Meet Our Adjudicators
Speech Adjudicator: Jules Pepin
Jules has been involved in theatre for over 20 years, training through Trinity College London where she earned her ATCL Performance Diploma in Speech and Drama. She also holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Drama from The University of Alberta. Jules is an actor, stage manager and director and is currently the Education Manager for The Grindstone Theatre School (Grindstone Theatre).
Piano Adjudicator: Marlis Gunderson
Marlis loves music. She started playing piano by ear when she was 4. She took lessons and finished her RCM Grade 10 while in high school. After graduating she became an ICU nurse. Missing her music, she completed her ARCT with Jaquie Ryan, after nursing graduation, and has been teaching piano since. She continues to do private duty nursing.
Marlis enjoys learning new music by being involved in the Roubakine Piano Club, where she participates in master classes twice a year. She has toured Switzerland three times with the Edmonton Swiss Men Choir, as their accompanist. She adjudicates across Alberta and is organist and accompanist for several choirs, vocal groups and violin students.
She resides in St. Albert with her husband, close to her 2 grown children and 6 young granddaughters.
Marlis is very excited to be invited back to the Lac La Biche Music Festival.
Vocal Adjudicator: Sherry Steele
Instrumental Adjudicator: Oscar - Jose Garcia
Oscar-Jose Garcia retired from formal fulltime band and music teaching in 2016 after 34 years as the Director of Bands at St. Mary Catholic School in Westlock Alberta. Oscar-Jose is currently a guest clinician and adjudicator. He is also an adjudicator for The WordStrides and Heritage International Music Festivals which operate each year across major
cities in the U.S. and Canada. He has adjudicated at such international festivals in Orlando Florida and Anaheim California as well at festivals all across Alberta.
He is currently the director of the True North Community Jazz Ensemble from Westlock Alberta which he formed in 2017.
Oscar–Jose is also very well known as an accomplished and recognized flamenco guitarist. He performs regularly with his wife, singer and flamenco dancer Judith Garcia, along with their flamenco troupe “Flamenco En Vivo” which they founded in 1999.
Over his long tenure at St. Mary, Oscar-Jose, operated Junior and Intermediate Junior High Concert Bands, a High School Wind Ensemble (Concert Band) and a High School Jazz Band. He has also coached many school combo bands (Student-run rock bands) and instrumental quintets.
His school bands have received countless Superior and Gold Awards at local, national and international music festivals for their high level of performances and accomplishments.
Over the years, he has traveled extensively with his high school Wind Ensemble and Jazz Band exposing them to the cultures and musical experiences worldwide and having them partake in international music festivals. Enjoying such U.S. cities as New York, San Francisco and Seattle. Closer to home and here in Canada they visited such cities as Vancouver, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Calgary, Edmonton Fort McMurray and Grande Prairie. He has also taken his school bands to Spain where they performed in Madrid, Segovia, Avila, Cuenca and Toledo.
Oscar-Jose was also nominated for the Alberta Excellence in Teaching Award. He has appeared as a guest conductor for the Alberta Honour Band in Calgary and the Fort McMurray Honour Band. He currently participates in band clinics throughout the year and enjoys adjudicating band and performance groups at festivals.
His school band program was well known all across Canada and was considered to be one of the top small high school band programs in Alberta.
Oscar-Jose is very passionate and has a great understanding of music and conducting student bands. He has an ease and fun way of getting kids to understand the concepts of team work in relationship to playing as a complete ensemble.
Oscar-Jose’s teaching motto is very simple; “All kids should have the opportunity to learn to play and love a musical instrument with the chance to surround themselves in a cohesive group of musicians working together to produce beautiful music during their formative educational years. Music does make you smarter.”