Carol Woodward Ratzlaff

Carol Woodward Ratzlaff maintains an active career as a choral conductor, educator, singer, and private voice teacher. She continues to share her passion for vocal music education currently as a Sessional Instructor in Choral Conducting at the Faculty of Music, University of Toronto; and for five years, taught Vocal Music Teacher candidates at OISE, University of Toronto. Having retired as a Vocal Music Teacher from the Toronto District School Board, Carol joined the Faculty at The Royal Conservatory's Oscar Peterson School of Music in 2021. Through Carol’s diverse teaching outlets, her former students can be found in university music faculties, as award-winning singer/songwriters, as music teachers across the GTA and beyond, and as lifelong advocates for the power of choral music.

Carol is the Founding Artistic Director of VIVA Singers Toronto, and conducts the Main Chorus, the Chamber Youth Leadership Singers, the SATB Chamber Singers, and the Every Voice Matters Chorus for teens and adults with disabilities. This season marks her twenty-fifth year in this role.

Carol has performed across Canada and internationally as a member of the Elmer Iseler Singers, the Elora Festival Singers, the professional core of the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir, and Soundstreams’ Choir 21. She has been engaged as a guest artist with the Pax Christi Chorale, the Toronto Chamber Choir, and the Toronto Consort.

As a PhD student in music education at the University of Toronto, Carol is currently researching opportunities for people with disabilities to be full participants in choral music education and performance. She holds a MMus in vocal performance from the University of British Columbia, with degrees in vocal performance and music education from Western University and the University of Toronto. In 2021, Carol was the winner and recipient of the President’s Leadership Award by Choirs Ontario.