Our Conductors

Our Musical Director and one of our educators, Robert Jardin learnt singing and Piano during primary school. He was accepted into the first Australian production of Oliver Twist. He was then awarded a scholarship to study Trumpet at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music for 5 years. During this time, he was accepted into the Australian Youth Orchestra, attending national music camps and performing across the country. This afforded him the opportunity to be involved in the first national music camp of Papua New Guinea.

In addition to his classical studies, Robert maintained an interest in jazz, so was thrilled to join a Big Band as Lead Trumpet, performing across Europe and the UK. Robert has performed at numerous Australian Jazz Festivals including Manly Jazz Festival (at least 21 times), Merimbula Jazz Festival (at least 12 times), Big Band Bash, Canberra Jazz Festival, Illawarra Jazz Festival, and others. He co-led Garigal Big Band with his son Michael for a number of years. 

Robert has conducted at SINPS for 20 years and particularly delights in running into old students. 

Dr Luis Fernando Madrid is an established and highly respected conductor in his home country of Colombia and has an extensive repertoire of Symphonic and Operatic works. He holds a Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) and Master of Music in Conducting from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, University of Sydney. 

His commitment to music education has continued for more than 28 years, conducting and teaching throughout Colombia and in Australia, for Orquesta Sinfonica Nacional de Colombia, the Macquarie Towns Orchestra, Australia Asia Culture Orchestra and Sydney Conservatorium Chamber and Symphonic Orchestras to name a few.

Dr Madrid has been the recipient of numerous scholarships from the University of Sydney and the Colombian government, and awarded the  high distinction Medal “Epifanio Garay” by the Department of Music of the Universidad de Bellas Artes y Ciencias de Bolivar. He has also been fortunate to study wth many prominent conductors throughout his career.

In 2014 Dr Madrid established the Sydney Opera Scuola, which gives young opera singers the opportunity to develop their singing and performance careers. He also established the Sydney Virtuosi Orchestra and developed an exciting concert series.

Alongside his conducting engagements, Dr Madrid is regularly invited to teach at workshops and master classes, instructing the new generation of musicians in Colombia and Australia.

Katrina was lucky to grow up in St Ives and attend St Ives North Public School herself. At that time, the school had an orchestra run by the year six teacher, rehearsing once a week during lunchtime.

She has fond memories of performing at the end of year concerts, which were generally held at the old UTS Kuring-gai Campus (now Lindfield Learning Village).

There was also an exciting annual trip by bus to Macquarie Shopping Centre, where students would perform on a temporary stage, placed in front of the famous glass elevator outside Target (now Kmart; the iconic glass elevator was sadly removed in the 2014 renovation). They would be happily rewarded with a warm cinnamon donut from one of the generous outlets. 

Music was considered important then, as it is now, and certainly St Ives North has come a long way with the number of ensembles, performance opportunities and incredible achievements.

Katrina obtained her Bachelor's Degree at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, and during her time there was awarded two performance scholarships.

Katrina plays violin professionally in a number of orchestras, musical societies, and is Director of her String quartet, Carinya Strings, which performs at weddings and other special occasions.

She enjoys conducting string ensembles in several schools, mainly situated in the northern districts of Sydney. Katrina is a regular adjudicator for festivals and eisteddfods and loves to provide positive feedback and learning experiences for all her students.

Adrian is the conductor of St Ives North Public School’s Junior String Ensemble, String Orchestra and Chamber Strings. He is currently the director of string programs at Artarmon Public School and Lindfield Public School. He is also an ensemble conductor and instrumental tutor at Ravenswood School for Girls. 

As a violinist, Adrian has performed with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, Australian Youth Orchestra, SBS Youth Orchestra and Willoughby Symphony Orchestra.

As a composer, Adrian’s works have been performed by Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra Victoria and members of the Sydney Symphony Fellowship Program. Adrian is also an active music arranger, specialising in music for schools and youth orchestras. His arrangements have also been performed in many countries.