TCS offers a friendly, supportive atmosphere where members develop their musical ability and learn choral repertoire. Membership is open to anyone who wants to sing. There are no auditions, but some previous choral experience is helpful.

Are you interested in learning new and infinitely rewarding choral music? Can you regularly attend rehearsals and become that ‘voice among many’ in concerts and events? Then, sing it out… and fill in the online form below.

Toronto Choral Society Information Form (Your Online Fill-Form)

Terms and Conditions of Membership
The Toronto Choral Society (TCS) is a not-for-profit organization.  We are a volunteer run community choir that was established in 1845. Members pay an annual fee which contributes to paying expenses such as venue rental, artistic staff, music, and administrative costs.  TCS supports a sister choir, the “Peggy Ann Walpole Women’s Choir”, comprised of women (or staff or friends) who use, or have used, the services of Street Haven at the Crossroads.

Members may pay their membership fees in a single payment of $300.00 for the full year, or in two instalments of $175.00 for each of the fall and spring terms.

Full time students may pay a reduced fee of $200.00 for the full year, or $100.00 for each term. Students will be required to show their student card.

If a chorister withdraws from the choir after paying the term registration fee, refunds will be granted, upon request according to the following schedule:

· Before the fourth week of the term, 100% of the registration fee (minus a $20 administration fee) will be returned to a departing member.
·  After the fourth week of the term, there will be no refund of fees.

All efforts will be made to rehearse as often as planned, to perform our announced concert season, etc., but as noted above, fees are not for service, but for support of the choir and its work. Unforeseen events, inclement weather, personal illness, scheduling conflicts, venue problems and so on do not change the terms of membership.   It is important to note that there is no guarantee that there will be rehearsals or sectionals every week, that concerts will be held or that any exact amount of time will be spent on the planned music for that season.

Music Deposit
New members of the choir are required to pay a $25 refundable music deposit. 

Financial Assistance Policy
The Toronto Choral Society is committed to inclusivity. Our financial assistance policy is designed to remove barriers to membership for anyone who wishes to join TCS, but is experiencing financial need. An application for financial assistance must be made each term as part of the registration process. To apply for financial assistance, please send an email to the Financial Assistance Committee at: info@torontochoralsociety.org. 

All information provided will be held in strict confidence. 

Volunteer Positions
TCS needs everyone to help make our choir the best in the city. We need help – to organize social events, sell tickets, publicize concerts, maintain the music library, update the website, raise funds and much, much more. Most positions only require a few minutes of your time, but make a huge difference to the choir, help you get to know your fellow members, and add to the satisfaction of working together.

Fundraising
Ticket sales and membership fees do not come close to covering our operating expenses. To produce high quality concerts of which we can be proud, we need to raise additional funds. We have internal fundraising activities and we solicit donations from individuals, corporations and foundations. We recognize donors in our concert programs and issue charitable donation receipts for income tax purposes.

Rehearsals
Rehearsal are held every Wednesday from 7:00-9:00 at Eastminster United Church. It is important to attend rehearsals and be on time.

Sectionals – Sectionals are extra rehearsal sessions that offer extra practice on difficult passages. They are also a chance for you to ask for help with any music you’re finding challenging. Sectionals usually alternate weeks between male and female voices, and are held before regular rehearsals.

Pencils – Always bring a pencil to rehearsals, and use it to note the conductor’s instructions in your score and to highlight difficult notes or passages for you to work on outside of rehearsal. Please mark your score only in light pencil – the librarians need to erase those marks after the concert!

Practice – We aim to achieve a high level of excellence at every performance, which means that it is necessary to work on learning the words and music between rehearsals. Several short sessions a week are better than one long one. It can help to play your part on a piano or other instrument. Listening to a YouTube or other recording is also very beneficial.

To further assist members with their at-home practice, recordings of our rehearsals are posted weekly to the Members Only section of our website. Practice tracks which allow you to sing along with your voice part can also be found in Members Only.

Concerts
TCS presents at least two major concerts every year, in addition to participating in benefits and special events.

Concerts 2023-2024 Season

Winter concert is confirmed for December 1st with Bach’s Christmas Oratorio at Koerner Hall.

Spring concert repertoire is confirmed. Carl Orff’s Carmine Burana. In May, date to be determined.

Tickets – It is essential that we sell tickets, not only to make our concerts a better experience for everyone, but to generate the revenue we need to make the choir a success! Therefore, every member is expected to sell six tickets to both our Christmas and Spring concerts.

Concert dress – Uniform concert dress enhances the professional appearance of the choir and helps the audience focus on listening to the performance without being distracted by individual attire. Women wear long black skirts with plain long-sleeved round-necked tops and minimal jewelry. Men wear black tuxedos with white shirts and black bow ties.

Concert etiquette – Seating for choir and guests is assigned well in advance in consultation with the Director. Directions for entering and exiting the stage are given by the stage manager prior to performances. Members are asked not to carry water bottles or other personal items on stage, not to talk during performances and not to wear scented products which might cause allergic reactions in other singers.Toronto Choral Society Information Form (Your Online Fill-Form)