Keeping the beat!
Artistic Staff
Roger Cole, Artistic Director & Senior Orchestra Conductor
Roger Cole has led the Senior Orchestra and served as Artistic Director for 7 seasons. He is also the Principal Oboist with The Vancouver Symphony and a much admired teacher at the University of British Columbia. His summers are spent playing Principal Oboe in the Carmel (California) Bach Festival Orchestra and he has made summer appearances at the National Youth Orchestra of Canada, The Courtenay Youth Music Centre, and most recently at the Symphony Orchestra Academy of the Pacific in Powell River.
Born in Seattle,Washington, Roger is a graduate of the Juilliard School in New York City. Vncouver Symphony Orchestra Music Director Bramwell Tovey praises Roger as an "inspirational musician whose love of music and infectious spirit will resonate with these children for the rest of their lives."
Jin Zhang, Intermediate Orchestra Conductor
Jin Zhang,
fondly known as Jack, is a conductor and composer who was raised in Beijing,
China. After completing his basic musical education at the Central Conservatory
of Music in Beijing, he travelled to Japan where he studied conducting
at Toho Gauken School of Music in Tokyo with Professor Morihiro Okabe.
He also studied with former VYSO and VSO conductor Maestro Kazuyoshi Akiyama,
and has taken master classes with renowned conductor, Seiji Ozawa.
Jack also holds the position of Music Director and Conductor for the New Westminster Symphony Orchestra. He is known for his work with the BC Chinese Music Association Ensemble. Jack composed for the Vancouver Chinese Cultural Centre's Millenium Project and wrote the music and soundtrack for the television documentary, "Nu Shu".
Margitta Krebs, Debut & Junior Music Director and Orchestra Conductor
Margitta Krebs is celebrating her 25th season as Conductor of the Vancouver Youth Symphony Orchestra's two junior string orchestras. She has now seen a generation of VYSO musicians proceed from Debut to Senior ranks and is proud to have launched them. Over the past quarter century, the Debut and Junior String orchestras have tripled in size under Margitta's enthusiastic leadership.
Margitta is a native Vancouverite. She obtained her Master's degree in Music from UBC and has participated in international Teacher and Conductors workshops in Austria, Switzerland, Scotland and Norway. Well known for her large private teaching practice, Margitta is a dedicated and passionate teacher to musicians of all ages. She is also an avid chamber music player and performs regularly in various ensembles.
