New Children's Choir in Auburn

A new children’s choir has been formed. It is the Auburn Youth Chorus, and it has been founded and is directed by Lyndsay Barham. The Auburn Youth Chorus is intended for children in grades 3 through 6, and the program includes ear training, music theory, vocal care and sight singing. Sessions have just begun on Wednesdays from 3:45 to 5:00 p.m. at Auburn Grace Community Church, 3126 Olympic Way in Auburn. The cost is $100 per semester or $200 per year.

Miss Barham has a B.A. in Music Education and Vocal Performance from William Jessup University, and she is a recent recipient of an M.M. in Choral Conducting from California State University, Sacramento. She is also the Director of Music at Forest Lake Christian High School in Auburn where she directs 3 high school choirs, a contemporary band, and a junior high school choir.

For more information, check the Auburn Youth Chorus website at http://auburnyouthchorus.vpweb.com.

Voices of California Honored as "Chapter of the Year"

The Far Western District of the Barbershop Harmony Society includes 76 choruses in the states of California, Nevada, Arizona, and Hawaii.  At its convention this past weekend in Riverside, Sacramento's Voices of California (VoCal) was named "Chapter of the Year."  With many outstanding choruses in the Far Western District, this is a significant honor, one that VoCal has now won twice in only 4 years of its existence.  You can see them in action in their May 3 show at the Performing Arts Center at Sacramento City College (visit www.voicesofcalifornia.org for information) or at SacSings! - The Sacramento Choral Festival, June 13-15 at the Harris Center for the Performing Arts at Folsom Lake College (visit www.SacSings.org for more information).

Join a Chorus - See the World

Last year saw numerous local choruses on summer overseas tours – mostly to Italy.  This year, there are even more planned:

• Vocal Art Ensemble - May 7-12 - Scotland and England
• River City Chorale - June 1-8 - Holland, Germany, France & Switzerland
• Sacramento Master Singers - June 19-27, 2015 - Scotland
• Placer Pops Chorale -  July 12-20 - Barcelona

It's too late to join these groups as a singer, but there may still be time to tag along as a non-singer.  Check their websites for details.

Capital Public Radio Highlights Choral Works

On March 7, Capital Radio News reporter Jeff Hudson did a rundown of three major upcoming choral events:  concerts by the Sacramento Choral Society & Orchestra, UC Davis Symphony and Chorus, and the Sacramento Master Singers.  The 3-minute piece included interviews and sample of the music to be performed, and you can hear a recording at this link.

SCSO on Radio and TV

It's always great to see choral music covered in local media.  The Sacramento Choral Society and Orchestra (SCSO) is an organization that always garners excellent publicity.  The latest is an interview of Music Director Donald Kendrick and SCSO President James McCormick on March 3 by Beth Ruyak, host of Captital Public Radio's "Insight" program.  They discussed their upcoming European Masterworks concert and last summer's trip to Italy, which included a performance at the Vatican.  You can still hear the interview at this link.  You can also still access the excellent half-hour program in KVIE's "ViewFinder" series that profiled SCSC.  The program is online at this link.