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Q. Does my child need to know how to sing before joining MYC?
A. No previous singing or musical experience is necessary. We believe that every child can learn to sing. We offer beginner choirs across our age range.
Q. Does my child need to audition?
A. No auditions! If your child enrols in MYC, they will be allocated to a choir group according to their age and ability.
Q. What if my child has special or additional needs to be able to participate?
A. We are an inclusive community and we want music education to be available for every child. Please contact us to arrange a confidential interview so that we can determine what assistance can be organised to help to integrate your child.
Q. What fees will I need to pay?
A. None! MYC’s teaching program really is FEE-FREE.
MYC believes that “every child deserves the gift of music”. To ensure that there are no barriers to participation, we do not charge tuition fees. Families are free to enrol their children in MYC’s choral rehearsal program – there are no joining fees and no tuition fees.
However we strongly encourage all parents to make regular donations if they can afford to do so.
The MYC board of management are volunteers who work very hard to raise money via sponsorships, grants, philanthropy and donations to cover the choir’s operating costs.
However, while the choral rehearsal and musical literacy program itself is fee-free, there are a few expenses that need to be met by parents/guardians, including uniform, and books.
Q. Where and when are rehearsals held? How often?
A. All of MYC's choirs rehearse on a Wednesday night at Hampton Park Secondary College. Rehearsals are after school to accommodate as many children and young people as possible. The youngest choristers start at 4pm and the the oldest finish at 8pm.
More information about individual choirs
Q. What is a rehearsal like?
A. At a rehearsal you can expect to do singing warm-ups, play music games, learn the solfa notes and handsigns and learn to sing songs.
Some of the songs will be performed and some of them are just for learning new techniques.
If you're 8 years old or over, after rehearsal you will be in a small tutor group to learn music theory the Kodaly way.
Q. Is my child expected to attend every rehearsal and performance?
A. As much as possible, we ask parents to ensure choristers can:
Singing in a choir is a community activity that builds connection and trust between the choristers and their conductors, allowing choristers to feel comfortable and safe performing song repertoire together.
It will be challenging for someone who only attends occasionally to participate effectively in a performance. Please consider your ability to commit to the above before applying.
Q. What if my child can't attend a particular event or performance?
We expect choristers to alert their conductors if they are not able to attend any performance at least 4 weeks BEFORE the performance date (except in the case of illness, naturally).
When choristers do not attend performances without notice, it can be very disruptive for other choristers and negatively impact the performance. Please do your best to enable your child to attend whenever possible.
We will do our best to give as much advanced warning of performance dates as possible.
Q. Are there fundraising events and expectations?
A. We hold occasional fundraising events and expect choristers and parents to attend and support these as much as possible. This support might include purchasing food or raffle tickets, tickets to attend performances, volunteering and directly donating to MYC.
We expect that parents will support our efforts to raise funds by inviting friends, families and colleagues to make tax-deductible donations to the choir or to even become a Patron of MYC!
We are also very open to bequests, corporate sponsorship and grants. Please contact us if you are able to assist with fundraising of any level, from volunteering, grant writing, marketing to philanthropy.
Our board is made up of volunteers, some who have children in the choir and some who do not. Parents are strongly encouraged to contact the board and explore how they might be able to be involved either directly or in a support role.
If you are in a financial position to support the choir regularly, tax-deductible donations can be set up via our Donations service. Thank you for your support!
Q. Is there a uniform or performance clothing required?
A. For identity and belonging, all MYC choristers must purchase an MYC uniform shirt from our Uniform Shop, to be worn at performances AND rehearals. We have second hand and discounted uniform items available if desired. We also offer other optional MYC uniform items such as hoodies.
Costs are available in the Uniform Shop. More information here: Uniforms and Other Merchandise.
Q. What about other clothes such as pants, shoes, accessories?
Rehearsals: students are expected to wear their MYC uniform shirt (whenever possible) as an important part of our commitment to inclusion and community.
Performances: students MUST wear their MYC uniform shirt, with black pants or skirt, black socks/tights and black shoes to present a professional and coordinated appearance.
Q. Is there a textbook or manual for the choristers?
A. Each chorister must purchase a textbook developed for MYC which is used extensively as part of our musical education program, depending on their skill/learning level (the textbooks are known as the Bronze Book, Silver Book and Gold Book).
The cost is approximately $40 per textbook, subject to change.
Q. Are there any other costs involved?
A. Parents may need to cover the cost of transport to choir events, occasional camp/day-rehearsal costs and non-compulsory membership fees (see below).
MYC is an incorporated association run by a voluntary Board of Management.
To become a voting member of MYC’s Association, persons are invited to apply for membership by completing a membership application form and paying a $25 joining fee. The membership fee is reviewed at each Annual General Meeting.
New and existing members will receive an emailed invitation from our enrolment database to renew their membership each year in March.
Since 1986, MYC has been managed by volunteers and has paid a team of professional music teachers to provide a comprehensive rehearsal program each week of the school term. Prior to 2018, tuition fees were used to cover all operational costs of rehearsals. Despite our best efforts to keep these fees to a minimum, we knew that many families in the Casey region were struggling to pay fees – which prevented their children from joining the choir. In 2018 we moved to a donate-what-you-can model, where we ask families to donate what they can afford to.
The cost per student for a year of choir participation is approximately $500 which is raised through donations and grants.
Please use the button below to begin your application to join Melbourne Youth Chorale. We will be in contact with you as soon as possible.
