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Frequently Asked Questions
What is a "community" choir?
We are a not-for-profit performing arts charitable organization serving the northwest Oklahoma City area. Spiritful Voices is a 50-voice all volunteer mixed choir comprised of men and women of all ages and from diverse backgrounds who share a love for music. We are dedicated to learning and performing a variety of contemporary secular and sacred choral works.
How much does it cost to enroll?
To help with the costs and expenses associated with our organization, each participant contributes $75.00 per season (or $135.00 per married couple) which is used to purchase music and practice CDs, and pay rehearsal hall expenses, promotional expenses, postage, etc. We offer an “early bird" discount of 20% for those who register at least two weeks prior to the beginning of each season, which makes the participant fee $60.00 for individuals or $108.00 for married couples. This contribution is tax-deductible as a charitable donation on your itemized tax return. If these dues present an extreme financial burden, then we may be able to help with an installment payment plan, an intership, a scholarship, or matching funds, so don't let the enrollemt fee prevent you from joining our chorus (we've never refused anyone membership in our choir due to an inability to pay their season's contribution).
Are there any additional financial commitments?
Yes. In addition to the enrollment fee required each season, participants in Spiritful Voices Community Choir must also commit to other financial obligations which include wearing specific stage attire during spring and fall performances (the cost of which may be the responsibility of each participant), a deposit guaranty to checkout a music folder during the season, any costs associated with transportation to and from rehearsals and concerts, and a willingness to financially help our charitable organization by actively pursuing at least $200.00 in corporate or individual sponsorships each season from individual and business contacts in the community. For details about all of these financial matters, please click here to download our "Financial Matters for Participants" PDF document before joining.
What is the time commitment required to participate?
To get the most out of singing with Spiritful Voices Community Choir, participants are expected to faithfully attend all rehearsals (typically 2-hour sessions, once each week during a 15 week season) and all concerts (typically 6 to 8, 1-hour performances during the season). Depending on ability and talent, each participant should also expect to practice the season's repertoire on their own (using the practice CD we'll provide) for 2 to 5 hours each week. We recognize that -- as adults -- circumstances and situations can occur from time to time involving conflicts with family, church, and job commitments that prevent 100% attendance. However, excessive absences may result in a participant being asked to "sit out" during an upcoming performance or require a participant to provide evidence (i.e., audition) of proficiency prior to continuing the season with the chorus.
Where does the choir rehearse?
We rehearse every Monday evening from 7:00 p.m. until 9:00 p.m. in the "Commons Area" of the Campus Center Building at Francis Tuttle Technology Center's Rockwell Campus (that's the building on Rockwell with the flagpoles in front), 12777 N. Rockwell Ave. (just south of the Kilpatrick Turnpike).
Is Spiritful Voices affiliated with Francis Tuttle Technology Center?
No. Spiritful Voices Community Choir, Inc., rents rehearsal space each week during our seasons from Francis Tuttle Area Vocational-Technology School District #21. Although Spiritful Voices is indebted to the school district for their hospitality and community spirit in allowing us to rent a portion of their beautiful facility for our choir participants, we are an independent, non-profit organization and are not affiliated with the school district or the state's Career Tech system.
Is Spiritful Voices affiliated with any church or religious group?
No. We are an independent, non-profit corporation formed under the laws of the State of Oklahoma to bring choral music to our community in northwest Oklahoma City. Although many of our participants belong to various faiths and sing each week with a choir in their church or house of worship, Spiritful Voices is a community-based chorus comprised of participants from all walks of life, and is not associated with any church, faith, denomination or religious organization.
Does Spiritful Voices sing choral pieces other than religious ones?
Absolutely! In fact, although we do perform some sacred works, most of our season's repertoire consists of secular choral pieces. Season after season, our participants consistently rank the variety of music in our repertoire as one of the top reasons for being a part of our community choir. We often perform pop, classical, contemporary, ballads, gospel, Broadway showtunes, patriotic, jazz, spiritual, swing, humorous and ethnic pieces. While some of our songs are a cappella pieces, many of our selections are accompanied by our talented pianists and even by our own instrumental ensembles consisting of various woodwind, brass, percussion, and string instruments. We do recognize that the vast majority of choral works published are religious-based, and many of these are truly beautiful compositions, but we make strong efforts each season to offer a variety of secular songs in our repertoire, as well. Of course, because most of our performances during our fall season occur during November and December, several selections in our fall repertoire are typically holiday-based, including both sacred and secular Christmas works.
How can I join Spiritful Voices?
Our choir is open to anyone 18 years or older who is enthusiastic for the love of music, can learn the music well, can commit to rehearsals, and has a pleasant, blending voice. There are no auditions for participation in our community choir. We accept new participants at the beginning of each season (spring and fall). Click on the "Join Us" tab at the top of this webpage to find out more about joining our community choir. Or, you may contact our office at 405-414-SING (7464), or send an e-mail to request additional information about joining our group to: join@spiritfulvoices.org.
What is the average age of participants in Spiritful Voices?
Although we don't readily track this information, we have had singers in past seasons as young as 18 and as old as 92. The median age of a participant in Spiritful Voices is probably around 50 years old.
Is Spiritful Voices a women's choir or a men's choir?
We're a four-part mixed choir consisting of both men and women-basses, tenors, altos, and sopranos.
Is Spiritful Voices a children's choir?
No. Participation in our community choir is restricted to persons aged 18 years and older. Under certain, rare circumstances, a person younger than 18 may be invited to participate in the community chorus as a special guest performer, instrumentalist, or soloist with their parent's permission.
How many participants are there in the choir?
This varies some from season to season, but typically there are 50 singers and as many as 11 instrumentalists who participate in our community chorus.
What is the breakdown of men and women in Spiritful Voices?
This varies from season to season, but during one recent season, there were 36 women (22 sopranos and 14 altos) and 14 in our men's sections (6 tenors and 8 baritone/basses).
Where does Spiritful Voices perform?
Since we began, we've performed at such venues as Opening Night, the Oklahoma City Festival of the Arts, the Paseo Arts Festival, the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, Penn Square Mall, the Ronald J. Norick Downtown Library, the Crystal Bridge Tropical Conservatory at the Myriad Gardens, the Braum's Ice Skating Rink, the Oklahoma City Holiday Parade, the Oklahoma Wine Festival, and at dozens of retirement centers and skill care facilities throughout the metropolitan Oklahoma City area. Several of our performances have been featured in The Oklahoman, The City Sentinel, The Bethany Tribune, The Edmond Sun, Northwest Metro Times, The Journal Record, Guthrie News Leader, The Kingfisher Times and Free Press, and on OETA-TV, KAUT OK43, KWTV News 9, FOX News 25, KOCO-TV's Eyewitness News 5, and KFOR-TV's NewsChannel 4.
How many performances does the choir do each season?
Typically, our choir presents from six to eight concerts each season. These hour-long performances are usually scheduled on weekends, although some performances may be in the evenings on weekdays. During our fall season, our performances are usually scheduled from mid-November to mid-December. In the spring, our performances are usually from mid-April through Memorial Day.
Entire contents Copyright © 2009 by Spiritful Voices Community Choir, Inc., a tax exempt, 501(c)(3) charitable organization. All rights reserved.