Terry Pitt-Brooke
At age 17, Terry Pitt-Brooke had just won a national prize exam in physics and seemed bound for a career in computer science. Then he was chosen for the inaugural class of the Lester B. Pearson College of the Pacific in Victoria, Canada, and discovered a more compelling vocation: music. At University of Toronto, he earned a Bachelor of Music in composition, studying with Oskar Morawetz and Talivaldis Kenins, among others. Subsequently he studied conducting for a year with Jon Washburn, founder and director of the Vancouver Chamber Choir, and joined the VCC as a singer in 1984.
In 1987, he traveled to Madison, Wisconsin, to study for a Master’s degree under legendary choral conductor Robert Fountain. After returning to Vancouver in 1989, Mr. Pitt-Brooke worked as a conductor and educator in a wide range of situations: church, community choir, high school, college, and professional ensembles. In 2012 he was selected by Dr. Bruce Chamberlain for the DMA program at the University of Arizona School of Music. In addition to his choral studies, Terry studied orchestral conducting with Thomas Cockrell and voice with Elizabeth Futral. Last spring he finished his recitals and coursework for the doctorate and was lured back to the Okanagan with the prospect of co-directing Vernon’s Aura Chamber Choir for a semester.
In addition to his work with the Proms and Vernon’s Counterpoint choir, Terry is preparing the Opera Kelowna chorus for their August production of Carmen.