Conference Speakers

Carole Gibb

Carole Gibb is the Co-ordinator for Classical Singing at the City Lit, one of the biggest adult education institutes in the country. The classical singing department alone has 28 workshop sessions weekly and now also has extra workshops at weekends, catering for students across the ability range; absolute beginners to professional. In addition to teaching there Carole is responsible for designing courses, organising concerts and events, and overseeing this programme for the college. As a performer, she began her career with the Welsh National Opera Company, later becoming a freelance solo artist and performing everything from Verdi to Gershwin, with the classic “end of the pier” summer show in between. Although still active as a freelance singer she now spends more of her time teaching, both privately and at the City Lit.

Luise Horrocks

Luise Horrocks studied at Somerville College, Oxford, Goldsmiths’ College, London, and at the Royal College of Music. Besides her work as a professional singer she has worked as a teacher with a wide range of pupils of all ages ranging from young beginners to adult professionals. She has taught in both the Junior and Senior departments of the Birmingham Conservatoire, in schools and in an extensive private practice. She has also trained and conducted the Wyre forest Young Voices and led many singing workshops and Master classes for singers and teachers. She has been a visiting Lecturer at the University of Birmingham, worked extensively as an adjudicator, and is a Senior Examiner for Trinity Guildhall with special responsibility for singing.

Edward Coomber

Edward Coomber is Sales and Financial Director of Coomber Electronics. The family owned company is over 100 years old and started manufacturing audio equipment for schools in the 1930’s. With the passing of cassettes, Coomber has invested heavily in their Real Time Digital Recorders which can record to CD, internal memory or USB memory sticks. Good quality recordings and playback, ease of use and robustness are their key selling points. All Coomber products are designed and manufactured in their modern factory in Worcester, not in China!

Janice Thompson

Janice Thompson trained at the Royal Academy of Music, is a qualified singing teacher with over 35 years experience, and a committed member of AOTOS. She has devoted many years to the study of the developing voice, has listened to and helped hundreds of singers of all ages and abilities, and has presented papers on the subject for both the British Voice Association and AOTOS. She is the Director of the JTPTrust, established in 2004, which provides classes and choirs, performance and assessment opportunities for children and young people, and regularly undertakes major performance projects, not least the commissioning of a Youth Opera, ‘Brunel: The Little Man in the Tall Hat’ by Betty Roe and Marian Lines, for the Brunel 2006 South-West Celebrations.

Jo McNally

Jo McNally was educated in the US and has been based in London since 1980. She has had a varied career as a music educator, adjudicator and singer, specializing in conducting young and developing choirs. She has taught classroom and choral music in both independent and international schools and has worked on projects for the education departments of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, Glyndebourne, the BBC and Spitalfields Festival.