Contact Information

Biography

Caron Daley is Director of Choral Activities, Associate Professor of Music, and Chair of the Performance Department at the Mary Pappert School of Music at Duquesne University. Under her direction since 2015, the Duquesne University Voices of Spirit has performed across the Northeast and in Canada, including invited performances at the National Collegiate Choral Organization Conference (2019), National Association for Music Education Eastern Division Conference (2023), College Music Society National Conference (2024), and Pennsylvania Music Educators Association (2026). The choir’s debut album, Wake up my Spirit, was released in 2024 and celebrates the Spiritan traditions of the University.

A native of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Caron has held past conducting appointments with the National Youth Choir of Canada, Toronto Mendelssohn Choir, University of Toronto, St. Michael’s Choir School, and Salem Academy and College. A lifelong choral singer, she has performed with the Festival Ensemble of the European Music Festival Stuttgart, National Youth Choir of Canada, North Carolina Master Chorale, Columbus Symphony Chorus, Toronto Mendelssohn Choir, and Bel Canto Company, among others. Caron is frequently invited to guest conduct and lead choral clinics, including recent events in Pennsylvania, Maryland, New York, Massachusetts, Vermont, California, and Ontario.

Caron’s interdisciplinary research in Dalcroze Eurhythmics and musician health and wellness has resulted in national and international conference presentations and invitations. In 2026, she presented at the International Society of Music Education, Choral Canada, and ACDA Symposium for Research in Choral Singing conferences. Her work is published in Canadian Music Educator, Choral Journal, Journal of Singing, The Choral Scholar, College Music Symposium, and the International Journal of Research in Choral Singing. Caron currently serves as Editor-in-Chief of Choral Canada’s Anacrusis and as an Editorial Board member of ACDA’s Choral Journal.

Caron holds a D.M.A. (Choral Conducting) from the University of Toronto, an M.M. (Choral Conducting) and M.A. (Vocal Pedagogy) from The Ohio State University, an Artist Diploma and Honours B.M. (Music Education) from Western University, and an Associate Diploma in Performance (Voice) from the Royal Conservatory of Music. She is a certified teacher of Dalcroze Eurhythmics.

Education

  • D.M.A., University of Toronto
  • M.M., The Ohio State University
  • M.A., The Ohio State University
  • A.D., Western University
  • B.Mus, Western University
  • A.R.C.T., Royal Conservatory of Canada

Areas of Expertise

  • Choral Conducting
  • Dalcroze Eurhythmics
  • Musician Health
  • Conducting Pedagogy

School

Associated Programs

  • American Choral Directors Association
  • Choral Canada
  • National Association for Music Education
  • Daley, C., Marchetti, G., Donoso-Brown, E. & Foundas, B. (2025). Musculoskeletal pain/discomfort in collegiate conductors: Incidence of injury and use of personal and instructional prevention strategies. College Music Symposium 56(1).
  • Daley, C. and Clark C. (2025) Care, health, and wellness in the choral setting: Risk factors and rehearsal strategies. Anacrusis 43(1), 13–18.
  • Daley, C. (2025). Choral music by women composers (contributing author). GIA Publications.
  • Daley, C. (2024). Count me in: Elevating the all-campus collegiate choir. Choral Journal 65(4), 40–43.
  • Daley, C. (2023). Connection, invention, and relevance: Post-pandemic recruitment in college and university choirs. Choral Journal 62(11), 28–29.
  • Daley, C., Rusiewicz, H. L., Schreiber, J. & Grabowski, J. (2022). The impact of manual mimicry gestures on the learning of sung German phonemes. International Journal of Research in Choral Singing 10, 108–130.
  • Daley, C. (2022). Diverse embodiments: How COVID-19 expanded choral practice. Choral Journal 62(6), 6–13.
  • Daley, C. & Rusiewicz H. L. (2021). Manual mimicry in the teaching and learning of phonemes for singing. Journal of Singing 77(4), 521–532.
  • Daley, C., Marchetti, G. & Ruane, M. (2020). Injury prevention for conductors: Risk factors, exercise interventions, and ergonomic and curricular recommendations. The Choral Scholar 58(3), 7–25.
  • Daley, C. (2020). Generating gestures: Using Dalcroze Eurhythmics to prepare to conduct. In B. Winnie (Ed.), The choral conductor’s companion, 55–56. Chicago: Meredith Music Publications.
  • Daley, C. (2018). Reimagining conductor score study through the principles of Émile Jaques-Dalcroze’s eurhythmics. Choral Journal 58(8), 18–26.
  • Daley, C. (2016). Embodied sound: A resource reference guide on the use of movement in choral conducting and rehearsing. Research Memorandum Series of Chorus America, 209, 1–7. 
  • Daley, C. (2012). A whole-body approach to choral teaching and learning: Dalcroze Eurhythmics in action in the choral context. Canadian Music Educator 52(4), 46–47.