Floydd Ricketts is the Head of Music of the English section

A London, Ontario native, Floydd Ricketts regularly works as a musical director in theatre and in concert, having conducted performances throughout Canada, the US and Europe. He is the artistic director and conductor of Ensemble Noir, a chamber choir in Montreal that specializes in the music of underrepresented communities, especially those from the African diaspora. Floydd is the co-founder of the Greater Toronto Philharmonic Orchestra, and the former conductor of the King Edward Choir, the McGill University Chorus.

He has been described by his peers as a highly skilled conductor and orchestrator, and has written a number of chamber works for choir and orchestra. He regularly leads workshops on African-American Spiritual performance practice, and recently had the privilege of working with soprano Kathleen Battle in concert as rehearsal conductor on her Underground Railroad tour. Last year he was bestowed the Outstanding Contribution to Theatre Award from the Montreal English Theatre Awards for his work as MD/arranger for Centaur Theatre's production of Choir Boy, and is currently nominated for a Sterling Award for Outstanding Musical Direction for his work on The Color Purple (Citadel/RMTC co-production). Floydd is absolutely delighted to be joining the National Theatre School of Canada’s faculty, alongside some of the most talented theatre professionals, and future stars.

My 3 Favourite Songs

Learn more about his pedagogy

Learn more about Floydd's path to becoming a music director