Join Our Choir!

We rehearse Tuesday evenings at Asbury & West United Church, 3180 Bathurst St. (map), a few blocks north of Lawrence Avenue West.

  • We are expected to practice the music at home and attend at least one sectional per term. We sing in many different languages and provide recorded pronunciation, which members are expected to work on outside of rehearsal time.

  • We also have at least one Saturday retreat, working on music in more depth, with sectionals and a guest clinician. The intense focus of the day is broken up by a fabulous potluck lunch, and we often finish with a fun workshop. 

  • We normally present three concerts a year, with additional community appearances at long-term care homes, community centres, and the like. Concert dress is all black, with a solid-coloured scarf or tie.

Singing in the time of COVID

For the start of the 2023‒24 season, masks are optional in rehearsal. However, if the public health situation changes, we may revert to requiring masks.

  • At the height of the pandemic we rehearsed entirely over zoom, everyone singing at home with microphones off. In the fall of 2021, we cautiously moved toward hybrid rehearsals, with conductor, pianist, and some singers in person and the rest at home on zoom. All in-person singers were vaccinated, masked, and distanced, and we constantly monitored the air quality, opening windows if necessary (even in winter!).

    In 2022-23, we were fully in-person, requiring everyone to be vaccinated and boosted. We remained masked in rehearsal but gradually moved toward performing without masks.

    Throughout this time, we have had no reported or suspected cases of Covid transmission that could be traced directly to rehearsal.

  • details to come

Sounds great! Can I join?

Yes! We recommend that you sit in on a rehearsal to see if it’s a good fit. Experienced singers may then book a friendly audition with our music director.

Those who are not ready to audition are invited to join the early rehearsals at 7:00 to receive extra support in learning some of the less-challenging pieces. They are welcome to sit in on the rest of the rehearsal, participate fully in the social aspects of the choir, and perform in a portion of each concert. Several members who began this way gained the confidence to become fully-auditioned members.

Rehearsals are Tuesday evenings at Asbury and West United Church (3180 Bathurst St., north of Lawrence).

Contact us to find out more!

Still accepting new members in all voice parts!

What else do I need to know?

  • We are a welcoming and inclusive group. We are committed to values of equity, accessibility, artistic excellence and community building.

  • Rehearsals include time for socializing and refreshments (often home-baked!) at the breaks. And did we mention the fabulous potlucks??  

 

Dues

The annual dues are $300, waived for university students. A sliding scale is available upon request.