Who we are
Western Canada’s foremost contemporary chamber ensemble, Standing Wave is a sextet of intrepid new music interpreters dedicated to commissioning and performing cutting-edge music from today’s most forward-thinking composers.
Acclaimed internationally for their virtuosity, vision, and artistry, Standing Wave has cultivated a reputation for electrifying live performance that pushes the boundaries of what chamber music is and can be.
Rebecca Whitling
VIOLIN
Rebecca has been a member of the first violin section of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra since 1995. Originally from Edmonton, her principal teachers were Ranald Shean, Mauricio Fuks, Paul Biss, and Sally Thomas. Rebecca is a graduate of McGill and Indiana Universities and an alumna of the New World Symphony. She has appeared as a chamber and orchestral musician at Tanglewood, Schleswig-Holstein, Colorado, Ojai, Cabrillo, Mountain View, and Blue Ridge Music Festivals.
Rebecca has performed as soloist with the Vancouver Philharmonic, the Semiahmoo Strings, the Prince George Symphony, the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, and the Hard Rubber Orchestra. With the aid of the BC Arts Council, the Canada Council for the Arts, and the Little Chamber Music Series, she has premiered works written for her by Giorgio Magnanensi, Ian McDougall, and Jocelyn Morlock.
As the Artistic Director and violinist of Standing Wave, she has commissioned and premiered works by many of Canada’s leading composers and has toured across Canada. Rebecca co-produced the ensemble’s latest CD, titled 20C Remix, which garnered a Juno Award Nomination for Classical Album of the Year (small ensemble) in 2021.
Christie Reside
FLUTE
Christie Reside has been the Principal Flute of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra since 2004. Originally from Calgary, Alberta, Ms. Reside earned her Bachelor of Music degree from McGill University as a student of Timothy Hutchins, during which time she won the position of Second Flute with the VSO at the age of 19.
Christie frequently performs as a soloist and has appeared as such with the symphony orchestras of Montreal, Quebec City, Edmonton, Calgary, Vancouver, and Victoria, among others. She also has had the opportunity perform as guest Principal Flute with orchestras around the world.
She has previously held the position of Principal Flute of the Seattle Symphony, and has also performed as Principal Flute with both the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra. In the fall of 2019 she joined the Montreal Symphony Orchestra for their tour of the Americas.
Christie is currently the Executive Director of Standing Wave, is an Adjunct Professor at the University of British Columbia, and is on faculty at the VSO School of Music.
AK Coope
CLARINET
AK performs with an eclectic array of ensembles, including the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, Vancouver Opera Orchestra, and Vancouver New Music Ensemble, among others, and has played concerts across the globe. In addition to being Standing Wave’s clarinetist since 2003, she is also a longtime member of Turning Point Ensemble and is a founding member of the Ad Mare Wind Quintet with whom she presents many educational concerts in BC Schools every year.
In addition to Standing Wave’s award winning albums, she has made a wide variety of recordings, from indie rock albums to the recently released Sex Lives of Vegetables, and, on the video/ digital album front, contributed a solo work, Leaning, to the Canadian Music Centre BC Chapter’s Unaccompanied Series. She is also thrilled to have released Abstraction– part of Turning Point Ensemble’s 1+1+1 Video Project.
AK holds a BMus from UBC and an MMus from Northwestern University, Chicago. She is a respected adjudicator and clinician and is on faculty at both the VSO School of music and the Vancouver Academy of Music.
Cristian Márkos
CELLO
Romanian-Canadian cellist Cristian Márkos has been a member of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra since 1999. Born in Iași, Romania, Cristian earned his B.Mus in Music Performance from the Music Academy in Bucharest, Romania. He went on to complete post-graduate studies in Germany and the United States.
Wanting to experience a ‘true’ Canadian winter, Cristian served as Associate Principal Cellist with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra for the 2012-2013 concert season. An accomplished chamber musician and soloist, Cristian has performed on stages in Romania, France, Germany, Austria, Greece, Italy, United States, and Canada.
He is a founding member of the Vancouver Cello Quartet, and a member of the Standing Wave Ensemble. In addition to performing, Cristian is also a dedicated teacher and maintains a vibrant private teaching studio at the VSO School of Music.
Allen Stiles
PIANO
Allen Stiles (M Music Performance UBC, ARCT) is a pianist who has been performing and teaching in Vancouver for over thirty years. He is a founding artistic director of The Little Chamber Music Series That Could Society, and a current member of the classical/crossover group Joe Trio in addition to his work with Standing Wave. He has performed extensively throughout North America with Joe Trio, as well as with many National and International Broadway Musicals including Phantom of the Opera, Mamma Mia, and Wicked. Allen has also performed extensively as an accompanist and as a musical theatre director. He currently teaches at Douglas College and the Langley School of Music along with his involvement with the Richmond Music School.
Vern Griffiths
PERCUSSION
Vern is a dynamic and versatile performer who joined the Vancouver Symphony as Principal Percussionist in 1997. He has also performed with the Music On Main All-Star Band, Turning Point Ensemble, and the CBC Radio Orchestra, in addition to his work with Standing Wave, and can be heard on soundtracks for Disney, ABC, IMAX, NFB, EA Sports, and Dreamworks. 2019 saw him perform the world premiere of Perxploitation, a full-length percussion concerto written for him by Nicole Lizée. He made his VSO conducting debut in 2013 in Stravinsky’s Histoire du Soldat, and his VSO composing debut in 2019, in his piece Kitchen Concerto. He also composed Jack of Hearts in 2020 to be part of the VSO kids show with Circus West.
For over a decade, Vern has played dozens of performances of his kids concert Wall to Wall Percussion with the Vancouver, Victoria, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, and Toronto Symphonies. His new show, The Composer Is Here, debuted in March 2022, and explores in a fun and engaging way the art of composing — featuring several living, local composers!
Born and raised in North Vancouver, Vern has degrees in both Commerce and Music from the University of British Columbia, studying percussion with John Rudolph, and his Master of Music degree in Orchestral Performance from the Manhattan School of Music. A committed educator, Vern has been teaching percussion at UBC since 1997, and is on faculty at the VSO School of Music.