Over the years the choir has maintained a strong interest in music education. In 1985 it established the Children's Choir and then in 1998 it created the Youth Choir.

There are now over 140 members in the Adult Choir. The Chamber Singers draws from this choir to create a unique blend of voices that makes up this smaller chamber choir.

The Grand Philharmonic Choir has become a major choral institution covering a geographical area of the Region of Waterloo, Wellington, Dufferin, and Perth Counties. It has grown dramatically under the dynamic leadership of Howard Dyck, the choir's Conductor and Artistic Director. Howard has brought a direction and focus that has allowed the choir to stretch to new heights in choral music.

The Centre In The Square in Kitchener has been the Adult Choir's home for its annual series of concerts since the Centre opened in 1980 and is an excellent venue for choral music with the accompaniment of the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony.

HISTORY
Artistic Director, Howard Dyck, founded the Grand Philharmonic Chamber Singers in 1985. Drawn from the general membership of the Grand Philharmonic Choir, this ensemble, numbering 20 to 30 singers, performs choral literature best suited to small choirs. Membership is by audition only.

In addition to occasional performances in the Grand Philharmonic Choir Adult Series, the Chamber Singers present an annual subscription series consisting of two or three concerts. In the past this has included works by Byrd, Monteverdi, Bach, Handel, Mozart, Schubert, Brahms, Rachmaninov, Stravinsky, Schnittke, and Pärt. The Chamber Singers also appear as guests with other organizations such as the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony.

In 1998 they presented the world premiere of Contemplation, by Canadian composer Alfred Kunz. In 1998, 1999, and 2001, the Chamber Singers participated in Kitchener's Open Ears Festival presenting various staged and concert works.

The Chamber Singers have been broadcast on CBC Radio and have collaborated with other choirs such as the Guelph Chamber Choir, Menno Singers, and Renaissance Singers.

This exceptional choir brings an intimate and personal touch to choral music.

BACKGROUND
Founded in 1993 as the Zion Community Children’s Choir, the youth choir joined the Philharmonic Choir organization in 1997 and now provides extensive choral training and excellent performance opportunities to over 60 singers between the ages of 12 and 23. The choir strives for choral excellence and is dedicated to developing musical literacy and understanding. At weekly rehearsals, choristers prepare a varied and extensive repertoire list and receive instruction in voice production, theory, sight-singing and ear-training. Singers also attend a weekend choir camp and additional rehearsals for major performances and recordings throughout the season.

PERFORMANCES
In addition to its own three concert series, the choir also performs at various functions throughout the region, presents annual school concerts and has often performed with The Grand Philharmonic Choir and the K-W Symphony at the Centre in the Square. In 2000, the choir was selected to present a concert with the Beckett School of Music, Art and Drama as part of The Centre in the Square’s 20th Anniversary Community Festival and also recorded a segment for Vision TV’s series on Multi Faith Music. The choir has performed at the Elora Festival and as the guest artists at the Ontario Vocal Festival. They have often participated in the annual invitational Youth Sing Festival and this past fall hosted a youth choir festival that involved over 180 singers and 40 instrumentalists in a massed performance of Mozart’s Dominicus Mass.

COMPETITIONS
The choir has received many first place standings and scholarships at the Kitchener Waterloo Kiwanis Music Festival and has often been selected to enter the Ontario Music Festival Association provincial finals. The choir gained national recognition through their success in the prestigious CBC Choir Competition. In 2004, the female ensemble was selected as National Semi-Finalists in the Equal Voice Youth Choir category and in 2006, the chamber ensemble was awarded first prize in the Mixed Voice Youth Choir category after performing during a live to air national broadcast at the Glenn Gould Studio in Toronto.

PERFORMANCE TOURS
The choir has toured many parts of Ontario and Quebec and travelled to England, Germany, Austria, Southern France and Spain. In 1999, they were selected to participate in the invitational Unisong Choral Festival in Ottawa featuring one choir/province. In 2001, they participated in the Shrewsbury International Festival in England and in 2003, performed at the Internationales Jugendmusik Festival in Bavaria. In 2005, the choir entered its first international competition and competed with 32 choral groups at the Festival Internacional de Musica in Spain and placed 4th, 5th and 8th in the three separate categories. The choir has recently received an invitation to perform at the ISME conference in Bologna in 2008.

OUR HISTORY
In 1987, Carol Giesbrecht founded the Grand Philharmonic Children's Choir out of her desire to ensure that young children would grow to love and appreciate the world of choral music. The choir has since been recognized for its excellence in tone and musicianship. The choir holds its own concert series and regularly performs with the Grand Philharmonic Choir. The choir has also performed with The Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony, the K-W Chamber Orchestra, and has been heard on radio and television. The choir has toured throughout Ontario, Michigan, Washington D.C., and has sung at the Parliament Buildings in Ottawa.

This youthful choir of over 90 voices provides an opportunity for children to sing classical repertoire, both sacred and secular, the folk music of many countries, and light classical music. The children receive training in choral theory and sight-reading which naturally provides the children the opportunity to develop their musical skills and abilities. The children also learn proper voice production. There are many opportunities for the members to be involved in small ensembles and to perform solo work.

Several choristers have gone on to pursue careers in music, and the friendships formed have lasted for many years. This training for our future choirs is an essential ingredient in the growth of the Grand Philharmonic Choir.