The Postmodern Camerata presents: Midwinter Mysteries

Lynda Clarke, mezzo-soprano, completed her Bachelor of Music at the University of British Columbia School of Music.   While there, she was excited to sing with the University Singers under James Fankhauser and the University Chamber Singers under Cortland Hultberg.  Following university, Lynda studied with Selena James at the Victoria Conservatory of Music, and it was there that she performed opera and musical theatre, one of her favourite roles being Cherubino in Le Nozze di Figaro.  Lynda has also performed at Victoria’s Fringe Fest, Royal City Musicals, Applause! Musicals, Vancouver Cantata Singers and The Gallery Singers, and has done voice over work for various instructional DVDs.

Miriam Davidson is an accomplished singer and voice instructor. She was a principal alto singer in the Laudate Singers from 1996 to 2020, making her the longest serving member of the renowned choir. Since 2020, Miriam has been the manager of the Laudate Singers Society. She sang alto on all of the Laudate Singers’ CD releases Christmas Journey and Songs Of Heaven And Earth, A Baroque Christmas, Celtic Journey, Voices Sax & Synand Voice of the Tangoas well as on the Elektra Women’s Choir’s CD A Child Of Grace. In 2009, she toured Chiba, Japan with the Laudate Singers and Sinfonia. During the Christmas season, she sings in and manages an a cappella vocal ensemble Cami nando Carolers, the Angelus Singers and her seasonal solo voice & piano act. She has collaborated with accomplished musicians such as pianists Joel de Stefano and Jocelyn Pritchard, flautist Tanya Kliefoth and clarinetist Ross Curran. Her latest project with singers Melissa Howell, Andrea Unrau and Lia Wolfe is a vocal quartet called Serenata and Postmodern Camerata. 

Barry Honda has had a longstanding interest in Renaissance and Baroque music, and feels fortunate to have worked with a number of distinguished vocal coaches over the years, including Nancy Argenta, Daniel Taylor, Ben Butterfield, Robert Holliston, Bruce Pullan, Joseph Shore and others.  Past highlights include appearances as a soloist (Bach cantatas, passions, Handel Oratorios and other repertoire, including a CBC broadcast performance), singing in the Opera Atelier chorus under David Fallis, solo and ensemble work as principal singer with Laudate and Paragon Singers under Lars Kaario, as well as 20+ years with award-winning Chor Leoni and Christ Church Cathedral choirs.  In recent years, he has also enjoyed expanding his vocal repertoire to include a variety of genres, from operatic roles (Handel, Britten, Puccini, Mozart) through to jazz and contemporary music.

Melissa Howell began her life as a vocalist singing show tunes in the Creston Valley Community Choir. Mentored at an early age by a wonderful singer and voice teacher, (and conductor of said choir) she went on to complete her classical vocal training at UBC and McGill University, where she completed a Master’s Degree in Vocal Performance. While living in Montreal, Melissa performed in modern and traditional opera, recital and oratorio. She also distinguished herself by busking in old Montreal singing operatic duets (and even a couple of show tunes) with a fellow McGill student!

Locally, Melissa has performed with Opera Breve, Applause! Musical Theatre, Opera Appassionata, the Opera Project and for various private functions. She is currently on the Executive of the Postmodern Camerata and has performed in all of their concerts as both ensemble member and soloist.

Recent performances include Dido in Dido and Aeneas with the Postmodern Camerata, and also a gala outreach concert of opera featuring four soloists, sponsored by Opera Bravissima, held in the downtown east side.

Melissa has broadened her repertoire to include well-loved jazz standards and has performed at several functions with tenor saxophonist Graham Howell. She currently performs with and manages her a cappella trio, Angelus Singers, who are in great demand over the holiday season.

Nicole Linaksita has performed solo and chamber concerts in Canada, USA and Europe. A participant in national and international competitions, she was awarded First Place, Audience and Teacher’s Prizes at the 2011 Seattle International Piano Competition and was the third prize winner in the 42^nd Eckhardt-Gramatté Competition. She was featured on the CBC 2019 list of 30 hot Canadian classical musicians under 30 for her first prize win at the 2019 CMC Stepping Stone Competition.

Nicole has frequently performed the works of contemporary composers and her interest in new music has also led her to work with a number of composers, including Dorothy Chang and Yota Kobayashi. 

Nicole has had the opportunity to debut with various orchestras such as the Vancouver Philharmonic Orchestra, the Vancouver Academy of Music Orchestra, the Vancouver Metropolitan Orchestra, and the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra.

Nicole completed undergraduate studies in Piano Performance and Computer Science at the University of British Columbia in 2016, studying under Corey Hamm and Ryo Yanagitani, receiving the Director’s Graduation Prize for Outstanding Piano Performance. She recently graduated from her Masters of Music at the University of Texas in Austin under the tutelage of Professor Anton Nel.

Described by ReviewVancouver as a “mellifluous tenor”, Brent MacKenzie is a graduate of the University of British Columbia, holding a Bachelor of Music and a Master of Music.  In 2022, Brent appeared in City Opera Vancouver’s world premiere of Chinatown as The Policeman, and lent his talents to the original cast recording.  Brent has sung in the chorus for Vancouver Opera since 2023, first appearing in The Flying Dutchman.  Brent is very excited to be making his debut with the Postmodern Camerata!

Mezzo-soprano Kim Steger has been performing with The Postmodern Camerata since 2015. She studied classical singing at UBC, then followed her love of the complementary arts of drama and dance to Boston, where she earned a Master’s degree in Musical Theatre at The Boston Conservatory. After performing in Boston, New York, New Jersey, and Toronto, Kim returned to Vancouver where she has enjoyed acting and singing in a variety of local productions, most recently Wrenched: the Musical at the Vancouver Fringe Festival, Amélie at the Firehall Arts Centre, and A Prayer for Owen Meany at Pacific Theatre.