Tacoma Youth Chorus

Raise Your Voice | Fuel Your Passion | Join in Song

A special invitation from Alum Christopher Kollar

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Phyllis Kollar, my grandmother, passed away peacefully a few weeks ago. She was an avid supporter and board member of TYC. Between 2002 and 2008, she attended every concert that we ever performed and, with her husband Ferdy, joined the choir on our Europe Tour in 2003.

As a TYC alumni of 10 years, my memories with the chorus have molded my life in many wonderful ways and I owe much of this invaluable experience to the love and guidance of my grandmother, Phyllis, who dedicated her life to really making it happen for me. Her love for the choral arts was profound, and Tacoma Youth Chorus held a very, VERY special place in her heart-

We would like to extend a special invite to all former TYC singers (as many as we can) to gather and join in singing 2-3 pieces of music from the TYC archive at her upcoming memorial service. I know that she would have been delighted beyond belief to hear this wonderful choir that we’ve all grown up with perform one last time, with her and those she loved.

In recognition of the significance of music within her life, we would like to dedicate a major portion of the service itself to sharing a performance of varied music by family members and music groups that she surrounded herself with over the years. For this very reason, an incredible venue has been chosen to share this music and celebrate her life and memory; the service will be held in Tacoma at Christ Episcopal Church on November 10, 2018, at 11am. Many of you are familiar with the cathedral-like setting of this space – it is always a treat to perform in! Alonso Brizuela has graciously agreed to help facilitate the direction of the choir. We are working on choosing a couple of pieces that we have performed in the past and expect to get together in the coming weeks to practice and catch up! Your attendance and a gathering of alumni would mean so much to me, my family, and the many others in attendance who recognize and cherish TYC as well, so please let us know if you are able to be part of this very special event!

Christopher Kollar

IMPORTANT DETAILS (Please RSVP ASAP):

WHO: All Tacoma Youth Chorus alum singers

WHAT: Sing 2-3 selections

WHEN: Saturday, November 10; 11:00 am (plus a rehearsal to be arranged)

WHERE: Christ Episcopal Church — 310 N. K Street, Tacoma

RSVP: Alonso@tacomayouthchorus.org or Message Alonso ASAP

Invitation to Henry Leck workshop

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Next week is a big week for Tacoma Youth Chorus! Henry Leck is coming to work with choirs, AND he will help present a workshop for all of you educators, church musicians, and college students out there!

On Saturday, October 20th, we are hosting a Choral Music Educators Workshop; Judy Herrington & Henry Leck with be co-presenting, sharing their expertise on choral music. There will be sessions on music classroom and rehearsal techniques, working with the male expanding voice (with a demo choir of TYC singers, grades 4-12), and teaching part singing. A reading session plus general Q&A will round out the day’s activities.  

“I’m looking forward to returning to the Pacific Northwest to work with teachers, singers of the Tacoma Youth Chorus and my friend and colleague Judy Herrington.” – Henry Leck

“All of the TYC boys from Concert Choir, Chamber Choir, and Men’s Choir are looking forward to singing together for you, and with Henry Leck! We are finding challenges and strengths working together with changed and unchanged voices, and we look forward to sharing these with you.” – Alonso Brizuela, TYC Men’s Choir & Concert Choir Director

“I learn something new every time I attend the TYC workshop!  In addition, I’m introduced to literature I may not have come across.  It is a wonderful opportunity to talk and sing with colleagues one may not often see.” – Dr. Linda Miller, PLU

Registration is still available through our website, and includes lunch, 6.5 WMEA clock hours, and a full day of fun!

Where in the world is Mrs. Herrington?

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Mrs. Herrington is out and about this week doing some wonderful teaching & traveling. Here are some photos that she sent to us from her journey. Can you tell where she is? (answer at the bottom)

Answer: She is at the International School of Bangkok in Thailand with our soon-to-be guest, Henry Leck!

Pizza Practice & “Bring a Friend” Week

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Last Friday was Chamber Choir’s first Pizza Practice of the year! We had a blast learning new music for Sounds of the Season, eating pizza, playing games, and sharing pizza jokes! Many of the games we played included Mrs. Herrington’s interesting collection of rubber chickens.

Pizza for everyone!

Rubber chicken games

This week is Bring a Friend week in all of the rehearsals! This is an excellent opportunity to invite a friend or classmate who you think may enjoy singing with TYC and having them check out what we do every week. You are more than welcome to bring multiple friends as well. The more, the merrier!

Fun Fact: When Mr. Brizuela was in high school, he had a friend who sang in TYC, who invited him to a rehearsal, and the rest is history!

Chorale Retreat & Parent Sharing

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This upcoming Saturday (September 22nd) is our Fall Chorale Retreat! The retreat is a great way to get the year started with Chorale, Men’s Choir, and Women’s Choir. It will begin at 11:00am at Mason United Methodist Church in the Proctor neighborhood of North Tacoma. It will end with a Parent Sharing at 4:00, and be finished no later than 4:30pm. The Parent Sharing is a way for parents to get a sneak peek on the music that the Chorale singers are learning for our Fall performances. Singers should bring their music and a water bottle! All other details can be found in TYC Access (the Concert Detail Sheet (CDS) is posted on the Noticeboard) or in the Concert Detail Sheet (CDS) that went home with singers at the first rehearsal.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Mentor Spotlight

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As we kick off our new season, our mentors are already hard at work helping their new peers in the various choirs. Mentors play a vital role in all of the choirs of TYC. They are student leaders, assistants, and role models for other singers. Not only do they learn the music for the choirs they sing in (with their grade level), but they also learn all of the repertoire for their mentored choir, simultaneously. All of the directors are very thankful for their mentors and all they bring to the choirs!

I was able to ask some of the mentors about their favorite parts of being a mentor, and these are some of their responses:

“Mentoring is a great experience because you can gain more knowledge and friends throughout the year!  Being a mentor means that I can help kids reach new heights in their singing.” – Olivia

“Mentoring is fun because as mentors, we get to help future generations of singers.” – Ryan

I also asked them what they would say to someone who was possibly thinking of becoming a mentor. Some of their responses were:

“Do it! It has always been a fun experience for me and . . . these kids are actually pretty great to be around.” – Katy

“… it is a great way to widen your horizons in the world of singing.” – Olivia

Thank you, mentors, for all of your hard work!

Chamber Choir Mentors

Welcome to a new season of TYC!

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Welcome to a wonderful new season of Tacoma Youth Chorus! This year, we will have many incredible concerts, wonderful guests, and  great rehearsals every week!

    Rehearsals for Chorale (Men’s/Women’s Choirs) and Chamber Choir began on Tuesday (9/4), Concert Choir and  Choristers on Wednesday (9/5), and Music Makers will begin today (9/11).

    First rehearsals are so much fun – filled with games, new friends, new music, and lots of singing!

    If you are interested in joining TYC or know someone who might be, all choirs are accepting new singers. All you have to do is call (253) 588-1391 or email the office (info@tacomayouthchorus.org) to schedule an assessment!

Upcoming Teacher Workshop with Henry Leck and Judith Herrington

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We look forward to sharing with you this wonderful opportunity to work with Henry Leck and our own Judith Herrington at our third Choral Music Educators Workshop on Saturday, October 20.  If you’re a music teacher – voice, church choir, school – or music student — high school or college — you’re invited to join us for a great day of music and fun!

Henry Leck brings inspiring ideas and teaching strategies to this workshop; his work will focus on working with the boy’s voice.  The demonstration choir will include our Concert Choir guys (grades 4-5), Chamber Choir guys (grades 6-8), and our Men’s Choir (grades 8-12).

Judith Herrington will be sharing teaching strategies for introducing part-singing to young singers. Always our focus is creating positive and successful experiences for singers. She will include ideas for using physical gesture to introduce vocal concepts to young singers and which can be applied to experienced singers, as well as supporting classroom management.

Past workshops have been great successes, enjoyed by workshop attendees:

“This was a lovely experience!”  “Fantastic day, great workshop!”

“Very informative and engaging!”  “Even chocolate – you thought of everything!”

Bring a teaching colleague to share this workshop! You will receive music scores and lots of great ideas. A light continental breakfast and lunch is included in the price. College students and high school students interested in music education are invited to attend at a discounted price. We know you will find it a motivating and fun experience!  And we promise there will even be chocolate!

More information, including registration information, here.

 

Tacoma Youth Chorus Concludes a Wonderful Season with June 10 Celebration in Song!

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This week our choirs will have their final rehearsals of the year in preparation for our culminating performance of the season. Tacoma Youth Chorus presents Celebration in Song this Sunday, June 10 at the historic First Presbyterian Church in downtown Tacoma. In addition to sharing our artistry, we will be honoring our mentors and our graduating seniors. Don’t miss it!
 
Get your tickets now! Details below.
 
 
WHO: TYC Choristers (grades 2-3), Concert Choir (grades 4-5), Chamber Choir (grades 6-8) and Chorale (grades 9-12)
 
 
WHEN: Sunday June 10 @ 4:00pm
 
 
WHY: For the love of music!

 

See you Sunday!

Save the Date: Celebration in Song is June 10!

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Tacoma Youth Chorus presents Celebration in Song, our final performance of the year, on June 10 at the historic First Presbyterian Church in downtown Tacoma. This promises to be an uplifting afternoon of artistry and fun. 

Save the date and get your tickets now! Details below.
WHO: TYC Choristers (grades 2-3), Concert Choir (grades 4-5), Chamber Choir (grades 6-8), Women’s Choir (grades 9-12), Men’s Choir (grades 9-12) and Chorale (grades 9-12)
WHEN: Sunday June 10 @ 4:00pm
WHY: For the love of music!

Are you a kid who loves to sing? Do you know someone who would benefit from all TYC has to offer?

TYC is offering an Assessment Day on Saturday June 2! We will be holding one-on one assessments for fall 2018 enrollment in all our groups, grades K-12. No special preparation is necessary! Learn more about our assessment process here. 

To schedule your appointment, contact our office at 253-588-1391 or info@tacomayouthchorus.org. (If these dates don’t work for you, let us know and we will find another time.)

Get the scoop about our organization and offerings on our website.  Our directors are eager to welcome you – come be part of the music!

 

Contact Information

Main Office: (253) 588-1391 info@tacomayouthchorus.org