Ty Chiko

Having been celebrated as one of the Bahamas’ Top 40 Under 40, Dr. Ty Chiko is known as one of the premier voices of his country. While living in the Bahamas, Ty was a member of the country’s national choir, The Bahamas National Youth Choir, where he was also the Featured Artist for their 23rd Annual Concert Season.

 

Ty received a Doctorate of Musical Arts from Arizona State University, where he studied with internationally renowned Baritone, Gordon Hawkins. Ty’s doctoral research focuses on Senior Living retirement communities and the impact that student live-in Musicians-in-Residence programs have on residents’ sense of belonging within those communities. He is one of the 2021 Arizona State University Concerto Competition Winners, where he performed Gustav Mahler’s Lieder Eines Fahrenden Gesellen (Songs of a Wayfarer) with the symphony orchestra. Ty has made appearances on National Public Radio, as well as other notable podcasts and radio shows. 

 

In 2021, Ty competed as a finalist for the prestigious Lotte Lenya Vocal Competition, through the Kurt Weill Foundation in New York City. In 2022 he was a recipient of the Artist Opportunity Grant from the Arizona Commission on the Arts to support commissioned work for his research. In that same year, Ty also partnered with State Farm Insurance and Boom Percussion Entertainment on a film project that highlighted NBA player and fellow Bahamian, DeAndre Ayton for the Player’s Tribune.

 

Ty served as a Faculty Associate for the School of Music at Arizona State University while also serving as the inaugural Musician-In-Residence Coordinator for the senior living community, Mirabella at ASU, where they received awards for Honorable Mention for Promising Practices from the Mather Institute in 2022 and The Innovation Award from Leading Arizona in 2023. He was also the Program Coordinator for the Office of Student Engagement and Creative Careers through the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts at Arizona State University. 

 

In addition to his performance career, Ty is passionate about youth advocacy. He is a Certified Peer Visitor and has volunteered yearly for the Amputee Coalition of America as a Summer Camp Counselor. 

 

Most recently, Ty has toured with the Portland Opera, premiering a newly commissioned work, Beatrice, written by composer Dave Ragland and Librettist, Mary McCallum. Currently, Ty works at the Portland Opera as the Executive Assistant to the General Director and will make his debut at Portland Center Stage as the Music Director for their upcoming production of Hair.