frequently asked questions
What is a choir school?
A choir school is a school where all the students are in the choir. (For more information on choir schools, visit one of the other choir schools on our links page.) The Pacific Boychoir Academy is a day school, not a boarding school as is the tradition in Europe. The after school choir had been a successful after-school program for 5 years and expanded by providing musical training and academics together each day.
What kind of musical education does my son get?
Your son will get a musical education that is comparable to college-level musicianship and music theory. The boys are encouraged to move musically at their own pace, with a music theory program custom-made to train boy trebles. A group of musicians known as the Music Advisory Council advises the Music Staff, and is comprised of some of the best-known choral musicians in the country.
The repertoire and types of music performed are quite varied. Big Classical works are performed with symphonies and other orchestras, winter holiday songs are learned for community events, parties, and local school assemblies. Sacred and Early music is learned for church services, weddings and formal concerts. Spirituals and other American songs are featured on tours. A broad repertoire allows the boys to be exposed to many different styles and to be musically versatile. As a result, outside organizations are eager to include the Boychoir in their concerts and events.
His vocal and choral training will make him one of the best singers for his age in the world. His music theory education will in the end be the equivalent of about a year of college music theory. Boys with this kind of experience are heavily recruited by the top private high schools in the Bay Area. Our graduated have been accepted at schol such as College Preparatory School, The Athenian School, Head Royce School, and Bishop O'Dowd High School.
The PBA boys know excellence comes from hard work, but they enjoy the challenge and striving for improvement.
Why should we consider this school when we like our current school?
Most of the choir school boys and staff left schools they liked to be at the choir school because it is a rare and unique opportunity. The boys have only a limited time with their treble voices, and this is how they make the most of it. Boys’ voices are at their prime in grades 5-7. They can still hang out with their friends from their old school and sports teams, and they will make new ones at PBA: other boys with similar talent.
Won't all this music get in the way of his academics?
On the contrary, studies have shown that children who study music excel in their other academic subjects. Music is the "soul" of the school, but this is not a conservatory. The boys are taught to pursue their potential in the classroom as well as in the rehearsal room. The choir school's small class sizes (amongst the smallest in the East Bay) and experienced staff ensure an academic experience of the highest caliber. Download a brochure here
The After-school choir program is the original program of the Pacific Boychoir. While they have the same teachers, the same training, and the same music theory program, the boys in the school progress much more rapidly than the boys in the After-school program, so the school boys learn more music and reach a world-class level. School boys and After-school boys occasionally sing together at our family concerts and when a larger ensemble is called for.
What kind of performances does the PBA give?
In the past few years, the boys of the PBA have sung with other musical groups, such as the San Francisco Symphony, the San Francisco Opera, the Berkeley Symphony, the UC Davis Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, the Philharmonia of Russia, the National Symphony Orchestra of Brasil, the UC Berkeley Symphony and Chorus, and the American Bach Soloists. The boys sing regularly for professional sports teams such as the Oakland A’s, San Francisco Giants, and the Oakland Raiders. On recent tours, the Boychoir sang in Australia, New Zealand, Austria, Germany, Italy, the Czech Republic, France, Denmark, Argentina, and five states in the USA. The PBA often sings with other choirs which have included the Vienna Boys Choir, The American Boychoir, the Victorian Boys Choir (Melbourne, Australia), the San Francisco Symphony Chorus, and numerous other local choirs. The Pacific Boychoir has several self-produced concerts per year and regularly attends choral festivals locally and afar. The PBA is in high demand during the holidays, for weddings and private parties. To find out about upcoming and recent PBA concerts, click here.
What do the boys study besides music?
The PBA curriculum looks like that of other schools. The boys learn math, literature, writing, foreign language, science, social studies, and the boys of course are active with physical education.
The biggest difference between our curriculum and that of other independent schools is that these boys are motivated to be immersed in learning great music. Excellence is the goal and academic expectations are high for the choir school students.
For a more in-depth look, click here.
We get the value of the musical opportunities. What makes the "school" part unique?
This is the first boys school in the East Bay, and has one of the lowest student:teacher ratios of any school. We connect with boys' minds and their energy better than “regular” schools. The PBA has music at its core, which greatly enhances brain activity and learning. Other schools may have some of these things, but only the Pacific Boychoir Academy has all of them. And beyond that, there is a special spirit about the choir school, the idea that the students are being taught to be citizens and participants in the world. How can children grow up to understand this multi-cultural world while sitting in a room for their entire education? This school has life experience integrated with the curriculum: learning about Vikings and traveling to Denmark, learning about civics while in Washington, DC, studying languages and actually using them in the native country like France and Italy. These are actual examples of cross-curricular, whole-child activities the PBA students have experienced.
Why do the boys all get an iPod from the school?
The choir school boys perform quite a bit and learn about 50 pieces of music a year, typically from memory. To learn this amount of music, the boys are taught to read music and are given recordings of many of the songs so they can learn them faster and get a sense of how the songs are supposed to come together. An iPod Nano is included in tuition (replacements are at the family’s expense) so that all boys have their music with them every day at school. The iPods can also be used to store and transfer school assignments that require taking home (the school has an iBook lab for use in classes and a server for boys' files).
What is the value of a Boys School?
The Boychoir was founded to provide an opportunity for boys to sing in the tradition of boys choirs around the world. Because of their physiology, boys' voices simply have a different sound than that of girls. Further, experience has shown boys this age shy away from children’s choirs, which tend to be almost entirely composed of girls. Similarly, boys learn well in an environment where they can be free from social stigma, free from concerns that can keep boys from being motivated in the classroom, and the encouragement to excel in a program that recognizes the unique energy of boys. (If you need some convincing of the value of single-sex education, click here.) We feel a boys-only academic setting with social opportunities with girls is ideal.
Do the boys get a chance to interact with girls?
The choir school boys are very popular with girls at the local independent schools, possibly more so than if they had gone there for school. The seventh and eighth grade boys participate in the EBISA (East Bay Independent School Association) school dances. The entire school sings for the girls at Julia Morgan School for Girls at least once a year and there are other social activities between the two schools. When performing with the San Francisco Symphony, the Pacific Boychoir almost always performs with the San Francisco Girls Chorus, so the choristers in the two choirs know each other well. The boys also tend to get a lot of attention from girls when on tour.
Okay, what do I do now?
Interested families should schedule a visit, at any time, where boys can see how a day at the school works. During that day, a member of the music staff will have a chat with the visiting boy, and discuss his interest in singing. A boy does not need to already know how to sing, but will be evaluated for his musical potential. He may be asked to sing a favorite song or match pitches from the piano. It's very easy, and stress-free. Potential students may also be given academic evaluations of various sorts.
After a visit, families should be in conversation with the school to determine whether the choir school is a good fit, and whether to schedule a subsequent all-day visit. We require at least two visits before we consider a boy for the school.
Tuition rates are very competitive with other Bay Area schools, and we do have financial aid available to families who need it.
My son isn't old enough for the school yet, how can he join the After-School choir?
Terrific! We have regularly scheduled audition days through the year, or you can just give us a call and we'll set up a convenient appointment. Quick, fun and painless! Your son doesn't have to already know how to sing or read music, he just has to be interested in singing. We can teach him! For more info about the After-school program, click here. All After-School choirs rehearse on Wednesday afternoons, performances are typically in December and May for the younger choirs, all year 'round for the older boys' performing choirs.