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First Voices: (Kindergarten and 1st Grade) First Voices is an initial choir experience for children five to seven years old. It meets from 4:30 - 5:20 or 5:30-6:20 at First Presbyterian Church on Tuesday afternoons beginning September 15th. Cost: $115.00 for one semester, limit of 24 spaces per semester. Conductor: Maggie Olivo.
In this choir, the children actively experience music in a variety of ways. These include: moving speaking, listening, dancing, playing and most importantly, singing. All of these elements are vital to the young child's development of music skills and sensitivity. The skills will lay the foundation for future choir experiences and a general appreciation for music.
First Voices has a limited enrollment. It runs for a ten-week session each semester. The children are invited to take part in the IUCC concerts in December and April.
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Descant Choir: (2nd and 3rd Grade) Meets from 4:30 - 6:00 on Thursday afternoons at the First Presbyterian Church. One hour is devoted to choir rehearsal and the last 30 minutes is a musicianship class with games and songs geared toward teaching the rudiments of music. Cost: $275.00 per year. (Sept. - May) Conductor: Katherine Strand.
The Descant Choir is designed for the young singer ranging from about six to nine years of age. The focus of the choir is to:
- encourage a love of singing
- begin musical literacy
- develop pitch accuracy
A one hour rehearsal on suitable literature followed by a thirty minute lesson reinforcing music fundamentals in a relaxed atmosphere comprise the child's weekly experience.
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Allegro Choir: (4th-6th Grade) Meets from 4:30 - 6:00 on Thursday afternoons at the First Presbyterian Church. There is one hour of choir and an additional half-hour of musicianship. Cost: $275.00 per year. (Sept. - May) Conductor: Brent Gault.
The
Allegro Choir focuses on building vocal technique and mastering expressive
singing while also developing music reading, and part-singing skills.
Members of this group perform at the annual IUCC Winter and Spring
concerts, as well as for community events and programs including the
Bloomington Community Farmers Market, the Bloomington Martin Luther
King Jr. Celebration, and the Friday Zone.
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Chamber Choir: (6th-8th Grade Treble Voices) Meets from 4:30 - 6:00 on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons at the First Presbyterian Church. The entire time is devoted to a choir rehearsal that incorporates music theory into the rehearsal. This choir performs widely. Tuition is $375.00 per year. (Sept.-May) Conductor: Vivian Ip.
The Chamber Choir is made up of more experienced voices. The singers usually arrive in Chambers after having spent at least one year in the Treble Choir to establish their musicianship and vocal skills. By the time the singers leave this ensemble, they are able to read and write music. Although the Chambers do not have a separate musicianship class, as with the other choirs, they receive continued training in musicianship as one of the educational portions of their rehearsals. The repertoire provides a rich variety of styles from all historic periods and countries.
The average age of the choir is 12 to 14 years. The Chambers are often invited to audition for extracurricular performances at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. This is an extra commitment. Each singer that is accepted must sing for both normal Chamber rehearsals and performances, and the Jacobs School of Music piece. Working with Jacobs School of Music students provides the children with a wonderful opportunity to experience music performed at the highest aesthetic and musical levels.
The Chamber Choir sang at Carnegie Hall in March of 2002. The choir was featured at the National Kodály Conference in Williamsburg, Virginia in March of 2001, and again in Charlotte, North Carolina in March of 2006. The choir also performed at the St. Matthew's Episcopal Church in Indianapolis where they performed Benjamin Britten's Ceremony of Carols.
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Youth Chorale: (High School) Meets at the School of Music on Sundays from 6:30-8:30 p.m (Sept.-May). Tuition is $275.00 per year. Conductor: John Leonard.
If a chorister is accepted in both Youth Chorale and Chamber Choir and wishes to attend both, the tuition is $ 475.00 per year.
The Youth Chorale consists of male and female singers who are in Grade 9 or above (this includes male singers whose voices have changed). The Youth Chorale program aspires to provide a choral atmosphere to those who enjoy singing, but have limited time. The busy schedules of today's teenagers allow very little time to nourish their creative spirit. Music should be an essential part of everyone's life and the journey along its path should be a lifelong process. The singers in the Youth Chorale come together each week and make social and musical connections with those around them and produce a high standard of performance.
With one rehearsal a week, the singers are encouraged to work individually and prepare for a rigorous workout during the rehearsal.
The ensemble performs a wide variety of repertoire. During past seasons, the ensemble worked on a repertoire of Gospel music (with vocal training from Dr. James Mumford of the African American Choral Ensemble), Renaissance music, and songs by Malcolm Dalglish. In recent years the choir has worked with Roger Henry, an expert on music of the Caribbean.
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