The ideal complement of singers for our group is ten people: two sopranos, three altos, three tenors (including a countertenor), and two basses (including a baritone). We encourage anyone who might be interested in singing with the group to contact us, even if you are not certain you would like to join the group and even if there may not seem to be a vacancy in your part at the moment. Please follow the steps below and chat with the director as soon as possible. You are also invited to attend any of our events and chat informally afterward with the singers and director.
Since we often sing with one or two persons on a part, we are looking for singers who have the potential to "carry their part" and sound good doing it. However, we have taken singers who were "a bit rusty", but clearly had good potential, were enthusiastic about singing with the group, and seemed likely to live up to their commitments to the group. The normal steps to join are as follows:
We would encourage you to first go through this web site to make sure that you think the group and its repertoire might be a good fit for you. It is especially important to read this summary: An Invitation to Sing, which you are welcome to print out or email and pass on to others (PDF versions are available in color and black & white).
Our goal is to be ready to offer concerts on the third Sunday of April and October and would expect someone joining the group to commit to stay with the group and attend all rehearsals at least through the next concert. Rehearsals are normally held year-around in Santa Rosa, California on the second and fourth Sundays of every month, except May, November, and December, when rehearsals are on the first and third Sundays. Rehearsals are for 3 hours starting at 1:30 p.m.. We generally schedule two extra rehearsals one week and one day before each of the semi-annual concerts. We do adjust the normal schedule to avoid major holidays, however. Please check your schedule carefully and let the director know, in your first conversation, whether or not you have any scheduling conflicts.
If you think you might be interested in joining the group, please email or call the director using the contact information shown in the box to the right of this paragraph. Typically we would talk by phone a time or two and/or meet over coffee. The prospective singer would also be welcome to chat with other members of the ensemble to discuss their thoughts and feelings about the group. The goal is that any prospective singer have a very clear idea of what singing with the group involves early in the process.
In most cases, the prospective member and the director would schedule an informal audition together. Every effort is made to make an audition as painless as possible. Remember, potential and attitude count a lot in this group. The following link provides details about the audition process.
We wouldn't expect a singer to make a commitment to the group, nor would we invite a singer to become a regular member without sitting in on a trial rehearsal. If, after the steps described above, the prospective member and the director believe it might be a good fit, the singer would be invited to participate in one of our rehearsals. If all goes well, the singer would be invited to become a regular member.