Registration forms

Registration forms must be completed in their entirety. This helps us update and maintain our database.

Fees

The choir season runs from September to May, and members must pay membership fees by the third week of each term.

Payment may be made by cash or cheque payable to Sherwood Park Festival Singers Society or by e-transfer to festival.singers08@gmail.com

• $310 if paying for the full year; this includes a sanitation fee OR
• $180 per term including a sanitation fee, payable at the beginning of each term (September or January)

Masks are available from Linda Hebert for $10.00 each.

Fees help to cover the costs of director and pianist honorariums, music purchases, rental, facility rental, insurance costs, etc. Casino and grant funds help to reduce fees.

Music must be returned at the end of each rehearsal until membership is paid. After you’ve registered and paid your membership fees, you’ll receive a package containing each piece of music required for the term.

Choristers are given a folder of music for the term (Fall or Winter). Members may make notes in their music in pencil (please don’t write in ink). Music is then to be returned at the end of the term. Please don’t punch holes in any music; instead, you can request a plastic music holder, allowing you to store your music in a three-ring binder.

To help you learn your part, practise at home and prepare for our performances, you’ll receive a rehearsal CD OR MP3 files to play on your device.

Unless otherwise stated, practices will be held every Tuesday from 7:15 through 9:30 p.m. at Mount Olivet Church in Sherwood Park. Practice times may be extended as show dates approach.

Set up for rehearsals will be at 7:00 PM. If you can come early and help set up at 7:00 PM it would be greatly appreciated.

See Performances for performance dates, times and locations.

At the start of each term, members are learning new music and settling into choir’s structure. A solid performance at the end of each term depends upon our members’ hard work and regular attendance. Let the conductor and/or the executive know via email if you’re going to be absent.

At the directors discretion, a member who has missed too many rehearsals, may not perform in concert.

Two Saturday workshops are offered each year with optional guest clinicians. Although attendance is not mandatory, it is an excellent time to get to know members and have extra rehearsal time. Workshops are from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Coffee and muffins are available from 9:00 – 9:30 AM. Please bring your own water bottles and lunch.

Festival Singers often enters the Sherwood Park Music Festival in April. This is another fun experience and helps to improve the quality of our performances.

Illness

If you are unwell with ANY respiratory illness or COVID symptoms DO NOT COME TO REHEARSAL until you are fully well again. Please advise the Board via email if you test positive for COVID.

If you will be absent for any reason please let up know! You can do this by email at festival.singers08@gmail.com or mark yourself absent on the attendance sheet for preplanned absences.

Many choirs do a lot of fundraising. We strive to keep fundraising activities to a minimum through our fee structure and grants. However, choir members will be asked to participate in some fundraising activities including but not limited to:

• Selling tickets to concerts
• Volunteering for casino (every 3 – 4 years)
• Other possible small fundraising opportunities that the Board may decide to participate in as required

Opportunities

• Member of the Board of Directors
• Publicity and Media (knowledge of graphic design, media relations, and print industry an asset)
• Social Media (Facebook, Twitter, etc.)
• Website Maintenance
• Choir Historian (maintaining an archive of current and historical documents
• Concert Committees (there are many tasks involved in organizing performances)

Learn more about available volunteer opportunities.

We realize choir rehearsals are meant to be a fun and enjoyable experience, and we encourage our choristers to get to know one another. To ensure a respectful environment for all choristers and for our director, we ask that everyone try to keep noise and chatter to a minimum.

Please refrain from wearing scented products of any kind as some of our members have allergies and/or respiratory ailments.

REMEMBER! Do not come to rehearsal if you are sick. Let us know if you are not coming!

The Annual General Meeting (AGM) typically occurs on the first Tuesday in September, after registration, and includes

• A review of financials and other choir matters
• Election of the Board (executive)

Additional details will be made available a minimum of one week before the meeting.

Festival Singers Society is operated by a volunteer Board of Directors as we are a non- profit registered Society.

Festival Singers also has a presence on Facebook. Members with accounts are invited to like and share our content.