“There is something different about this dynamic and
energetic powerhouse. She is fresh, vivacious, and
brings to the podium an exuberance that never wanes
from the first downbeat. A consummate musician and
world-class conductor!”
—Andrew Skoog, tenor / Professor of Voice
The University of Tennessee
Biography
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CONSTANTINA TSOLAINOU
schwawoman@sbcglobal.net
Constantina Tsolainou, the Paul S. and Jean R. Amos Chair in Conducting and Director of Choral Activities in the Schwob School of Music at Columbus State University, has held conducting positions at Southern Methodist University, Westminster Choir College, New England Conservatory, McGill University (Montreal, Quebec), Oregon State University, and Oklahoma City University. Ms. Tsolainou has also served as Artistic Director of the Canterbury Choral Society (Oklahoma City), Director of Music at Lovers Lane United Methodist Church, and Artistic Director of the Aria Chamber Chorus (Dallas, Texas). During her tenure at SMU, Ms. Tsolainou established the SMU/Dallas Vocal Arts Ensemble; while in Montreal she was the Artistic Director and Conductor of Anima Musica, an ensemble formerly known in Canada as the Donovan Chorale.
Ms. Tsolainou has presented workshops, master classes and concert performances in Australia, Canada, China, Europe, and throughout the U.S. In collaboration with James Jordan of Westminster Choir College, she developed the instructional video Ensemble Diction: Language and Style, Principles and Application, and participated in a second video entitled Group Vocal Technique: The Choral Ensemble Warm-up. Trained first as a singer, Ms. Tsolainou has appeared in opera and musical theatre productions in addition to numerous performances on the concert stage.
She has prepared choruses for operatic productions and other collaborative performances presented by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Columbus Symphony Orchestra (Ohio), Fort Worth Dallas Ballet, Ballet Oklahoma, Opera Columbus, Opera Festival of New Jersey, Tulsa Opera, and Voices of Change, SMU’s resident contemporary music ensemble. Conductors with whom she has worked include Leonard Bernstein, Charles Dutoit, Eric Ericson, Joseph Flummerfelt, Carlo Maria Giulini, Zubin Mehta, Riccardo Muti and Robert Shaw.
Academic
Positions
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Columbus State University
Southern
Methodist University
Westminster Choir College
Oregon State University
Oklahoma City University
McGill University
New England Conservatory
Professional Appointments
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ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
Aria Chamber Chorus, Dallas, TX
Canterbury Choral Society, Oklahoma City, OK
SMU/Dallas Vocal Arts Ensemble, Dallas, TX
Anima Musica (formerly Donovan Chorale), Montreal,
PQ
CHORUS
MASTER
Tulsa Opera, Tulsa, OK
Opera Festival of New Jersey, Lawrenceville, NJ
Opera Columbus/Columbus Symphony Orchestra, Columbus,
OH
DIRECTOR
OF MUSIC
Lovers Lane United Methodist Church, Dallas, TX
Publications
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Ensemble
Diction: Language and Style, Principles and Application
Group Vocal Technique: The Choral Ensemble Warm-up
Instructional Videos Produced by Hinshaw Music,
Inc., Chapel Hill, NC
