Les activités de la chorale se déroulent en anglais, mais nous avons de nombreux membres francophones, y compris au niveau du conseil d’administration, qui peuvent vous aider.

Not much! But if you really want to know, here's a terminology crash course:

Vocal Ensemble – up to 9 singers

Choir – blanket term for a group of at least 10 singers

Chamber Choir – a small choir of 20 to 36 singers

Chorus – a larger choir of at least 60 singers (also: the chorus part of a song is the familiar bit that comes back at the end of every verse)

Chorale – a specific genre within the Lutheran church music tradition, found in many of Bach’s famous works. In choir names, the word 'chorale' has nothing to do with that. It just sounds prettier than 'choir' or 'chorus.' Take away the ‘e’ on the end, though, and the word becomes an adjective (choral music, choral works, choral terminology, etc.)

Clear as mud?

You name it, we sing it! There is huge spectrum of music arranged for choirs, in almost every genre (headbanging is admittedly rare at choir concerts). Our musical director spends every summer sampling the smorgasbord of repertoire options to create engaging programs for the next choir season. And like the Maritime weather, if you don’t care for what you see (hear), wait five minutes! Every performance has a different genre focus, to accommodate as many musical tastes as possible.

The diversity extends to languages as well. Most choral music is published in English, but we’ve also sung in French, Estonian, Swahili, Bemba, Mandarin, Hebrew, Latin, Spanish, Italian, and German!

We perform without digital enhancements or backing tracks. This allows participants and audience to experience the authenticity and individual expression that are at the core of LIVE music making. Accompaniment by some of New Brunswick’s finest instrumentalists adds a dynamic layer to our performances.

Absolutely not! Most of our choristers have little to no ability to read music. We provide part-specific audio tracks to help you learn the songs by ear. You will also pick up some things as you follow along in the sheet music at rehearsal, and gradually, what you see on the page will begin to make sense.

There are no auditions and no skill requirements other than the ability to match pitches accurately (carry a tune) and learn new music, whether by ear or reading notes.

Singing in a choir is a fun, cost-effective way to take your vocal and musical skills up a notch!

The more time you put into practising the songs, the more fun you will have at choir.

The minimum time commitment you should factor into your schedule is the weekly rehearsal plus another hour of at-home practice, spread out over the week between rehearsals.

The musical director provides a weekly plan so choristers can focus on the specific songs that will come up in the next rehearsal. Our members find all sorts of creative ways to fit in their practice with the audio tracks, listening while driving, walking the dog, cooking dinner...

The rehearsal schedule, right up to the concert, is published at the beginning of each session. Small changes sometimes become necessary near the end, but we try to keep things as consistent as possible. We know how busy you are.

Active participation in choir is not possible on a trial basis, but you are welcome to listen to one of our rehearsals before signing up. We will be happy to chat with you at break time and answer any questions you may have.

If you decide to join, we definitely recommend that you stick with it for the entire session (3-4 months) and experience a concert with us. Many of our most enthusiastic and skillful members took a little while to find their choir footing. Check out our Testimonials for more insight.

The membership fee you pay at the beginning of each session (fall/spring) covers the following:

Administration

Musical direction by a vocal/choral professional 

Instrumental accompaniment in concert by some of the finest musicians in New Brunswick

Sheet music (yours to keep so you can mark it up, holepunch it, etc.)

Audio tracks to help you learn your part

Some uniform items

A great time!

Performance dress is different for each of our ensembles and may vary from concert to concert as well. You will be responsible for basic wardrobe components that you can wear outside choir (example: black pants, shoes), and we supply the performance-specific parts of the outfit (example: shirts with Voices Rising logo for the youth singers). You will find the exact uniform requirements on Choir Genius once you have registered for one of our choirs.

Registration fees are only refundable prior to the start of the third rehearsal of the session. A $50 administrative fee will be deducted from the refund.

Sign up for our mailing list to receive email updates at the beginning of each session and just before major events. You can also follow us on social media (Facebook and Instagram) to stay in the loop.