Buffalo Girl Choir Fundraiser this Week! Support Vocal Education for Urban Girls

Buffalo Girlchoir almost never happened. Throughout 2013-2015, I was searching for a way to create a youth choral ensemble. I sought advise from colleagues involved in music education who were discouraging at best, telling me that there was simply no need for another such ensemble. I knew I could make it happen but I was struggling with ideas about how this new ensemble would be unique when I received a letter from a student. Among the many inspirational things she wrote, one phrase stood out and changed everything. She wrote: “singing in an all female, women-led ensemble was empowering” and changed the way she thought about herself and her abilities. It was my light bulb moment. I didn’t want to start a children’s choir, I wanted to create a GIRLchoir.

Our first rehearsal opened with 9 singers, by our first concert, we had 14 and by the end of the first year, 24. Now, just three years later, we boast an enrollment of 76 singers in four ensembles. Our high quality programming and low tuition draws singers in; our joyful atmosphere and dynamic concerts keep families coming back and spreading the word.

Additionally, we have caught the attention of collaborating arts organizations such as the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra with whom we have now performed on multiple occasions. Our mission has attracted the attention of local organizations such as the Buffalo and Erie County Public Library and the local chapter of the Susan G. Komen foundation, both of whom have invited us to perform at their events.

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