A graduate of the Opera division, Vilma Indra Vitols sang numerous roles at the University of Toronto, including Cherubino (The Marriage of Figaro) and Iolanthe (Iolanthe).  Other operatic credits include the title role in Bizet’s Carmen for Summer Opera Lyric Theatre, Nancy in Britten’s Albert Herring with the Britten-Pears School in Aldeburgh, England, Hansel in Humberdinck’s Hansel and Gretel with the Canadian Opera Company’s Outreach tour, and 3^rd Lady in Opera Atelier’s 2001 production of Mozart’s The Magic Flute at the Elgin Theatre in Toronto.  Recent engagements include Lucy Brown in Kurt Weill’s Threepenny Opera with Vancouver Opera in March 2004 and the roles of Nymphe Guerriere and Venus in Lully’s Persée with Opera Atelier in April 2004.  During the current season, she was the understudy for the role of Serena Joy in Ruders' The Handmaid's Tale produced by the Canadian Opera Company.
 
Vilma has been the alto soloist in many oratorios, including Bach’s St. John’s Passion, Handel’s Messiah, Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass and Missa Sancti Nicolai, the Requiems of Mozart and Duruflé, and has been a featured soloist in concert with the St. Lawrence String Quartet, Mooredale Concerts, Niagara International Chamber Music Festival, Toronto Operetta Theatre.  As a recipient of the Royal Over-Seas League Scholarship, she gave several recitals in London, England and is a frequent recitalist for the Latvian communities in Canada and the United States.  As the First Prize winner at the 22^nd Annual Eckhardt-Gramatté National Music Competition for Voice 1999, Vilma completed a recital tour across Canada in the fall of 1999.
 
A frequent performer of new music, Vilma has performed with Continuum at the Massey Hall New Music Festival and has had several works written for her by various Canadian composers including John Hawkins and Talivaldis Kenins.  In the summer of 2000, she was alto soloist in the world premiere of Recordare by Canadian composer Imant Raminsh and in the Canadian premiere of Penderecki’s Credo, both works condoucted by the composers.  In May 2001, she premiered a new music and dance work flotsam and jetsam by Toronto composer Juliet Palmer as part of the Open Ears Festival in Kitchener, reprising her role in the Toronto premiere of this work at Artword Theatre in December 2002.  In February 2003, Vilma made her debut with Modern Baroque Opera in Vancouver performing the title role in the premiere of Peter Hannan’s and peer Hinton’s The Diana Cantata.
 

Josh was the recipient of the Queen Elizabeth Silver Jubilee Scholarship as well as the Ontario-Quebec Exchange Fellowship. As a vocal accompanist, coach and repetiteur he has had the privilege of working with some of the finest singers in Canada including Theodore Baerg, Irena Welhasch Baerg, Mary Lou Fallis, Nathalie Paulin, Jackalyn Short, Sean Watson and Laura Whalen. He was the repetiteur for Orchestra London's presentation of Donizetti's L'Elisir d'amore in 2001 and  a repetiteur at the Banff Centre in 2002 and 2003 for the Opera as Theatre Program and for the Banff Centre production of Filumena by John Estacio. This past summer he premiered Songs of Wood and Water by Vancouver composer Dorothy Chang with soprano Khori Dastoor at Songfest in Malibu, California. In addition he was on Faculty as a vocal accompanist and coach at the Icicle Creek Summer Music Festival in the Cascade Mountains outside of Seattle.  He performed there with such artists as mezzo-soprano Gayle Shay, soprano Juliana Gondek and violinist Maria Newman.

Josh's upcoming performances in the 2004-2005 season include recitals at the Wolf Performance Hall in London with mezzo-soprano Vilma Indra Vitols, the Madawaska String Quartet and soprano Monica Whicher with whom he will also appear  in recital in New York City.