Rise Up Singing!

Two years ago, Bel Canto choristers were silenced. Suddenly, singing – the most benign and beautiful thing imaginable – was risky, dangerous, even.

Today, we reflect on the experience of two years living through a pandemic and the loss of our most human expression – our voices. We celebrate the return to song and its ability to uplift, inspire, and empower. Our choristers are eager to share their experience and their hopes.

They have a lot to say...listen...are you hearing them?

Dr. Joy Hirokawa, Founder & Artistic Director, Concert Choir Conductor

Rise up Singing!

Reflections of the past two years of living through the Covid pandemic and our emergence from it.

We celebrate the joy and power of singing ... acknowledge the crushing feeling of not being able to lift our voices together in song...yet find hope and resilience when we now can sing again, and with determination declare, “There shall never be another season of silence!”

Voices Raised for Civil Rights

“Without Music, the civil rights movement would have been like a bird without wings.” – Rep. John Lewis (1940–2020)

The Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s utilized the incredible power of community singing to unify and even protect those standing for social justice in the face of brutal treatment. Spirituals and congregational songs in the African American church tradition were frequently used as a basis, with lyrics often spontaneously adapted to the circumstances.