Frances Chiasson, Founder and Artistic Director
Frances holds Bachelor of Music and Bachelor of Education degrees from the School of Music at the University of British Columbia (Vancouver, BC) where she studied piano with Dr. Terence Dawson and choral conducting with Prof. James Fankhauser. Frances has taught choral and instrumental music in primary and secondary schools and choral methods at the University of Calgary. She has conducted numerous choirs in school, community and church settings, including Lacuna Women’s Choir (UK), Amabile Girls’ Choir (UK), Donna Amabile Women’s Choir (UK), Queen Katherine School Chamber Choir (UK), Mount Royal Children’s Choir (Calgary), Scarboro United Church Children’s, Youth and Adult Choirs (Calgary), West Point Gray Academy Choirs (Vancouver) and Forest Lawn School Choir (Calgary). She has worked as a choral clinician and adjudicator in local music festivals and as a piano accompanist for choirs, singers and instrumentalists.
From 2006 until 2014, Frances and her family lived in the UK where she worked as a choral conductor, a private voice and piano teacher, and was a frequent leader of singing workshops in Lancashire schools. In 2014 she relocated back to Canada and now lives and works as a choral conductor in Kelowna, B.C., working with with the Okanagan Children’s Choir and as Minister of Music at Central Okanagan United Church. Frances is the president of the BC Choral Federation, a member of Choral Canada and Chorus America, and is a certified teacher in the province of British Columbia. And she is Mom to Sophia and Noah.
Taylor Bone, Music Director of Okanagan Youth Choir
Taylor Bone received her Bachelor of Music degree and teaching certificate from UVic in 2006, and her Masters in Music in Choral Conducting with Graeme Langager at UBC in 2017. From 2009-2017, Taylor worked as a full time high school choir director at Point Grey Secondary in Vancouver, where she directed ensembles from grade 8 to 12 including concert choirs, chamber choirs, musical theatre, vocal jazz ensembles, women’s and men’s choirs. While at graduate school, Taylor directed the UBC Women’s Choir and co-directed the UBC Chamber Choir alongside fellow graduate students.
Taylor moved to Lake Country in 2017 and has worked with local choirs and bands at elementary, middle school, and high school levels. Taylor was a member of the BC Choral Mentorship Program founded in Vancouver – a group dedicated to continued development of choral conductors and technique – and helped create an Okanagan Chapter of BCCMP in the summer of 2018.
Taylor has worked as a clinician and workshop facilitator both locally and internationally, and has presented at the provincial BC Music Educators Conference on a number of occasions. Currently, along with her work as Music Director of Okanagan Youth Choir, Taylor works as a music teacher at H.S.Grenda Middle School in Lake Country, and is a mom to two littles of her own.
Jessica Crawford, Collaborative Pianist for OCC & OYC
Jessica Crawford, B.A(Mus), ARCT (Piano Performance), ARCT (Vocal Performance), RMT, NATS, RCM Advanced Specialist Piano, RCM Intermediate Specialist Theory, Member of the BCRMTA (Kelowna Branch).
Jessica Crawford has been involved in music since the age of five, and has been studying piano since age nine. She began her studies under Lucy Feldman of the Vernon Community Music School, and completed her Grade 10 Royal Conservatory while in high school.
In 2003, she was admitted into the music program at the University of Alberta, Augustana Campus. While there, she studied piano under Dr. Milton Schlosser, and voice under Joy-Anne Murphy. Jessica completed her Piano Performance ARCT through the Royal Conservatory in 2011, and finished her Vocal Performance ARCT in 2018. She obtained her Advanced Specialization in Piano and Intermediate Specialization in Theory through the Royal Conservatory in 2016.
Jessica settled in Kelowna BC in 2008, and has been teaching at the Kelowna Community Music School since. Jessica also served as the Artistic Director of the Kelowna Community Music School from 2020-2023.
Apart from teaching, Jessica also works as accompanist with the music ministry team for Central Okanagan United Church, accompanist for the Spectrum Singers, and accompanist for the Okanagan Children’s Choir and Okanagan Youth Choir. In her spare time, Jessica expresses her art through weaving (www.twilightvalleyhandwovens.
Angela Schjodt, Music Director of OCC Explorers
Angela is a passionate music teacher devoted to nurturing young voices. With a background in performance and 20 years in education, Angela brings a playful approach to the music room, creating a vibrant environment where children can explore their voices in a safe and celebratory environment. Angela tailors engaging lessons, fostering creativity and fundamental skills with the goal of cultivating a lifelong love of music in her students.
Rachael Pauls, Co-director and Collaborative Pianist for OCC Explorers