Biography
In her three decades plus, Victoria has been recognized as a master piano and vocal teacher, adjudicator, and examiner for her
alma mater, the Royal Conservatory of Music, in Toronto. In addition, she was known as the founder of her own chain of boutique
music schools, publishing company, and recording studios. Victoria Hernandez has impacted and elevated the lives, ambitions,
and dreams of thousands of aspiring musicians and vocalists of all ages.
In addition to adjudicating numerous, prestigious competitions and festivals throughout her native Canada, she has successfully
prepared students for RCM examinations (a requirement for them to move on to the next level of their education), national and
international competitions, and magnet school and university entrance auditions. For two decades, starting in the early 90s, her
York Region Conservatory of Music became so popular and influential that she ultimately opened three locations – educating
some students for leisure and preparing others for national competitions and examinations at the Royal Conservatory of Music.
Merging her passion for education with her talents as a prominent recording artist, songwriter and recording artist, Victoria opened
a recording studio. One of the special projects to emerge from the studio was a gala event and CD compilation, consisting of both
students and singers from the community, created to benefit the local children’s hospital. In effect, the Kids for Kids Series was
born and this satisfied her vision for kids giving back to kids. The gala events, entitled Evening with the Stars, gained her, her
students, her schools, and the community an overwhelming amount of positive publicity. Her groups also participated in charity
work for the Humane Society and the children left behind from 9/11.
Victoria traces her love of playing and teaching music to the day she asked her father to bring home a piano for her when she
was just four years old. Expecting a Fisher Price toy piano, she was happily surprised when he gifted her with an upright piano.
Her early lessons, combined with the love and support of her music loving Macedonian-Greek parents, put her on a dynamic path
towards a multi-faceted musical future. She had formal training in piano performance with reknown instructors such as Boyanna
Toyich and James Anagnoson.
Victoria also studied song structure and music theory with masters like Andrew Williams, Joe Ringhofer, the late Molly Sclater
and the late Dr. Roman Toi, who helped her develop and intensify her natural musical abilities. Setting the stage for the dual
careers that would drive and define her life, at age 16, she landed her first publishing deal with prominent Canadian label Power
Records, while teaching piano and voice to local neighborhood children.
As she became well known in the music industry, Victoria committed to the development of her expansive vocal artistry, choosing
to sing her own songs rather than limit herself to writing for other artists. Seeking out the best vocal coaches in the world, she
worked diligently with the late Dixie Ross Neill in Montreal while simultaneously attending intensives with Dr. Michael Warren, in
New York City and in Italy. Developing her vast talents as an operatic vocalist, she performed various roles in famous operas,
including “Tisbet” in Rossini's Cenerentola and “Mrs. Nolan” in Menotti's opera The Medium.
Upon completing the Royal Conservatory of Music Examiner/Adjudicator program in 1990 with James Lawless, Victoria began her
post as Royal Conservatory of Music Practical and Theoretical examiner. To this day, even while living the past decade in Florida,
she remains active with the College of Examiners.
Registered with the Canadian Festival Adjudicators Association (CMFAA) for many years, Victoria has adjudicated numerous
competitions/festivals throughout the years including: the Toronto Symphony Orchestra Piano Competition (piano), Toronto Music
Festival--Columbus Centre (piano), the Kiwanis Music Festival (piano), Lambton County Festival (piano & voice), Grey County
Kiwanis Festival (piano), Cape Breton Kiwanis Festival (piano), Temiskaming Festival of Music (voice), Barrie Kiwanis Music
Festival (piano), North Bay Kiwanis Festival of Music & Dance (piano & voice), New Brunswick Provincial Music Competition
(piano & voice), Chatham Kiwanis Festival (voice), and the Greater Toronto Music Festival (piano, voice & strings).
As a member of the Ontario Registered Music Teachers’ Association, Victoria continued to teach piano, voice and theoretical
subjects privately in various studio locations across North America. She is also an active member of NATS (National Association
of Teachers of Singing). Ever committed to evolving creatively and bettering herself through higher education, she is currently
working towards a Master’s in Educational Leadership for grades K-12. And, she plans to follow that by pursuing her doctorate.
Victoria is proud of and inspired by her incredibly diverse legacy as an educator, which includes teaching a singer who placed in
the Top Four on “X-Factor” and became a celebrity vocal coach on the Greece version of the show; a 21-year-old student who
entered the world of opera; others who have graced Broadway stages and musical stages throughout North America and Europe;
and another who followed in her footsteps to become an examiner for the College at the Royal Conservatory of Music. She also
began training her now 17-year-old daughter at age four. And, when she was 11, Victoria invited her to record the song “Starlight,”
gaining a #1 chart position on the independent dance charts. Victoria has penned several music books – including an in-progress
guide, with vocal exercises, for aspiring vocalists. She continues to write piano pices for her volume collections and series.
“I thank each and every one of my students for being so dedicated for so many years,” Victoria says. “I will continue doing what I
do as long as I am able to contribute. And, I am grateful to leave behind my legacy not only in myself but within my daughter. We
must allow room and make way for the younger, new generation of talented artists to grace the stage. Remember, dreams are
endless. Always reach for the stars in anything you do.”