Laura Brandt

The National Association of Teachers of Singing is pleased to announce Laura Brandt as the recipient of the 2025  Canadian Voice Pedagogy Award.

The award, providing $1,000 annually, supports Canadian candidates attending seminars, symposia, workshops on voice pedagogy or voice science. All NATS national and regional events, as well as other professional development opportunities, are eligible.

Brandt, a Calgary-based singer and voice teacher and a member of the NATS Southern Alberta Chapter, plans to use the award to attend the 11th International Congress of Voice Teachers in Toronto, July 31-August 3.

The Canadian Voice Pedagogy Award was developed by NATS member Lorna MacDonald, Lois Marshall Chair in Voice at the University of Toronto, to help provide opportunities for Canadian teachers, researchers and singers. MacDonald and the selection committee were inspired by Brandt’s application.

“As founder of the Canadian Voice Pedagogy Award, I am delighted that Laura Brandt is the 2025 recipient,” McDonald said. “She is a wonderful singer and a creative teacher whose outreach and teaching philosophy embraces diversity and belonging for all singers. Western Canada is fortunate to have her influence. Congratulations, Laura!”

Brandt expressed gratitude for the recognition of her work as a teacher.

“Receiving this award is such an encouragement to me as a voice teacher and music educator,” Brandt shared. “Private studio teaching can be isolating at times, and it means so much to have this support and affirmation from the wider NATS community, and to have my teaching efforts recognized with this award. I am very grateful for the opportunity for continued learning and professional development.”

Looking ahead to ICVT, Brandt noted that she is especially interested in the sessions on youth and pedagogy.

“I am looking forward to all of the sessions at ICVT, particularly those that relate to teaching children and young adults,” she said. “I work with a wide variety of students of different ages and stages, and I am constantly looking for new ideas and strategies to better support them in their musical pursuits. There is always so much to learn and ways to improve as a teacher, and I'm looking forward to the many learning opportunities at ICVT! Since the conference is in my home country this year I'm also excited to connect with colleagues and friends in Toronto.”

Brandt extended her appreciation to NATS and those who helped make the award possible.

“I would like to thank Lorna MacDonald for founding the Canadian Voice Pedagogy award and providing this opportunity for Canadian voice teachers specifically,” she added.

Congratulations, Laura!

About Laura Brandt

Laura Brandt is a singer and music teacher in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. She runs the Wildwood School of Music serving students of all ages in singing, piano, guitar, and theory. She is also a voice instructor at Mount Royal University Conservatory. She studied voice at Mount Allison University and the New England Conservatory, and was an Emerging Artist singer with Calgary Opera from 2013-2015. Brandt has been a soloist with Calgary Opera, the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, Theatre Calgary, Luminous Voices, The Richard Eaton Singers, The Festival Chorus, The Firebird Symphony and Chorus, Spiritus Chamber Choir, The Mountain View Chamber Festival, The Calgary Civic Symphony, Opera on the Avalon, and Cowtown Opera. In 2023, she was a featured opera soloist in the Calgary Stampede Grandstand Show. Recently, she was a soloist in Brahms’ Requiem on the Luminous Voices album “Fire Flowers.” Brandt has been a past treasurer in her local chapter of NATS Southern Alberta, and she is a member of the Alberta Registered Music Teachers Association. In her free time, she enjoys getting outdoors with her husband and son, hiking, running, video games, and knitting.

If you would like to support the Canadian Voice Pedagogy Award and future educators with a gift, please use the donation form through NATS Ontario.