Brian Wismath began his education in choral music as a chorister in the Toronto Mendelssohn Youth Choir, under the direction of Robert Cooper. After completing a Bachelor of Music at Queen’s University (Ontario, Canada), Brian received a Masters of Music in choral conducting from the University of Arizona (Arizona, USA). He has studied conducting, in Canada, the United States and Sweden, with Bruce Chamberlain, Robert Cooper, Anders Eby, Kenneth Kiesler, Robert Page, Donald Portnoy, Helmuth Rilling, Dale Warland, Jon Washburn, and William Weinert.
He began his conducting career as music director for the Queen’s University Student Opera production of Hansel und Gretel (Humperdinck) and The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat (Michael Nyman) in 2003. In 2005, he conducted Bastien und Bastienne (Mozart) in addition to a concert of twentieth and twenty-first century chamber music including Ernest Bloch’s Concerto Grosso No. 1, works by Oliver Knussen and Glenn Gould.
Brian conducted the Vancouver Chamber Choir, in 2006, as a participant in the Conductor’s Symposium concert broadcast on CBC Radio. During this time he founded the Tucson Chamber Choir and was appointed director of the Tucson Masterworks Chorale.
In 2008, he founded Toronto Chamber Opera Productions, dedicated to performing contemporary chamber works. Their inaugural production of Three Operas in One Hour featured commissioned opera, O D’Amarti O Morire by American composer Peter Fischer, as well as, A Hand of Bridge (Barber), and Dieppe by Canadian composer Matt Tozer.
During 2007-2009, Brian served as the associate conductor of the Orpheus Choir of Toronto and assistant conductor for the Opera in Concert Chorus (Ontario, Canada), Chorus Niagara (Ontario, Canada) and the Ontario Youth Choir. In addition, he was assistant music director at St. Francais de Sales (Arizona, USA) and director of Music at the Church of St. Bride (Ontario, Canada).
A recipient of the Ontario Arts Council residency grant, Brian pursued advanced conducting studies in Stockholm, Sweden from 2009-2010, with Professor Anders Eby. During this time he was a guest lecturer at the Royal College of Music, a member of the St. Jacob’s Chamber Choir (Gary Graden – director) and the Royal College of Music Chamber Choir (Anders Eby – director). In additional, Brian was a regular guest conductor of the St. Jacob’s Youth Choir, directed by Mikael Wedar.
Currently living on Vancouver Island, off the west coast of Canada, Brian is the director of the Victoria Conservatory of Music Chorale, the University of Victoria Chamber Singers and Vox Humana.
