Biography

Joanna Estelle is a Canadian composer, lyricist, and arranger who has won the critical acclaim of audiences from Parliament Hill, Ottawa to London, England and Barcelona, Spain. She studied classical piano and basic theory with the Royal Conservatory of Music (Toronto) as a young person, but was not encouraged by her family to pursue music as a career. She graduated in Psychology and English, then went on to study management accounting. However, her enthusiasm for music and composition never waned. While building a successful professional career in the federal public service, Joanna channeled her creative energies into musical composition and pursued private studies in modern piano, advanced theory and arranging part-time. In April 2009, she completed an undergraduate degree in music after eight years as a part-time special student at University of Ottawa, graduating summa cum laude on the Dean's list as winner of the university's silver medal, then left the public service to begin full time graduate studies in composition at York University, Toronto in September 2009. Among Joanna’s many accomplishments, her work has been arranged and orchestrated for performance and recording by artists and choirs in Canada, the United States, and Europe, as well as broadcast on CBC. Several of her choral works have been published by Oceanna Music. Her carol Child of the Manger was included in a recent recording by Cantata Singers of Ottawa, Songs of Inspiration: A Feast of Canadian Choral Music. Two of her choral compositions have been premiered at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa as part of the UNISONG festival on Canada Day in 2004 and 2009. Joanna’s many affiliations include: SOCAN/ASCAP, Chorus America , Association of Canadian Choral Conductors, Choirs Ontario, Scriabin Society of America; National Board of Directors for Association of Canadian Women Composers (2004-); Founding Board of Ottawa New Music Creators (2007). Her personal mission includes: creating national and international cultural infrastructures to promote Canadian women composers and their works through effective partnerships: to this end, she has established the Joanna Estelle Commemorative Scholarship Fund as a bequest to the University of Ottawa to encourage other women to find their musical voices. Joanna is also committed to exploring the relationship between spirituality and creativity, particularly with respect to music.