Mr. Aaron F. Lafreniere serves as high school choral and handbells director at Northwest School of the Arts in Charlotte, NC. His choirs at Northwest have consistently received Superior ratings at MPA Festival and they were awarded the Chair’s Choice for the West District in 2013, 2016, & 2017. Prior to working at NWSA, Lafreniere taught Chorus, Handbells, Piano and Band in Catawba County and Columbus County Schools. He served as the clinician and guest conductor of the Richmond All-County Chorus in 2015, the Moore All-County Middle School Chorus in 2022, and the CMS Elementary School Honors Chorus in March of 2024.  Lafreniere has presented workshops at the NCMEA Professional Development In-Service Conference in 2017 and 2022 and at Wingate University in 2019.  He received the huge honor of being the 2021 NCMEA Middle School Choral Section Richard E. Keasler Teacher of the Year. 

He received a Bachelor of Music in music education from Appalachian State University in 2005 and a Master of Music in music education from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in 2009.

Mr. Lafreniere is a basso profundo and currently sings with Festival Singers of Carolina Voices. In addition to singing, he plays clarinet, handbells, piano, and flute. He has performed with many groups including Seventh Son, The Green Room Community Theatre, Lake Norman Orchestra, Queen City Ringers, and Carolina Wind Orchestra.

Mr. Lafreniere is a member of the National Association for Music Education (NAfME), the North Carolina Music Educators’ Association (NCMEA), as well as a brother of the professional fraternity Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, Inc. He also served on the Middle School Choral Board of NCMEA as Member-At-Large, Music List Chair, Chair-Elect, Chair, Immediate Past Chair, and Elections Chair from 2014-2024. 

He was born in Massachusetts and moved to North Carolina when he was eight years old. He has lived in NC ever since and currently resides in Cornelius. In his spare time, he enjoys playing hobby board games, escape rooms, Broadway theatre, the Marvel Universe, and spending time with his friends and family.