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 American-born
Laura Bernay is a versatile performer with talents as
a multi-lingual singer, flautist and pianist. She is
a graduate of the Victorian College of Arts where she
studied voice and flute and later completed a Graduate
Diploma in Education (Melbourne University). She also has qualifications in the Suzuki and Orff
methods of teaching.
A performer and teacher of many years experience, her
work as a singer, pianist and flautist has taken her
all around Australia, Japan, the Middle East, USA and
Europe. Perhaps owing to her French Canadian descent
Laura has a special interest in French vocal music,
is married to a Frenchman and is fluent in French. She
majored in French at UWA and holds a Diplôme de Langue from the Alliance Française.
In March 08 Laura performed with her brother Diesel (aka Mark Lizotte) and Jimmy Barnes in the Lizotte family-inspired event "Breath of Life" Festival in Tasmania. Also on the program were two of her other 4 brothers, sponsorship executive Mike Lizotte and Brian Lizotte (live@lizottes) and father Hank Lizotte. The event was the brain child of Hank's to raise money for the Australian Lung Foundation . Laura's family was inspired to help raise money for research into lung diseases when her mother died of a rare illness in 2002.
Her repertoire covers music of all styles from opera
and art song, to contemporary, music theatre, jazz,
and world music. She has performed with the West Australian
Opera, as a guest recital artist several times for Art Song Perth (formerly the
Lieder Society of WA) and has had many other engagements
as soloist in various styles of music including many
years singing jazz. In Perth she is known for her jazz
performances with The Rob Hyner Trio and she sang world music with The Last Five Coins which specialises in
instrumental dance and vocal music from the villages
and cafés of Europe. The band combines the sounds
of voice, violin, hurdy-gurdy, flute, accordion, guitar
and much more with its roots in centuries-old traditions. With the group Laura performed at the
National Folk Festival (Canberra) and at Fairbridge Festival (WA) several times as well as performances in many other Perth venues including regular
appearances at Kulcha in Fremantle .
In addition to her career in performance Laura worked
as French coach for the West Australian Opera and has
given master classes in singing in French at the University
of Western Australia and for ANATS (WA) (Australian
National Association of Teachers of Singing) and Opera
in Company.
From the late 80's to late 90's Laura taught at Methodist
Ladies College and St. Hilda's Anglican School for Girls.
In October 2000 Laura was the recipient of a teacher's
bursary from the Australian National Association of
Teachers of Singing to attend the Fifth Voice Symposium
of Australia which was held in Brisbane. In June 2001
she went to Finland to work with Dr.Päivi Kukkamäki,
the founder of Suzuki Voice. Whilst there she gave recitals
and taught to gain accreditation in this specialised
area of teaching singing to children. She is the teacher
trainer for WA in this method of voice teaching and
is also an accredited Suzuki Flute and Orff teacher.
In 2009 the Suzuki Voice program is now in its eleventh year in
Western Australia and the program continues to grow.
About a third of the students in Laura's studio learn in
the Suzuki approach. The other two thirds learn in the
so-called traditional way. In 2003 Laura was part of
the organising committee which brought the founder Dr.Päivi
Kukkamäki to Perth for the Suzuki Spring Conference
where students were able to benefit from Päivi's
teaching and share with her own students. Laura has
given lectures in Suzuki Voice for ANATS Nartional Conference, local workshops, ASME and the
WA Bilingual Families Association.
Laura combines performing professionally with a busy
teaching schedule in her private studio in Shenton Park.
She is an accredited member of ANATS (Australian National
Association of Teachers of Singing) and serves on the committee for the WA Suzuki Association and Art Song Perth
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Laura and her brother "Diesel"
