About the Author

Joan B. Heels, Ph.D.
Vocal Plus Studio
49 Glenmount Avenue
Hamilton, Ontario L8S 2L3

For voice and piano tuition, please contact  joanheels@aol.com
 

Education - Studies

Ph.D. (Music Education), Columbia Pacific University
M.A., Columbia Pacific University
B.Mus., McGill University,
B.A., Sir George Williams University
F.T.C.L. and L.T.C.L. (Performance), Trinity College, London
A.R.C.T. Special Diploma, The Royal Conservatory of Music

Professional Activities

Joan B. Heels has a thriving vocal and piano studio at her home in Hamilton, Ontario, where she teaches beginners to advanced students and prepares them for Royal Conservatory examinations. Although she specializes in teaching classical music, Dr. Heels teaches many musical styles including popular, musical theatre, and jazz.

Joan studied with Bernard Diamant (in Montreal), Madame Pauline Donalda (in Montreal), Pierre Bernac and Burton Garlinghouse (summer schools in the USA), Helen Hodam (in Austria at AIMS), William Eddy (Music Academy of the West, California), and Margaret Avard Wickett and Flora Everett (Hamilton). She also participated in choral workshops and concerts with noted choral conductors such as Robert Shaw, Roger Wagner, and Norman Luboff.

As an active member of Toastmasters, Dr. Heels gives workshops on evaluation techniques, judging contests, and parliamentary procedures. She has presented workshops outlining the benefits of taking voice examinations and giving feedback on mock examinations at those workshops.

Joan B. Heels has adjudicated music festivals across Canada and internationally in the Bahamas since 1974, adjudicating mostly vocal and choral classes, but also on occasion piano, brass and woodwind, strings, steel bands, and speech arts and drama.

Joan sang in solo recitals on CBC, Hamilton radio stations, and Austrian Broadcasting (during AIMS studies). She also performed in many choral activities with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra Choir and other leading choirs in Montreal on CBC, such as the Montreal Bach Choir and the George Little Singers. Dr. Heels was the co-founder and co-director of the Montreal Girls' Choir.

Joan Heels was a reviewer for The Conservatory's vocal repertoire series, Resonance. She also is the assistant editor and music typesetter for the SING series of songs for young singers, published by Leslie Music Supply, Inc. As an active member of Rotary, Zonta, and Toastmasters International, Dr. Heels is committed to community service and ongoing education.

Professional Affiliations

  • National Association Teachers of Singing (NATS)
  • Ontario Registered Music Teachers' Association (ORMTA)
  • American Choral Directors' Association (ACDA)
  • National Band Association (NBA)