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PMYC Handbook 2025-26
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Pro Musica Youth Chorus

pmyouthchorus@gmail.com; www.promusicayouthchorus.org  

PO Box 2082, Oak Park, IL 60303

Phone:  312-900-6570 (Karen -- text or call)

We’re on Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/pmyouthchorus

We’re on Instagram! @pmyouthchorus.  Like us, follow us, share the Chorus love.

 ~ Pro Musica Youth Chorus, 2025-26 season ~

Chorister & Parent Handbook 

Welcome to Pro Musica Youth Chorus! Pro Musica Youth Chorus is filled with wonderful voices, excellent music education, new friendships, and lots of fun. This handbook lets you know what to expect from the chorus and what is expected of you as a singer or a singer’s grown-up.  #everybodyshines

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CALENDAR / REHEARSAL SCHEDULE, pg. 2

ENSEMBLES, pg. 2

HISTORY, pg. 2

ARTISTIC STAFF, pg. 3

DROP OFF & PICK UP, pg. 4

COMMUNICATION, pg. 4

BEHAVIOR and WELLNESS GUIDELINES, pg. 4-5

UNIFORMS, pg. 5

SINGER RESPONSIBILITIES (music and vocal health), pg. 6

TUITION and FINANCIAL AID, pg. 7

CHORUS FUNDRAISING, pg. 7

VOLUNTEERING, pg. 7

This year, we continue with some of our most loved experiences as a part of Pro Musica -- collaborations with outside organizations, and an overnight retreat!  We’ll be singing with the Joffrey Ballet in December, and with two other groups for the annual holiday extravaganza that is Sing We Joyous!  Our focus this year is to broaden our enrollment and strengthen our PMYC singer community, helping kids learn and grow while having tons of fun.

REHEARSAL LOCATION

We rehearse at First United Church of Oak Park, 848 Lake Street in Oak Park.  Please enter by the back parking lot.

CALENDAR and REHEARSAL SCHEDULE 

Fall Semester runs from Aug. 26 through December 16.

Second semester begins on January 6 and runs through May 17.  All regular rehearsals are on Tuesdays.

2025-26 dates for performances and community events can be found on our calendar.

→ We need your singers to be at every rehearsal, and to give notice if they will be absent.

Email mrspintochoir@gmail.com, pmyouthchorus@gmail.com or text Karen (312-900-6570)  to report an absence.

ENSEMBLES → For the 2025-26 Season, PMYC singers are arranged into 4 ensembles.

Melody Makers (K-1)

For our beginning ensemble, rehearsals include games and activities designed to introduce musical dynamics, rhythm and notation. Participants learn to find and be confident in their singing voice.  Melody Makers will have a chance to join us for our spring concert!

Primo Coro (2nd & 3rd grade)

Members of our entry-level choir, Primo Coro, learn about healthy vocal production, sing in unison and two parts, practice and perform basic musical notation, learn solfège, and discover new musical terms and symbols. Primo Coro singers develop confidence while building a sense of responsibility for themselves within an ensemble.

Canterini (4th and 5th grade)

Our mid-level choir continues the work started in Primo Coro.  These singers will learn more complex aspects of music theory, and will eventually be able to handle more difficult two-part and possibly even three-part harmonies.

Curricular goals: 

● maintain head voice throughout the singer’s vocal range; 

● read and perform basic musical patterns;

● read and perform solfège Curwen hand signs;

● sharpen focus and cooperative skills;

● begin symbol recognition for dynamic markings;

● build independence in holding parts in rounds and partner songs;

● begin work with non-English language skills.

Harmonia (6th through high school): Our intermediate and advanced singers have likely sung in Primo Coro or had prior choral experience. Students sing music in two and three parts and expand their vocal ranges and musical understanding. They are introduced to music containing complex rhythms and independent vocal lines. Students continue to work on developing good singing and rehearsal habits, can meet significant performance demands, and are independent learners.

Music Theory: During the 2025-26 season, music theory will be incorporated into regular rehearsals for all ensembles.

HISTORY 

Pro Musica Youth Chorus began as the Oak Park and River Forest Children’s Chorus in 1990 as a single ensemble under the direction of Dr. Carolyn Paulin. The chorus has always been a parent-run organization, relying on the dedication and support of our families to ensure its continued success. Through developmental, performance-based programs that draw on a diverse range of the finest choral music, the Chorus transforms children’s natural love of music into artistic excellence; teaches musical skills and appreciation; promotes confidence and responsibility; develops cooperation and teamwork; and prepares young people to be leaders in our community.

The ensembles from the Pro Musica Youth Chorus have performed in a variety of venues, around the world. Singers participate in community events as well as professional events. The chorus has a strong performance reputation and has sung with Chicago Chamber Musicians, the Symphony of Oak Park and River Forest, the Joffrey Ballet, City Voices and the Oriana Singers, as well as other youth choruses.

ARTISTIC and ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF

Laura Pinto (Artistic Director and conductor)

Laura began as our Artistic Director at the end of our 2021-22 season. She conducts two of our ensembles: Primo Coro and Harmonia. She has over a decade of experience directing youth choirs, presenting music outreach programs, teaching private voice lessons, adjudicating contests, and conducting masterclasses throughout the Midwest. An equally accomplished performer, she has appeared as both a soloist and professional chorister with Haymarket Opera Company, The Newberry Consort, Music of the Baroque, Schola Antiqua, The Oriana Singers, and Sugar Creek Opera. Mrs. Pinto holds a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from DePaul University and a Master of Music in Opera from McGill University. She lives in Elmwood Park with her husband and children.

Karen Kitto (Executive Director)

Karen Kitto joined Pro Musica in May 2021.  She has a Fine Arts degree from Concordia University in Montreal and a degree in Education from The University of Western Ontario. As an educator and traveler, Karen made her way from her hometown of London, Canada through South America, the middle east, and Europe before coming to Oak Park in 2004 where she has been an active and engaged member of the community.  Karen has taught music, directed plays and musicals, led PTO’s, organized countless events, and also works as a Dyslexia Practitioner.  Karen’s older daughter is a PhD student in Climate Dynamics at Yale University, and her younger daughter attends McGill University in Montreal, studying Political Science.  Both have been regular contributors to PMYC.

Magaly Cordero-Dietz (conductor, Melody Makers)

Magaly Cordero-Dietz is the owner and primary teacher of Pop-Up Music School. An active performer and educator in Chicago, she has been performing classical music throughout the Midwest for over 15 years and is a proud member of the Chicago Symphony Chorus. Magaly also had a vibrant private voice studio for the last 10 years in Oak Park, IL. In addition to teaching music, Magaly taught Spanish to preschoolers.  Magaly currently assists with the choral music program at Chicago's St. Procopius School.  Magaly holds a Bachelor's degree in Music from Northwestern University and a Master's degree in Vocal Performance from Roosevelt University's Chicago College of Performing Arts. A trained classical/ opera singer, she has performed roles with the Cedar Rapids Opera Theater in Iowa, Evanston's The Savoyaires, and Chamber Opera Chicago. She has also sung with the South Shore Opera Company, Music Theater Works, and Wisconsin's Music by the Lake festival.

Linnea Erickson (accompanist)

Linnea accompanies Primo Coro and Harmonia.  She is a middle school orchestra teacher in Niles, Illinois. Ms. Erickson received her Bachelor of Arts in Music Education from North Park University (Chicago, IL) and Master of Music Education from Vandercook College of Music (Chicago, IL). Ms. Erickson is an active performer and serves as an accompanist for many recitals, concerts and church services. She also works with several area theater companies. Ms. Erickson has had the pleasure of working with Pro Musica since 2007.

William Chin (Artistic Director Emeritus since May 2022)

William Chin worked for the Chorus for 18 years, conducting Harmonia and A Cappella --- the advanced ensembles of PMYC.. He led the Chorus on tours to Italy, Spain, Portugal, Morocco, and Carnegie Hall. Mr. Chin is also Founder and Artistic Director of The Oriana Singers, a six-voice ensemble that has presented concerts nationally and internationally since 1979, and was Assistant Conductor of the Chicago Symphony Chorus for twenty years. Mr. Chin is director emeritus of music at First United Church of Oak Park, chorus director for the Symphony of Oak Park and River Forest, and recording session conductor for GIA Publications. He has taught at DePaul and Roosevelt Universities, is a choral director at the Chicago High School for the Arts, and is a recipient of a Joseph Jefferson Award.  

Pro Musica is also supported by a Board of Directors, led by Peter Olson. Additional Board information can be found on the Chorus website at www.promusicayouthchorus.org. 

WALK UP OR DRIVE UP… DROP OFF & PICK UP  (Drop off is no earlier than 3:45)

Drop off is off the parking lot behind the Church; look for the brown door in the east corner, up the stairs. We’ll welcome you through Door A and your singers can go straight to their rehearsal room.  Do not park and have your singer cross the parking lot to find you; either walk up and meet your singer, or wait to pull up by the back stairs where your singer can then come to you.

→ make sure a PMYC staff member, Student Leader, or volunteer sees you pick up your child

If your singer will be met by someone else or if your singer gets home on their own, just let us know.

More to keep in mind:

    When you pick up your singer from rehearsal, please walk up or drive up.    

    Your singer must not walk across the parking lot to find you.

COMMUNICATION 

Emails with important information will come from pmyouthchorus@gmail.com, mrspintochoir@gmail.com,  as well as some briefs from Mail Chimp. Please check your filters so that your email account will let those Mail Chimp emails through!  The newsletter -- the Sunday Scoop -- is intended to keep everyone in the loop.  Please set aside a few minutes to read everything.  Mrs. Pinto sends Wednesday Notes via email the day after rehearsal; this is also important information.  From time to time, we will use the Remind app or a text to send short and time-sensitive announcements.

BEHAVIOR GUIDELINES

PMYC is an artistic community built on mutual respect. We believe that self‐discipline is more valuable than imposed discipline, and each chorister is responsible for following the rules:

Singers may have water bottles at rehearsals.  There is no eating in the choir room.

Our behavior guidelines allow for fun and productive rehearsals, and also help to keep singers safe and healthy.  Singers who are repeatedly unable to comply with these behavior guidelines will be asked not to return to rehearsals until the behavior has been addressed with a parent or guardian, and the singer shows clear intent to align with the rehearsal goals and procedures.  If something egregious happens during a rehearsal, the singer will be escorted by a parent volunteer to call home to be picked up and may not return unless there is a conference involving the singer, a parent, and the conductor. The decision whether to allow a student to return will be at the discretion of the conductor. If a student is allowed to return, but is unable to follow these behavior guidelines, the singer’s parents will be notified that the singer will not be allowed to continue with rehearsals.  We will not issue tuition refunds for singers who are asked to leave mid-season due to behavior issues.

Wellness Guidelines

→ First and foremost, do not come to rehearsal if you feel sick.

Do not attend in-person rehearsal if you’ve exhibited any of these symptoms in the past 24 hours:

UNIFORMS 

There are two uniform styles for singers in Pro Musica Youth Chorus:

→  Informal uniforms: a PMYC T-shirt which you have ordered for your singer as part of the registration process. Pair your T-shirt with black pants or a black skirt of your choosing (no jeans, please).  Shoes should be closed-toed, and may otherwise be as your singer chooses.  Singers wear their informal uniforms for our Fall Concert.

→ Formal uniforms: we have two styles, either a velvet concert dress, or black dress shirt (collared, long-sleeved) with black pants.  Please do not (yet) order or worry about having a formal uniform for your singer; the earliest we’ll need these is for The Nutcracker, and we often have a few in storage which we can lend out.  (see descriptions below)

Formal concert dresses take some time to arrive; most singers wear the Alixandra style dress. It comes in both adult and youth sizes. Order an all-black dress from Southeastern Performance Apparel -- this should send you to Youth dresses in black.  If you already have a concert dress for your singer, please have your singer try it on to ensure that it still fits, and will fit throughout the entire season. We help to arrange for hand-me-down dresses from previous singers when we can.

Accessories and hem lengths are:

Primo Coro and Canterini: Dress, tights or hose*, black dress shoes (no sandals), optional simple jewelry (no necklaces). Dresses arrive unhemmed, and must be hemmed at the knee.  (*singers may have bare legs for our spring concert if the weather is especially warm)

Harmonia: Dress, black tights or hose, black dress shoes (no sandals), pearl necklace, optional simple jewelry. Dresses arrive unhemmed and must be hemmed to floor-length, so that only the tip of the singer’s shoe is visible when walking.  (*singers may have bare legs for our spring concert if the weather is especially warm)

Formal uniforms - option B: black shirt, dress pants, dress shoes, and a tie. Singers provide their own black slacks of a dress/suit style or a chino/school uniform style and black shoes. They may not be black jeans.  Pair your dress pants with a black dress shirt which may be ordered here. We do not require specific shirts from a formalwear company, but it  must be a proper black dress shirt (not a blouse).  

Ties:  Primo Coro -- no tie.  Canterini -- blue tie.  Harmonia -- black tie.  Pro Musica will arrange to place a group order for ties for Canterini; they will be about $15.  There is no need for families to (yet) take action on this.

SINGER RESPONSIBILITIES:  SHEET MUSIC, BINDERS, PENCILS 

→ Your singer needs a 1-inch black binder and a pencil (along with a water bottle) for every rehearsal.

Throughout the season, sheet music and/or lyric sheets will be handed out to singers. This is licensed music that has been purchased by PMYC. The music should be kept and maintained carefully throughout the season in a hard binder.   Singers should leave their music and a pencil in the choir room.  (Harmonia may take their binders home, but you must bring them back to each rehearsal.)

SINGER RESPONSIBILITIES:  MAINTAINING VOCAL HEALTH

Drink lots of water and avoid soda. Sugary drinks cause excess mucus production. Be aware of the way you speak: if speaking causes your throat any stress or discomfort, find a voice that doesn’t hurt. Are you speaking too low? Too high? Too loud? Find a clear tone, without gravelly, growly sounds.  Be cautious about your voice when playing sports: don’t yell!  

Avoid singing frequently near the extremes of your own range (i.e. belting). Young singers usually run into this problem when singing popular or Broadway music without proper technique. Singing along with recordings and emulating the style of adult singers can harm your vocal cords and cause nodes, and impede vocal development.  Our artistic staff are always happy to discuss questions relating to vocal health. They will work with you to ensure an understanding of vocal technique that encourages lifelong vocal health and beautiful singing.

TUITION 

Program tuition costs for 2025/26 are as follows.  Please note that tuition covers less than half of our costs. 

● Melody Makers $550

● Primo Coro $580

● Canterini $660

● Harmonia $975

All families have been asked to make a deposit when they register; the remaining payments will be made in three equal installments.  Early enrollment (before June 30) gives a $50 discount.  We offer a sibling discount and financial aid.

FINANCIAL AID

The Pro Musica Youth Chorus Financial Aid Program is designed to help singers who would otherwise find it difficult to participate in PMYC for financial reasons. We are committed to maintaining a generous scholarship policy. The PMYC Financial Aid Committee reviews all applications and notifes all applicants in a timely manner; email Karen for details about eligibility for full or partial tuition aid.

CHORUS FUNDRAISING

Like all non-profit arts organizations, we rely on fundraising and donations to meet our budgetary needs while keeping tuition costs accessible. Each family is expected to contribute in some way. We sponsor a fundraiser that incorporates our singers' love of performing, and we make it easy for our families to participate.  Our major family fundraiser is Pro Musica Café, March 22, 2026. All singers are expected to participate in this fun and important event. Families help either through direct donation or by enlisting friends and family to help raise funds for the chorus. Additional fundraisers include selling Singing Valentines, and a Direct Drive in December.

FAMILY INVOLVEMENT:

Observing Rehearsals:    Join us on Sept. 30 for our Family Open House (“What happens in a PMYC rehearsal anyway?”) during your singer’s regular rehearsal time.  Outside of this, you may request to watch part of a rehearsal by emailing Mrs. Pinto directly, and she will most likely be able to accommodate.

VOLUNTEERING 

The chorus runs smoothly when everyone pitches in. Three decades of families have helped with everything from guiding the chorus’ decision-making, to chaperoning, to volunteering administrative or organizational skills. Without you, we wouldn’t exist!  We are a family-run organization that relies on parents, guardians, and singers to keep things running smoothly. Volunteering is a great way to meet other families, have some agency in your singer’s experience, and be a part of our community.

Each family is asked to volunteer a minimum of 6 hours during the season. There are many volunteer opportunities, and each concert provides ways to pitch in through SignUp Genius.  We typically need help with selling tickets, providing food for our reception, or chaperoning our singers.  You could also:

● join our Board at monthly meetings

● join our Café committee in February

● donate a skill:

fundraising (grant seeking, grant writing, event planning…)

recruitment & retention

photography and/or video for a concert

help with our website

help with social media engagement

● be a rehearsal volunteer - help at drop off/pick up on a Tuesday

Each of these options has the potential to have an incredibly positive impact on our organization.  If you absolutely cannot fulfill the 6 hours over the course of the season, we offer a buyout option of $50/hour. If you did not choose this option when you registered but would like to, just let us know and we’ll make the adjustment.

Thank you for being part of our Pro Musica Youth Chorus family! We truly believe that there’s nothing better than coming together to sing, and to really listen to each other and to ourselves.  Let’s make some musical magic!        

#everybodyshines