Summary

History & Scope
 

The San Francisco Boys Chorus (SFBC) was founded in 1948 by music teacher Madi Bacon to provide trained boy singers for the San Francisco Opera. Led today by Artistic Director Ian Robertson, SFBC continues to perform with the San Francisco Opera during every season in which parts for boys are required. Over 200 choristers ages 5-18 from five Bay Area counties and 120 public and private schools study at SFBC’s three campuses in San Francisco, Oakland, and San Rafael.
 

• SFBC will celebrate its 60th anniversary during 2008.
 

• SFBC’s 218 choristers will engage in over 24,000 hours of direct instruction during the 2006-07 academic year.
 

• Approximately fifty percent of choristers receive some kind of financial assistance, supporting SFBC’s nearly 60 year promise that no talented boy will be turned away because of lack of financial resources.
 

Volunteer Leaders
 

• With SFBC staff, key parent volunteer leaders oversee 15 committees and 100 parent volunteer committees annually.

Auditions & Enrollment
 

• Within the past four years, SFBC has grown by more than 70 percent: from 128 choristers at one campus in 2003 to 218 choristers at three campuses in 2007.
 

• SFBC has doubled the percentage of ethnic students from 25 percent in 2003 to 50 percent in 2007.
 

• At SFBC’s bi-annual auditions, approximately 45 percent of boys ages 5-11 are accepted. Approximately five percent of those turned away seek private coaching, audition again, and are accepted on the second try.
 

• Since September 2005, The Willie L. Brown Jr. Music Scholarship for Boys has allowed SFBC to audition 1,800 boys at nine public schools from underserved neighborhoods in San Francisco and San Rafael. Of those, 56 have been invited to join the Chorus, 33 have accepted, and 26 are enrolled.

Curriculum
 

• SFBC's music education program provides a highly-structured learning environment, including music theory and sight singing training using the methodologies of mid-twentieth century Hungarian composer Zoltan Kodály.
 

• SFBC's master-educated Training Chorus music faculty use a variety of learning styles (i.e., kinesthetic, auditory, visual) in their instructional approach, combined with sequential, age-appropriate, grade-based training.

Audience
 

• Annually, SFBC sings 45-60 engagements for 70,000-120,000 audience members.
 

• SFBC has toured to Australia, Austria, China, Czech Republic, England, France, Greece, Hawaii, Hong Kong, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, and Russia. Choristers have performed for U.S. presidents, Pope John Paul II, HRH Queen Elizabeth II of England, King Carl XVI Gustav of Sweden, HM Prince of Wales, and the President of the former Soviet Union, and sung at the White House.
 

• Locally, choristers have performed for Senator Diane Feinstein, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mayor Gavin Newsom, Hon. Willie L. Brown, Jr., and Bay Area Nobel Laureates.
 

• Four San Francisco Mayors have declared SFBC “San Francisco's Singing Ambassadors to the World.”

Alumni
 

• Most SFBC graduates go on to college, advanced studies, and successful careers. SFBC's 1,340 member alumni base includes an impressive number who work as professionals/semi-professionals in the field of music.