Michael T. Dawson is an award winning conductor, educator, co-founder and CEO of the Irish Institute of Music & Song. He returned to Ireland in 2019 from the University of Southern California where he was awarded a Fulbright scholarship and teaching assistantship to pursue a Doctorate in Musical Arts in Choral Music. Prior to moving to the U.S, he taught at the National University of Ireland Maynooth where he established the Maynooth University Chamber Choir as one of the top performing ensembles in Ireland. Under Michael's direction the choir travelled on multiple tours of the U.S, China and Europe performing in some of the most prestigious concert halls. In 2015 Michael became the first Irish conductor to win the Pavarotti Trophy at the "Choir of the World" International competition at the Llangollen Eisteddfod.
Michael regularly adjudicates choral competitions around the world and in 2022 delivered masterclasses and choral clinics to over 45 different ensembles. As a singer Michael spent several years performing with the internationally acclaimed ensemble Anúna and recorded on several albums which include the soundtracks for Diablo III and World of Warcraft. He also holds a masters degree in Ritual, Chant and Song from the Irish World Academy of Music & Dance, University of Limerick and can be heard singing chant on the TV series Vikings.
Currently Michael is expanding the Irish Institute of Music & Song, a non-profit organisation dedicated to expanding music education in Ireland and sharing Irish culture globally. His specialty areas include conducting, science informed voice pedagogy, choral music, and music education. Michael is also a keen Irish traditional musician and plays the uilleann pipes, bagpipes and low whistle in his spare time!

Paul Mealor (b. 1975) is one of the world’s most ‘performed’ living composers and has composed music for some of the most important UK state, national and Royal occasions of the last fifteen years, including the wedding of The Prince and Princess of Wales (2011), King Charles’s 65th, 70th and 75th birthdays, two works for the late Queen Elizabeth II’s national Services of Thanksgiving (2022), two works for the Coronation of King Charles III (2023) – including the first ever setting of the Welsh Language at a Coronation, and three works for The Honours of Scotland Service (2023).

He has also written music for film and television including the BAFTA-Award winning score to BBC TV’s ‘Wonders of the Celtic Deep’, three operas, four symphonies, concerti, chamber music, much choral music and songs, including the 2011 UK Pop Charts Christmas No 1, ‘Wherever You Are’ for Gareth Malone and the Military Wives Choir.

He has received many awards and honours for his work including honorary degrees, fellowships and in January 2024 was appointed to The Royal Victorian Order (LVO) by HM King Charles III for his outstanding contribution to Royal Music. He is the first composer to receive this accolade since Sir Arthur Bliss in 1969 and before him, Sir Edward Elgar.

Tove Ramlo-Ystad is an educated singer and conductor with a Master Degree from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim. Her teachers and mentors in conducting have been Stefan Sköld, Anders Eby and Mogens Dahl.
Tove is one of Norway's most acknowledged choir conductors. She is a popular and inspiring guest conductor, and is frequently invited as an adjudicator in international choir competitions. Tove is representing Norway in The World Choir Council. Since 2015 she has been the artistic director of The Norwegian National Championship for Choirs.
Ramlo-Ystad has conducted both mixed and male choirs through the years, and has kept conducting the female choir Cantus since their beginning in 1986. Through Tove's leadership has Cantus received a lot of attention, won several competitions and has recorded 9 CD’s. The three last recordings got a Grammy nomination. Cantus is known by their Nordic sound. This sound was the reason Disney discovered Cantus, and led to the choir being asked to sing in their animation movie 'Frozen' 1 and 2. Several of the works commissioned for Cantus through the years have become an inspiration for many other female choirs around the world.
Tove Ramlo-Ystad is music director for the Norwegian Choral Association.

Karmina Šilec is an artistic director of Carmina Slovenica, ensemble !Kebataola! and Choregie – new music theatre, conductor, composer and director - author. With her unique concept choregie she brought freshness and originality to the world of vocal music and theatre, has opened wider artistic spaces and set trends worldwide.

As conductor and director she has projects with various companies, opera houses and ensembles, her productions have been performed worldwide on stages and festivals of the highest esteem. Karmina Šilec has received more than 20 highest international awards at choir competitions and International Robert Edler Prize for Choral Music for her exceptional contribution to the world choir movement. She also works as an artistic adviser for choral music, university professor for conducting, a guest conductor and jury member at festivals and competitions.

Sanna Valvanne, director of the Sing & Shine Choirs, is one of the most international and innovative Finnish choir conductors. She is recognised world wide for her creative and expressive choral method "Sing & Shine with Body & Soul". A former singer and vocal trainer of the world famous Tapiola Choir, Sanna created the method in 1994, while studying for her Master's Degree in Music at the Sibelius Academy. She has since been a popular guest conductor with hundreds of choirs and festivals around the world.
For 11 years in the USA, she developed her choral work further to support social causes and uplift humanity, finally launching her own organization in Espoo, Finland in 2016. By now her Sing & Shine Choirs have empowered hundreds of people from all ages in training, performances and community projects. Whether with her own choirs or guest conducting, Sanna continues to expand the boundaries of choral expression, and explore new ways of sharing love and joy through singing.

Mathew Wright has worked in the education sector for over 20 years working in schools in a variety of roles, most recently as a Regional Director of Education for a trust overseeing 27 schools across England. He has worked as an Advisory Teacher and as an Advanced Skilled Teacher, delivering support and training nationally at Primary, Secondary, FE and HE levels, and has provided resources for government publications. He is the founder and Artistic Director of Barnsley Youth Choir, and founder of Barnsley Singers (an adult community choir) and has developed the choir into an internationally award-winning and recognised organisation.
As a member of the international jury, Mat has worked in some of the most important competitions in the world including the World Choir Games. He works closely with exceptional organisations including the Kodaly School (Hungary), The Adolf Fredriks Music School (Sweden) and the University of Pretoria (South Africa), all of whom have travelled to Barnsley to work with BYC and is in demand as a choral clinician and workshop leader throughout the world.
In 2019 Mat was appointed as a representative for Great Britain on the World Choir Council and in January 2020 was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for his services to young people by the Queen. In 2022 he was also made a "Freeman of Barnsley" in recognition for his work in the community.