Staff

Dena Byers has been with the organization since its founding in 2004. She currently teaches at Hillandale Elementary School and serves as one of the lead elementary music teachers for Durham Public Schools. Dena has taught in Durham for 27 years.  She is National Board Certified and has been honored as a top four finalist for District Teacher of the Year and a recipient of the NC Symphony’s Jackson Parkhurst Award for Special Achievement in music education. An active member of the American Choral Directors Association and the American Orff-Schulwerk Association, Dena has been a guest conductor for All-State Honor Choirs in Florida, Mississippi, and Tennessee as well as District All-County Choirs in North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida and Alabama. She has presented workshops for Orff Schulwerk chapters throughout the US and at National AOSA Professional Development Conferences. Dena currently teaches Level II Orff Schulwerk at the University of Memphis each summer.  She received BA degrees in Music Education and Vocal Performance from the University of Connecticut, a Master of Music from the University of Minnesota and holds Level III and Master Level Orff Schulwerk Certifications from the University of Nevada-Las Vegas and the University of Memphis, respectively.

Jeff Whicker has lived in the Triangle since 1986 when he attended Law School at UNC. He worked as an attorney for ten years before returning to his first love, music. He served as choral director at Riverside High School for seven years, but since 2004 he has worked primarily as a church musician. He has accompanied the Durham Elementary, Middle and High School All-County Choruses.  He is the regular accompanist for the Durham School of the Arts and frequently accompanies other choirs in the area for concerts and musicals.

Ronda has been teaching music for over thirty years. In addition to directing Cantare, she is the K–5 Music teacher at Excelsior Classical Academy. Her passion is to see children discover their unique singing voice: to sing in tune, develop musicality and succeed as part of a choral ensemble. A graduate of Kent State University (B.Mus. with a major in Music Education), Ronda has taught Pre–K – 12th grade music in public and private schools in Ohio, Illinois, Wisconsin and North Carolina. In her home studio, she has experience teaching private piano, flute and voice students of all ages. In addition, Ronda has served as Director of Music at churches in Ohio, Illinois, and North Carolina. Prior to moving to Durham in 2013, she spent nine years directing a community–based children’s choir and general music program in Princeton, New Jersey. Outside the music classroom Ronda’s interests include reading, cooking and travel, especially in Europe, where her family has lived on numerous occasions.

Vangie is originally from Charlotte, NC, where she studied piano and organ, and began giving private piano lessons in 1963. In 1969 she graduated from Duke University with an A.B. degree in piano performance. Following graduation, she took a position at Temple Baptist Church as church secretary and organist, and resumed teaching piano. It was then that she began singing with the Choral Society of Durham, something she still enjoys. Vangie resigned as church secretary in 1989, then taught preschoolers at Trinity Avenue Presbyterian Church for 23 years and continues there as the school’s music teacher. In 2004 Vangie became accompanist for the Durham Children’s Choir, then began accompanying Cantare in 2018. After 50 years of service at Temple Baptist Church, she retired as Minister of Instrumental Music in July 2019, but continues serving there in an emeritus role.

Adrienne is a native of Durham, NC. She received her BA in Music Education from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University and has been an elementary school music teacher since 2015. Adrienne currently serves as one of the lead elementary music teachers and one of the lead beginning arts teachers in Durham Public Schools. Twice she has served as a guest accompanist for the Danville Middle School All City Chorus event and has accompanied many musicals in the Durham, Greensboro, and Burlington areas. Adrienne is extremely passionate about music education and was very honored to join the Durham Children’s Choir Family in 2023 to start Vivace!