Andrew Kizas

Dr. Andrew Kizas studied violin performance at the Royal Conservatory of Music, and the University of Toronto, with John Montague, Erica Davidson, and Gerard Kantarjian, former Concertmaster of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and the Canadian Opera Company Orchestra. He holds an Honours Bachelor’s degree in Music from Dalhousie University and the University of King’s College, where he studied violin with Philippe Djokic; and, Master of Music and Doctor of Philosophy (in Music) degrees from the University of Western Ontario. Additional post-graduate studies were completed in Moedling and Vienna, Austria, through Yale University’s Summer Music Program, and in Toronto with Dr. Lynn Kuo, Assistant Concertmaster of the National Ballet of Canada Orchestra. Dr. Kizas received his teacher training at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, at the University of Toronto, and has published articles on music education, and string pedagogy, in the Journals of the Ontario Music Educators' Association (The Recorder) and the Canadian Music Educators' Association (Canadian Music Educator). He has presented his research at numerous conferences, in both Canada and the United States, and has been invited to participate in the Starling-DeLay Symposium on Violin Studies at The Juilliard School in New York. He has been an education consultant for the Canadian Music Centre, and has been contracted to write lesson plans for the Toronto Symphony Orchestra's Educational Outreach Concert Series. Dr. Kizas is a former Associate Conductor of the Mississauga Symphony Youth Orchestra and the Mississauga Youth Orchestra, and has been invited to direct the Peel District School Board's Honour String Ensemble on numerous occasions. His award-winning ensembles have performed locally, nationally, and internationally, and his private violin students consistently receive top marks, and scholarships, when completing their Royal Conservatory of Music Examinations, and competing at the regional, provincial, and national levels. A former Director of the Ontario Strings Association, Dr. Kizas currently holds active memberships in the Canadian Federation of Music Teachers’ Associations; the American String Teachers Association; the Ontario & Canadian Music Educators’ Associations; and, the Ontario Registered Music Teachers’ Association. As a performer, Dr. Kizas currently serves as a violinist with the Mississauga Symphony Orchestra and Orchestra Toronto. He performs on a Maurizio Tadioli violin, and is the recipient of a commissioned violin bow, by Benoit Rolland, made especially for him in 2019. Prior to teaching in the public school system—where he currently serves as the Artistic Director of the Regional Strings Program for the Peel District School Board at Port Credit Secondary School—Dr. Kizas held teaching appointments at the University of Western Ontario and the University of Guelph. Currently, he teaches private lessons from his home studio in South Etobicoke (Lake Shore Blvd. West and 30th Street). For studio availability, and lesson pricing, please visit my website's Contact page. Website: https://andrewkizas.mymusicstaff.com/Home