Our Artistic Director

Lucas Harris joined the Toronto Chamber Choir as its full-time artistic director starting with the 2014–15 season.

Lucas is one of Canada’s busiest early music performers. After 16 years performing as a lutenist with ensembles in Canada, the USA, and Europe, he made the decision to broaden his musical career by training as a choral conductor. He completed his M.Mus in choral conducting at the University of Toronto with Dr. Hilary Apfelstadt, funded by a prestigious SSHRC research grant not often awarded to those in performance degrees at the master's level. Lucas has been a guest music director with the Pacific Baroque Orchestra, the Ohio State University Opera program, Vox Angelica, Les Voix Baroques, and the Toronto Consort.

Lucas studied early music in Italy at the Civica scuola di musica di Milano (as a Marco Fodella Foundation scholar) and in Germany at the Hochschule für Künste Bremen. Following his European studies, he worked professionally in New York City for five years until making Toronto his home in 2004.  He serves as lute instructor and vocal coach at the Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Institute as well as at the Oberlin Conservatory’s Baroque Performance Institute, where he now serves as chorusmaster. He has also taught at the Vancouver Early Music Festival’s Baroque Vocal Programme, the International Baroque Institute at Longy, and the Canadian Renaissance Music Summer School. He regulary gives lectures and masterclasses on vocal and instrumental performance practice.

In addition to his regular engagements with Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra, he has worked with the Helicon Foundation, Circa 1500, Apollo’s Fire, Les Voix Baroques, the Smithsonian Chamber Players, The Harp Consort, the Boston Early Music Festival orchestra, Les Délices, and many other ensembles. He is the founding member of the Toronto Continuo Collective, the Vesuvius Ensemble (dedicated to Southern Italian folk music), and the Lute Legends Ensemble (a multi-ethnic trio of lute, pipa, and oud). Lucas has also played with several modern-instrument groups, including the Boston, St. Louis, and Montreal Symphony Orchestras, the Metropolitan Opera, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, and Via Salzburg.

The choir is delighted to be working with such a knowledgeable, skilled, and imaginative artistic director. You can learn more about his professional activities at www.lucasharris.ca.

To contact Lucas, please send an email to musicdirector@torontochamberchoir.ca.