Royal Voices of Charlotte - USA
The Royal Voices of Charlotte were formed in 2019 by Dr. Justin Smith, Director of Choral Activities at Queens University, as a high-level, auditioned chamber choir, bringing together Queens students and experienced community singers, many of whom are music educators themselves, to rehearse and perform repertoire of all types at the highest possible level. Last season found them performing at North Carolina ACDA's state conference, in collaboration with Bach Akademie Charlotte, and on the stage of Carnegie Hall in New York City.
Dr. Justin Smith is an Assistant Professor of Music, Director of the Music Program, and Director of Choral Activities at Queens University of Charlotte, where he conducts three choirs, leads the music program, and teaches courses in music history, conducting, and film music. For six years he was the Director of Choral Activities and holder of the Joseph Naumes Endowed Chair in Music at Marylhurst University in Portland, Oregon. In 2019, he founded the Royal Voices of Charlotte, which this past season performed at the NCACDA state conference, in collaboration with Bach Akademie Charlotte, and at Carnegie Hall, New York City. Dr. Smith is also the founder and director of the Portland Phoenix Chamber Choir, Portland, Oregon, winning awards at choral competitions in Ireland, Italy, and Latvia, and appearing by invitation at the Northwest Conference of the American Choral Directors Association in Spokane, WA. He holds the DMA in Choral Conducting from the Moores School of Music, University of Houston, with additional degrees from Wesleyan University and the University of Oregon.