Throughout Norma Churchill’s thirty-five-year teaching career, she has worked at Appleby College, The Kingsway Conservatory of Music, St. Michael’s Choir School, and her own private studio, Cantare Music Studio. In addition, she has coached as a guest artist in Toronto District School Board arts schools, conducted master classes, and was program director of a musical theatre program for over 15 years. Norma is a long-standing member of the RCM College of Examiners and has adjudicated at various festivals across Canada.
In addition to her performance degree from the University of Toronto, Norma studied music and drama at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, the city in which she was born and raised. Norma continued her studies abroad with Vera Rozsa and Paul Hamburger of the Guildhall School of Music in London, also attending the Else Mayer-Lismann Opera Studio with coaches from Covent Garden. She went on to take courses at the Britten-Pears School of Music and the Beethoven Musikschule in Austria.
Norma’s extensive activity as a performer has influenced her approach to inspiring and establishing a solid musical foundation in her many voice students, from beginners to advanced. Her beautiful and expressive soprano voice has earned her a variety of operatic roles, chamber music, and solo oratorio opportunities both at home in Canada and abroad in Poland and England. While overseas, lessons in Alexander Technique impacted her approach to singing so profoundly that it became a foundation for her teaching.
Dedicated to lifelong learning, Norma continues to pursue professional development in vocal pedagogy, with a particular interest in the value of cross-training. She enjoys integrating cross-training techniques into her teaching, helping students explore a wide range of styles with flexibility, confidence, and vocal health. Today, she continues to teach at St. Michael’s Choir School and maintains a thriving studio in downtown Toronto.
