Audrey Coates has been surrounded by music and theatre ever since birth.  At age 8 she had two years of piano under her belt and had begun singing with the award-winning Perth County Youth Choir.  Her love of music grew through high school as she learned flute and then trumpet, playing with jazz, symphonic, and orchestral bands.

Audrey is a musical chameleon, specializing in both accompanied and a capella choral music, as well as classical, operatic and jazz solo performance. She has studied voice technique with Chris Fischer for over three years and has completed grade 9 voice at the Royal Conservatory of Music.  Audrey also has ten years of piano study under various teachers. Audrey sings with several local groups, including the improvisational music and dance group Choir in Motion, the professional parish choir of St. John the Evangelist in Elora, and the Gryphon Singers (University of Guelph Chamber Choir). The Gryphon Singers are privileged to perform with the Guelph Symphony Orchestra on a regular basis, and participate in events such as the Guelph Jazz Festival and the Elora Festival. The Gryphon Singers were invited to the prestigious Choral Canada conference and festival 2018, Podium on the Edge, where they performed an exacting repertoire of up to 13-part a cappella pieces; the program ranged from Gregorian chant improvisation, to the Renaissance, to the world premiere of a piece by Leonard Enns. The choir also had the chance to sing the multimedia symphony “Nordic Light” supervised by the composer (come all the way from Latvia), Ēriks Ešenvalds.

Audrey teaches voice and piano, and loves exploring different genres and sharing music with students of all ages.  With each student she aims to foster an intrinsic motivation to create music, leading to a deeper self-confidence and understanding of harmony and underlying theory. Her number one goal is to see every student performing music they sincerely enjoy.

Audrey holds a BSc in Biology and minor in French from the University of Guelph. When Audrey isn’t teaching she’s often nose-deep in a good book, or taking pictures of her cats. She aspires to someday be a member of the Canadian Opera Company and the drummer in a rock band.