Rob Sequeira is the founder and musical director of Vox Canvas, a Sydney based a cappella ensemble. He's also a decorated quartet singer, a barbershop harmony judge, a singing coach and a teacher of tags.
Expect to learn:
What does it take to prepare a choir for an international competition?
What is "Voxlan" and how does it save time in rehearsals?
Which barbershop chorus was the catalyst for a shift in the whole barbershop judging system?
What to do when your singers are asking LOTS of questions
Why is it so important that a coach remind choir singers what they're already doing well?
What is Rob's favourite poem, and how does it relate to choir leading?
And much more...
Listen on Spotify
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FYI I recorded this episode with Rob BEFORE Vox Canvas won the Barbershop Harmony Australia open chorus contest (in Canberra, September 2025). Congratulations to Rob and the Vox Canvas family!
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Update on my other projects
The Canberra Chordsmen (with our sisters in harmony, Canberra Harmony Chorus) hosted the Barbershop Harmony Australia festival in Canberra this September. Led by the indomitable Kat Power, a team of volunteers put on a cracker of a festival.
Special guests to the festival included the quartet First Take, recent silver and bronze medalists at the Barbershop Harmony Society international quartet contests. Check these guys out. I got up close and personal and sang a “barber-polecat” song with them - behold my mostly-in-tune efforts at singing lead with them:
It was especially nice to reconnect with the baritone of First Take, Drew Wheaton - alumnus of the Interviews With Choir Leaders podcast, and all-round great barbershopper/human being! (Listen to the episode with Drew here)
The videos of the festival performances are still coming out, but here’s a couple of videos of my quartets:
Mixtape Chorus continues to do its thang: sing indie-pop songs and eat cake on a regular basis. This term we’ve covered some great songs like Buses and Trains by Bachelor Girl:
Arrangements and learning tracks - the biggest advance in this area for me has been the program Synthesizer V. I now use it to test my arrangements, and to make learning tracks for my choirs. (PS the learning tracks are also for sale on my website!)
See you next time SubStackers!