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ARTISTS

Angela Gjurichanin

Soprano

Praised for her “gentle and delicate tone” (NCOC), Macedonian-Canadian soprano Angela Gjurichanin brings warmth and expressive detail to both operatic and concert stages. This season, she makes her debut as soprano soloist in Messiah with Choral Connection and recently appeared as the Sandman/Dew Fairy in Hansel and Gretel with Grand River Opera and Adina (cover) in L’elisir d’amore with the North York Concert Orchestra. Other highlights include Zerlina in Don Giovanni, Nella in Gianni Schicchi, Adina in L’elisir d’amore, and Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro. 

On the concert stage, Angela has appeared with the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra in Bach’s St. John Passion, the Stratford Concert Choir in Haydn’s Missa in tempore belli, and the Milton Choristers and Regina Symphony Orchestra in Handel’s Messiah. A First Place winner of the Gordon Wallis Opera Competition and District Winner in the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition, she holds degrees from Western University and the University of Saskatchewan.

Hillary Tufford

Mezzo-soprano/contralto 

Hillary Tufford is a versatile and engaging performer, noted for a sound that is “lush and suave throughout,” (Opera Canada). This season, Hillary sang Cherubino in Le nozze di Figaro at Daegu Opera House, Korea. She looks forward to singing Messiah with St. James Cathedral Orchestra and The Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra. You can catch performances of her locally, singing Ms. Demers in City Workers in Love (Paul Davenport Theatre) and Helen in Water (FSA United).

The past season Hillary sang Messiah with The Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra, St. Matthew Passion at The Banff Centre, Mahler's Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen with Scarborough Philharmonic Orchestra, and she sang in Tim Albery’s The Garden of Vanished Pleasures, Soundstreams. 

Hillary was a District Winner in the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition. She holds an MMus. from Western University and she graduated from The Vancouver Opera Young Artist Program. Alongside performance, Hillary is a passionate voice teacher and has a private music studio.

Jacob Abrahamse

Tenor

Praised by Opera Canada as a “gifted tenor” with an impressively “beautiful timbre,” Jacob Abrahamse soon debuts at The Dallas Opera as The Snake/The Vain Man in Rachel Portman’s The Little Prince and performs as the tenor soloist in Haydn’s Die Schöpfung with the Peterborough Symphony Orchestra. A two-season Apprentice Singer at The Santa Fe Opera (2024–2025), he appeared as the Street Vendor in La bohème, Count Almaviva in Le nozze di Figaro, Tinca in Il Tabarro, and Little Bat in Susannah. At The Santa Fe Opera, he also covered roles in Le nozze di Figaro and Der Rosenkavalier. Abrahamse has sung Alfredo in La Traviata with Brott Opera and appeared as the tenor soloist in Mendelssohn’s Elijah with the Toronto Symphony and in Bach’s Mass in B Minor with the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir. He holds a Master of Arts from Trent University and a Bachelor of Music from the University of Toronto.

Aaron Dimoff

Bass-Baritone

Ontario born Aaron Dimoff is on the forefront of the new generation of Verismo singers in Canada. Recent seasons saw him debut the roles of Sparafucile and Monterone in Rigoletto to great acclaim with Edmonton Opera, in addition to performances of Messiah and Ein Deutsches Requiem with the Bow Valley Chorus and Calgary Festival Chorus. Earlier seasons saw him performing as a finalist in the COC Centre Stage competition in Toronto, as well as Marcheses D'Obigny in Edmonton Opera's La Traviata, and Sacristan in Calgary Oprea's Tosca. Notable operatic credits include Basilio in Il barbiere di Siviglia, British Major in Silent Night, Father in Hansel and Gretel, Collatinus in The Rape of Lucretia, and Der Sprecher in Die Zauberflote. Renown for his concert repertoire, Aaron has recently performed Elijah, Orff's Carmina Burana, and Faure's Requiem with the Firebird Symphony in Calgary, Ein Deutsches Requiem, Messiah, and Mozart's C minor Mass with the Choral Connection in St Thomas, and Elijah with the Oxford Collegium singers. This upcoming season includes performances of Messiah, Mozart's Requiem, and Carmina Burana.

Marianna Chibotar-Rutkevich

Accompanist

Marianna is an accomplished concert pianist holding a Master’s Degree in Piano Performance, Literature, and Musicology, and a Post-Master’s in Piano Performance and Pedagogy from the State University of Kishinev, Moldova, where she served as Associate Professor of Piano. Trained with renowned pedagogues from Russia, Ukraine, Romania, Germany, Holland, Brazil, and Australia, she has performed internationally in Prague, Athens, Rotterdam, Bucharest, Ettlingen, and Moscow. Praised for her musicality, technical mastery, and distinctive sound, she has received numerous awards and scholarships. Currently on the piano faculty at Western University’s Don Wright Faculty of Music, she is a respected instructor, mentor, and collaborative pianist. Her students have achieved success at national and international levels. Marianna has performed live for CBC Radio and Television, served as official pianist for major Canadian competitions, and is frequently invited as an adjudicator, clinician, and examiner while maintaining a full private studio in London, Ontario.

Fiona Short

Youth Performer

Fiona Short is a 13-year-old London-based vocalist and student at Lester B. Pearson School for the Arts. She trains in the Conservatory Canada vocal and piano programs with Mrs. Rachelle Courtney and studies commercial/professional voice with Canadian artist Amanda Kind. She also trains in ballet and multiple other dance genres, supporting her work as a versatile performer.

An accomplished young artist, Fiona has performed in three productions with the professional theatre company Drayton Entertainment, and has appeared in six productions with the London Performing Arts Academy. She also performs with POPNATION Canada.

Fiona is a 4× Ontario NATS Musical Theatre champion, 2× Pop category champion, and a 3× Kiwanis London Showcase winner. She was also a 2025 finalist in Canada’s Teen Jam talent search.

Expanding into film and TV, Fiona will appear in three upcoming 2026 releases, including a musical series in which she plays the lead, featuring original music by Nathan Fleet.

Fiona is passionate about singing and is thrilled to perform her first opera piece at the MET London Winter Holiday Opera Gala.

Jubilate Bells

The Jubilate Bells are the handbell choir at Metropolitan. They regularly perform at Met, attend handbells festivals and occasionally perform for special concerts, such as this evening.