Dr. Maxine Thévenot
Founding & Artistic Director

	Dr. Maxine Thévenot

An accomplished, respected, and dynamic choral conductor much in demand, Maxine Thévenot has directed ensembles across North America. She also maintains an active career as an international organist, is a visiting lecturer at universities, is a recording artist, and is a published writer and photographer. Presently, Dr. Thévenot serves as the Founding Director of the professional vocal ensemble, POLYPHONY: Voices of New Mexico; as the Director of the University of New Mexico women’s vocal ensemble, Las Cantantes; and as the Associate Organist-Choir Director at the Cathedral Church of St. John.

POLYPHONY: Voices of New Mexico is comprised of young experienced professional singers who reside in New Mexico and who have been educated across North America. The ensemble has a flexible roster, which enables all genres and voicing of repertoire to be performed. The repertoire includes mostly a cappella music ranging from that of Hildegard von Bingen to modern day compositions. Their 2008 season is very busy with appearances on the Friends of Cathedral Music Series at the Cathedral Church of St. John in June and December, the Music in Corrales Series in December, and concerts at Santa Fe’s historic Loretto Chapel in June and December.

Las Cantantes is comprised of 21 auditioned singers. The ensemble studies, rehearses and performs the finest a cappella literature for treble voices. The group has collaborated with such important figures as Libby Larsen, Dave Brubeck, Alice Parker and Moses Hogan. Since taking the group's direction in the Fall 2007 Dr. Thevenot, has directed Las Cantantes in over 14 concerts, and has recorded their first commercially released CD – My Dancing Day – on the RavenCD label. This disc features several premiere recordings of works for the Christmas season by New Mexico composers, Bradley Ellingboe and Frederick Frahm, in addition to the major work for choir and harp by John Rutter – Dancing Day Carols.  In May 2009, she will lead the ensemble on a 6 day tour to New York City where they will sing concerts at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Grace Church and Church of the Heavenly Rest in Manhattan, and the historic Cathedral of the Incarnation in Garden City, Long Island.  In addition to her work with the UNM Choral department she lectures in Music Appreciation and Music Theory and serves as Chapel Organist at the UNM Alumni Chapel.  

At the Cathedral Church of St. John, Dr. Thévenot works with the Cathedral Choir, the Cathedral Chamber Choir, and the Cathedral Choristers. These ensembles sing at weekly and monthly services at the Cathedral, perform newly commissioned works, perform annual concerts with organ, and concerts with members of the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra. She has directed the Cathedral Choirs and members of the NMSO in performances of works ranging from J.S. Bach to modern day composers such as David Arcus, Judith Bingham, Tarik O’Regan, and Joby Talbot.

Maxine Thévenot was the Founding Director of the women’s ensemble, Concentus while serving on the faculty at the Manhattan School of Music in New York City in 2005. Concentus is an auditioned 30-voice ensemble, comprised of freshman and sophomore composition, guitar, piano and vocal students. They perform three times a year and feature repertoire written primarily for women’s voices. In the past, they have collaborated with their male counterpart, Camerata in the presentation of large-scale choir and orchestra works. They have commissioned works including the 2005 world premiere of Sicut Rosa by American composer, Hayes Biggs, dedicated to Maxine Thévenot and Concentus. Dr. Thévenot also served as the Associate Conductor for the Manhattan School of Music Chorus comprised of 120 freshmen and sophomore students from 2002-2004.

From 2003-2005, Ms. Thévenot served as the Associate Choirmaster at The Cathedral of the Incarnation in Garden City, New York where she was the Director of the Cathedral Girls Choir and the Schola Cantorum. Both ensembles sang for weekly choral services and bi-annual concerts. They toured to the UK in 2004.

Past choral experiences have included working as Senior Accompanist and Assistant Conductor, Calgary Girls Choir; Calgary Philharmonic Chorus, rehearsal pianist and Assistant Conductor; Assistant Conductor, Cathedral Church of the Redeemer Cathedral Choir, Calgary, AB; rehearsal pianist and Assistant Conductor, University of Saskatchewan, University Chorus, Saskatoon, SK.

Ms. Thévenot has received the Bachelor of Music in Music Education with distinction from the University of Saskatchewan, and the degrees, Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts in organ performance from the Manhattan School of Music, New York, where she was twice-awarded the Bronson Ragan Award for ‘most outstanding organist’. She also holds the Associate diplomas from the Royal Canadian College of Organists and the Royal Conservatory of Music. In December 2006, Dr. Thévenot was awarded an Honorary Fellowship by the National College of Music, London, UK for her services to music.