BANGOR — Bangor Area Youth Choirs is incredibly excited to announce their collaboration with The Bangor Public Library! BAYC will be holding all rehearsals and performances in the Norman Minsky Lecture Hall of BPL!
Beginning Sept. 18 Bangor Area Youth Choirs will be holding open rehearsals for all area youth with an interest in singing! Open rehearsals will be held at our new home, on the second floor of The Bangor Public Library, 145 Harlow Street and offered as follows: ages 8–12 from 4:30–5:30 p.m. and ages 13–18 from 5:30–6:30 p.m. Any young person who loves to sing is invited to come check out what being a part of BAYC is all about!
BAYC offers three choral tracks (two non-auditioned choirs and one auditioned choir) and in addition to several large concerts per year, the group offers many unique performance and travel opportunities all while offering a supportive space for area youth to discover their voice!
Now in its 31st year, the Bangor Area Youth Choirs is a non-profit youth choir organization, drawing youth from towns all around the greater Bangor Region. Under the direction of Molly J. Webster and collaborative pianist Colin Graebert, the group seeks to provide youth with a high-level choral experience coupled with an inclusive community of thoughtful, talented, creative young people that share a common love of singing. BAYC follows the organizational guidelines of most established children’s choirs and is not affiliated with any church, public or private school. BAYC is composed of young singers aged 8 (or 7 if approved by the artistic director) to18 (or in high school).
BAYC is designed to be a long-term activity and experience that grows and deepens throughout the years of the singer’s involvement. For 30 years the staff and board of BAYC have worked hard to have our organization be one that gradually and consistently builds musical expertise, character, poise, sensitivity and understanding of other cultures and eras, friendships with singers from a wide variety of backgrounds and locales, and leadership skills.
Three choral tracks for weekly rehearsals are as follows: treble singers – Wednesdays from 4:30-5:30 p.m. (joining the mixed ensemble for rehearsal from 5:15-5:30 p.m.). For all youth ages 8-12 (seven with artistic director approval). This group is the starting point for our young singers and seeks to instill healthy singing techniques, music literacy, and to further nurture a life-long love of singing.
Mixed ensemble (ME) Wednesdays from 5-6 p.m. (15 minutes of rehearsal is combined with the treble singers). This choir is open to all youth ages 12-18. This ensemble provides an extensive choral experience through guided warm-ups, vocal pedagogy, music literacy, and an eclectic repertoire drawing on all genres, time periods, and styles.
Chamber singers Wednesdays from 5-6:30 p.m. (5-6 p.m. with the mixed ensemble). For ages 14-18 or with permission. This is a select/auditioned choir that offers students a focused, advanced level of choral/music education. This is achieved through advanced warm-ups, pedagogical practices and techniques, and music literacy exploration. Repertoire is challenging and draws from all genres, periods, and styles.
For more information, Molly J. Webster, artistic director, via email at [email protected] and be sure to follow them on Facebook & Instagram @BangorAreaYouthChoirs & @BAYCSings.
