Our Faculty
Our full-time faculty members make up our graduate faculty, and they are delighted to work with and to supervise graduate students. Prospective students are encouraged to contact faculty members whose research and/or artistic work most closely relates to their prospective area of study prior to applying for admission.
Here are some glimpses into the research areas and accomplishments of our faculty. Please see the faculty page for detailed profiles of our faculty members.
Finding your authentic voice through teaching artistry!
Teaching artist and soprano Dr. Betty Allison is the new professor of voice at the University of Saskatchewan. A graduate of the Canadian Opera Company Ensemble, Betty has been performing a versatile classical repertoire for almost 20 years. In addition to her teaching and performing, her research focuses on the connection between a singer’s voice and their overall wellness and resilience. Specifically, the non-musical stressors and coping strategies that elite singers use to maintain their voices and careers. She is excited to continue her performing, teaching, and research as part of the USask faculty!
Areas of Research Focus: Voice, vocal pedagogy and vocology; opera; performers’ health and wellbeing; rehearsal and performance practices.
Prospective graduate students in voice performance are welcome to contact Dr. Betty Allison at betty.allison@usask.ca
Dr. Amanda Lalonde is a musicologist whose interests include late eighteenth- to early twentieth-century Western art music, music reception, aesthetics, literature about music, and women composers and pianists. She also researches early New York hip hop.
A recipient of the University of Saskatchewan Student Union's teaching excellence award, Dr. Lalonde is able to supervise MA Musicology students who are interested in pursuing a topic related to Western art music or musical culture from the mid-eighteenth century to the early twentieth century. In addition to supporting student research, she also aims to provide professional development and research assistant opportunities.
Dr. Lalonde's research has been funded by grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada and she has published articles and chapters in Nineteenth-Century Contexts, Nineteenth-Century Music Review, Clara Schumann Studies (Cambridge University Press, 2021), The Songs of Fanny Hensel (Oxford University Press, 2021) 19th-Century Music, Music and Letters, Popular Music, and the Journal of Music History Pedagogy.
Prospective graduate students in musicology are welcome to contact Dr. Amanda Lalonde at amanda.lalonde@usask.ca
Professor of Brass (Trumpet) and Jazz, Prof. Dean McNeill is an award-winning musician, composer, educator, and arts administrator. Dean has been contributing to the arts scene provincially and nationally for decades. Dean has been a Professor at the University of Saskatchewan for over 25 years and he holds a Music Diploma from MacEwan University, an undergraduate music degree from McGill University, and a Master’s degree in music from the University of North Texas. Dean been the recipient of the U of S’s Dwaine Nelson Teaching Award, University of Saskatchewan Student’s Union Teaching Excellence Award, Saskatchewan Jazz Festival’s Special Recognition Award, Saskatchewan Choral Federation’s Outstanding Administrator’s Award, and in 2023, Dean was presented with the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal (Saskatchewan).
Dean performed solo trumpet with New Edmonton Wind Sinfonia on Allan Gilliland’s Western Canadian Music Award-winning composition Kalla; Art Pepper + 11 CBC recording; W.C.M.A. nomination for Complete rebirth of Cool CD; Artistic Director of Saskatoon Jazz Orchestra (click here for a video sample); performs in Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra. Listen to an interview with Prof. Dean McNeill here. Listen to a new trumpet piece by Dean McNeill and friends.
Prospective graduate students in brass and wind performance are welcome to contact Dean at dean.mcneill@usask.ca
Described as a violinist with 'chops to burn, and rock solid musicianship' (The Whole Note, Toronto), Canadian violinist Dr. Véronique Mathieu enjoys an exciting career as a soloist, chamber musician, and music educator. An avid contemporary music performer, she has commissioned and premiered numerous works by American, Brazilian, and Canadian composers, and has worked with composers such as Pierre Boulez, Heinz Holliger, and Krzysztof Penderecki. Her CD debut of solo works by Boulez, Donatoni, and Lutoslawski was praised as a display of “outstanding violin playing” and “stunning [performance] with amazing technique”.
Dr. Mathieu has performed as a soloist with orchestras such as the National Arts Centre Orchestra, Esprit Orchestra, Shenyang Symphony Orchestra, Saskatoon Symphony, Columbus Indiana Philharmonic, and the Orquestra Sinfonica de Indaiatuba (Brazil). She recorded for the labels of Radio-Canada, Parma, Centrediscs, Naxos, and Pheromone among others. Following the release of her 3rd solo CD (Cortège), Dr. Mathieu was a finalist in the Classical Artist/Ensemble of the Year category at the 2021 Western Canadian Music Awards.
Véronique Mathieu holds the David L. Kaplan Chair in Music at the University of Saskatchewan where she serves as Professor of Violin. She previously served on the faculty at State University of New York (SUNY) in Buffalo, and the University of Kansas. Dr. Mathieu regularly serves on the jury of national and international competitions such as the Chicago International Music Competition, and is a member of the Royal College of Examiners as an advanced strings specialist.
Prospective graduate students in violin and strings performance are welcome to contact Dr. Véronique Mathieu at veronique.mathieu@usask.ca
Professor of Piano Kathleen Solose focuses on 19th- and 20th-century piano literature and chamber music. With international and local performances, recordinging including Kathleen Solose plays Chopin, Saskatchewan Arts Board grants as pianist, and activities including Artistic Director of the Elixir Chamber Ensemble, Prof. Solose is an active and accomplished musician.
Prospective graduate students in piano performance are welcome to contact Prof. Kathleen Solose at kathleen.solose@usask.ca