Choir Section Leads

MATTHEW TISSI knew as a youngster that he was destined for the stage. At twelve, he began his professional career in the Mirvish production of Rogers and Hammerstein’s The Sound of Music. He now has more than thirteen years working in television as an actor and singer. He is proud to be a working television actor and a current member of both ACTRA and Equity. Matthew is considered a compelling storyteller and has performed with the Canadian Opera Company, the Canadian Children’s Opera Company, the Toronto Symphony and Mirvish productions. The choir is fortunate to have his deep baritone voice supporting so many of the recordings made for Kingsway-Lambton United Church Worships at Home recordings. Matthew holds both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Vocal Performance from the University of Toronto.

DANTE MULLIN-SANTONE: Canadian baritone Dante Mullin Santone is an eclectic performer currently pursuing a Masters of Opera at the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Music. He is excited to song the role of Beaupertuis in their upcoming production of Nino Rota's Il capello di paglia di Firenze, and Le Roi in their production of Massenet'd Cendrillon. He also completed his Bachelor of Music at the Faculty of Music studying under Wendy Nielsen.  There, he sang roles such as Il Ufficer in Il barbiere di Siviglia and Man #1 in Copland’s The Tender Land. He was recently a fellow with the Toronto Summer Music “Art of Song” program, and he’s been a Sidgwick Scholar with the Orpheus Choir of Toronto since 2020, with whom he sang Brahms’ Ein Deutsches Requiem in 2022. Recent performance highlights include the premiere of Evan Tanovich’s Missa Solemnis in D(Sinfonietta Aionia and Concreamus Chamber Choir,) the premiere of Allan Bevan’s “Perfectly Mad”, singing the role of Rintrah(Orpheus Choir of Toronto,) and his artist residency with Shoestring Opera in their touring production of The Shoestring Magic Flute in the role of Papageno.

SIMON VANDENBERG is a recent graduate of the University of Toronto (U of T) where he earned a Bachelor of Music in Music Education (Classical Voice) under the tutelage of Gregory Dahl. Simon is an active baritone in Toronto’s vibrant choral scene as a member of the Concreamus Chamber Choir and the Toronto Festival Singers as well as an assistant conductor with Viva Singers Toronto. He also teaches piano and voice privately. Simon holds a U of T Excellence Award which funded him to assist in qualitative research regarding advocacy discourses in music education this summer 2023. In previous years, Simon has been a part of the chorus in U of T’s production of Il barbiere di Siviglia and held the position of Choral Assistant at Community Music Schools of Toronto. Simon plans to apply for Master’s of Music Therapy programs.

RIANNA ROBINSON grew up in Nova Scotia in a small town called Windsor with her grandparents. As a little girl, singing did not come naturally. Her grandmother said: “the poor little thing can’t carry a tune.” But when she was determined to get a role in the elementary school musical, things changed. Determination won her a part. At fourteen, her first opera debut was as the First Spirit in The Magic Flute by Mozart, and she never looked back. She knew then she wanted to study music and become a professional singer, and the place to make her dreams come true she felt was Toronto and the Faculty of Music. She has been determined to reach for goals and casting opportunities. Her most surprising audition was for a dancing part. The director wanted to see if she could dance, so everyone around the table started beating a rhythm, and she danced and was awarded the role. A recent grad with a Master’s in Voice Performance, Rianna plans now to audition for young artist programs and hopefully perform live again.

CAMILLE LABONTE is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance at the University of Toronto in the studio of Monica Whicher, and is a graduate of the Etobicoke School of the Arts Musical Theatre program. She is an active young performer as both a soloist and choral singer, and has received many accolades for her singing, including honourable mentions in both ARCT and Grade 10 RCM voice at the Ontario Music Festivals Association Provincial Finals. Camille is presently part of the undergraduate opera program at UofT, where in the 2022/23 season, she covered the roles of Ernestine in Offenbach's Monsieur Choufleuri restera chez lui and First Woman in Arthur Benjamin's A Tale of Two Cities. In summer 2022, she made her operatic debut as Poppea in Monteverdi's The Coronation of Poppea (Opera NUOVA). She has also been part of numerous choral ensembles, including the 2018 Ontario Youth Choir, and currently, the Concreamus Chamber Choir, which collaborates with emerging Canadian Composers.