The Joys of Making Music With a Dedicated Teacher

The Berkshire Children’s Chorus recently moved into its new home at the Old Parish Church in Sheffield, MA, and the three youth choirs plan to welcome listeners to a winter concert there on Sunday, Dec. 14, at 7 p.m.

That’s not the only change for the choirs — they are now under the direction of a new artistic director, Julie Bickford, who filled the role at the beginning of last year when Nancy Loder retired from the position. Loder founded the Berkshire Children’s Chorus in 1990.

Bickford, a resident of Southfield, MA, directs two vocal ensembles and teaches music theory at Monument Mountain High School, as well as general music at Muddy Brook Elementary School. She also sings soprano with the choirs Gaudeamus and Crescendo.

“The primary focus of all of our groups is the pursuit of choral excellence,” Bickford said. “We focus on high quality choral music and vocal training outside of school.”

Berkshire Children’s Chorus is comprised of three treble choirs: the junior chorus for boys and girls in grades two through five, where the singers get introduced to the work of being in a choral group; the senior chorus for boys and girls in grades six through nine, where they get most of their training; and Coda, an ensemble for girls in grades 10 to 12.

Bickford said there are 36 students in the Berkshire Children’s Chorus — 15 in the junior chorus, 15 in the senior chorus and six in Coda.

“The younger children sing a repertoire that’s accessible to them, but gives them skills. They’re incredibly capable and talented and  have a great amount of enthusiasm,” Bickford said. “As the students get older, their energies shift, and they can focus on harder music. They can pursue more advanced musical concepts.”

Bickford said the girls in Coda are “very special and utterly committed. They are so excited about being there, and they’ve told me that they wouldn’t be able to imagine their week without chorus.”

The students perform everything from traditional choral music, such as classical and baroque works, to 20th-century folk songs.

“They learn how to sing in a number of different styles and languages.” 

Tuition for the junior chorus members is $475 a year, $675 for senior chorus members and $575 for Coda. But Bickford made clear that scholarship plans are available. “We have never turned a child away for lack of ability to pay.”

For information on how to join the Berkshire Children’s Chorus, call 413-229-2465 or go to www.berkshirechildrenschorus.org.

The three choirs of the Berkshire Children’s Chorus will perform Benjamin Britten’s “A Ceremony of Carols,” along with other seasonal music, on Sunday, Dec. 14, at 7 p.m. at the Old Parish Church in Sheffield, MA. The choirs will be joined by Lee Dixon and Anne Voglewede Green on piano, as well as the Rosamund String Trio. Admission is free, but donations are gratefully accepted.