Artistic Team

Cosette Justo Valdés,
Artistic Director

Mark Beaty,
Education Liaison

Paolo Bortolussi,
New Music Manager

With her “incisive presence on the podium,” “emotive in her conducting without being in any sense showy” (Edmonton Journal), Cuban-born and raised conductor Cosette Justo Valdés has garnered acclaim on both sides of the Atlantic and is a rising star on the world’s concert stage. She is presently Resident Conductor of the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra (Canada) where she has won the hearts of musicians and audience alike. Recent highlights include a “mind-blowing” (Ottawa Citizen) collaboration with Esperanza Spalding and the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa, and a celebrated  fan tutte with the Edmonton Opera, conducted from the harpsichord.

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Main Office Information

Phone: 250-754-0177

Mailing Address:
P.O. Box 661,
Nanaimo, BC V9R 5L9

Street Address:
617 Wentworth Street
Nanaimo, BC

 

Administration Team

Margot Holmes,
Executive Director

Rebecca Woytiuk ,
Development & Outreach Manager

Caitlin Ferguson,
Administrator & Production

Margot Holmes, VIS Executive Director

Margot Holmes has been a promoter of Canadian culture for the past three decades through her work in the performing arts. She is the Executive Director of the Vancouver Island Symphony, a position she has held for 23 years. In her work with the Symphony, she has worked with artistic directors, musicians, board members and arts administrators to grow the orchestra from six to 20+ concerts each season with performances in Nanaimo, Duncan, Courtenay and Campbell River. In 2020, during the pandemic, she created work for musicians and joy for music lovers by creating a summer series of 42 Pop Up Concerts performed by VIS musicians in people’s backyards from Duncan to Courtenay. This series continues each summer offering a casual musical experience for everyone.

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Send Every Grade 4 Student to a VIS Concert
Help transform young lives through the power of music

Your donation can be the catalyst for transforming lives through the power of music.
Help us send every Grade 4 student to a VIS concert designed specifically for them.
The VIS Music Education program builds music appreciation and participation in
over 2,500 nine and  ten year old children each year.
Let’s welcome the symphony audiences of the future together!

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