the York Symphony Youth Orchestra for many years. He has extensive experience in musical theatre and has been Executive Producer and Music Director for over 25 musicals.
Eric has been performing on the double bass since grade seven. He has a degree in double bass performance from York University. Eric was the Principal Bass for the York Symphony Orchestra for many years. He has also performed with Cathedral Bluffs Orchestra, Etobicoke Symphony, Kindred Spirits Orchestra, Mississauga Symphony, North York Symphony, Orion Symphony Orchestra, and Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra. In musical theatre, Eric has performed on double bass and electric bass guitar with various community theatre groups in shows such as Cabaret, Little Shop of Horrors, Sound of Music, and West Side Story.
Fabio Biagiarelli
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Fabio Biagiarelli earned both his undergraduate and Master of Arts degrees from York University. He further enhanced his academic credentials by obtaining a Bachelor of Education from the University of Toronto. With three decades of experience, Biagiarelli has instructed music in various educational settings, including both public and private institutions. Beyond teaching the Ontario curriculum, he has extensive expertise delivering the International Baccalaureate music program over many years.
Throughout his career, Biagiarelli has guided numerous music ensembles to prestigious festivals and served as an adjudicator for guitar performances. His leadership has enabled student musicians to participate in international tours across the United States, Europe, and China, where they not only performed but also immersed themselves in diverse musical traditions. As a musician himself, he has contributed his talents as a guitarist in various pop, rock, and jazz ensembles. His personal musical interests extend to composition and staying current with emerging music technology.
Biagiarelli is renowned as a dedicated, dynamic, innovative, and passionate music educator whose impact on the field of education is substantial. He is distinguished by his instructional approaches that successfully engage students of all learning styles, creating transformative educational experiences that have profoundly influenced countless young musicians throughout his career.
Robert Longo
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Robert Longo enjoys a diversified career as Singer/Actor and Teacher. Theatre credits: Javert/Les Miserables (US National Tour); The Beast /Beauty and the Beast; Anatoly in Chess in Concert; Smudge and Frankie/ Forever Plaid; Lancelot/ Camelot; several roles with The Westben Festival Theatre and Toronto Operetta Theatre and Victoria Playhouse, Petrolia. Film & TV: Christmas, Inc. (Hallmark), Saving Hope (TV series), Murdoch Mysteries (TV series). Bob has been featured on opera and concert stages all across North America. Teaching: Vocal Music with the Toronto Catholic District School Board and, while living in New York, CAP 21, New York University and William Patterson University.
Allison Arends
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Allison Cecilia Arends is noted for her “lyrical upper tones” and “empathetic acting” (Opera Canada), as well as voice that is “stunningly beautiful [and is] used with great sensitivity” (Hnatyshyn Foundation).
Allison first found her love for music singing in her high school vocal jazz ensembles, attending rock music festivals, and furthering her love of classical music in her post-secondary studies. Allison is a graduate of Calgary Opera’s Emerging Artist Program and holds a Master of Music from the University of Toronto Opera School and a Bachelor of Music from the University of Victoria Voice Performance Program. Having performed across Canada, the United States, Germany, Austria, Italy, England, Israel, and China, she is an avid interpreter of opera, oratorio, chamber, and recital repertoire. She has been the recipient of numerous awards and grants, including the Hnatyshyn Foundation Artist’s Grant, a Metropolitan Opera Encouragement Award, a B.C Arts Council Senior Award, and prizes through the Spazio Musica opera competition in Italy, the Barrie Alexander international voice competition, and the Joy in Singing art song competition in New York, among others.
In addition to her performing, Allison has maintained a busy private voice and music theory studio in Toronto for almost 20 years, where she takes a great deal of joy in imparting her musical knowledge to students from various musical backgrounds of all age groups. Her students have worked as singer-songwriters, sung in rock and pop bands, and graced the stage in classical and musical theatre contexts alike. Allison is a voice examiner for the Royal Conservatory of Music and regularly adjudicates music festivals from coast to coast in the pop, musical theatre, and classical disciplines. Having formerly taught for St. Michael’s Choir School, Timothy Eaton Memorial’s Choir School, and as a teacher and clinician for Vox Choirs, Toronto Concert Choir, and Cantabile Chamber Singers, Allison has conducted choral, vocal, and educational workshops and masterclasses for the Edna Manley Music College in Jamaica, University of Mississippi, British Columbia Provincial Music Festival, Regina Conservatory of Music, Ryerson Oakham House Choir, Opera Atelier, and the Royal Canadian College of Organists, among others. Allison was thrilled to combine her passion for teaching, children, music, and social justice by co-founding and running a music camp for underprivileged children in Kingston, Jamaica with her friend and colleague, Jamaican-Canadian tenor, Paul Williamson.
Christopher Siu
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Christopher holds a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance from the University of Toronto, studying under Dr. James Parker and Dr. Boris Lysenko. He has also studied with world-renowned piano masters including Drs. John O’Conor, Jerome Lowenthal, Peter Bithell, John Perry, Robert Silverman and Edward Auer.
Christopher’s passion for music has earned him numerous top awards and grand prizes at compeLLons across Canada and the United States. Christopher took his RCM Grade 10 piano exam at the age of 11, achieving First Class Honours with Distinction with a mark of 95. He completed his Royal Conservatory of Music ARCT Diploma in Piano Performance at 14, also with Distinction.
Christopher has performed at Roy Thomson Hall and the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, as well as the CBC’s Glenn Gould Studio and the Niagara InternaLonal Chamber Music Festival over many years. At age 12, he was invited to perform with the NYCO Symphony Orchestra at their Season Finale Concert.
Christopher is an active collaborative pianist, covering a variety of classical and contemporary repertoire. He regularly accompanies at various festivals and recitals, working closely with musicians to bring out the best in every performance.
As a teacher and adjudicator, Christopher is passionate about sharing his insight and experience with the next generation of pianists through an active and encouraging approach. He guides students in developing their technique, touch, and musicality while exploring new artistic ideas, grounded in a clear understanding of each musical period’s style to support informed, faithful performances.
Christopher has served as an adjudicator at various festivals, with recent and upcoming engagements including the Toronto Kiwanis Music Festival, Yips Music Festival, North York Music Festival, Unionville Music Competition, Take the Stage Music Festival, North Hastings Music Festival, Durham Showcase Festival, and Arcadia Musicfest.
Dr. Tatiana Voitovitch-Camilleri
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Dr. Tatiana Voitovitch-Camilleri has attained her Ph.D. degree at York University, and is an alumna of The Glenn Gould School, holding the Artist Diploma Solo, and Master’s Degree from her homeland, Belarus. Tatiana had an extensive performance career in Europe–Poland, Germany, Austria, Portugal and France–and was a finalist and a prize-winner at various international piano competitions, and a participant in Master classes with world-renowned pianists. Her recordings are featured on YouTube, Spotify, iTunes and other musical platforms. Tatiana continued performing in Canada and maintained a successful teaching profile, bringing up young talents, many of whom continued their studies at the prestigious schools and universities across Canada and the US. Tatiana has taught at three Universities on two continents and participated in international cross-disciplinary conferences. She remains an active RCM Senior Examiner, and her career as an Adjudicator spans over two decades, which allows her to motivate and encourage performers in their musical pursuits.