FAQ

We presently practise in the Gathering Place at Leigh Square: 2253 Leigh Square, Port Coquitlam, BC V3C 3B8.

We practise on Monday afternoons from 3:00-5:00. We don’t meet on statutory holidays. Check our Calendar for rehearsal times.

We sing many different kinds of music: folk songs, folk rock, country, regional favourites, upbeat songs, pib songs, ballads and much more. Our Christmas repertoire features many favourite carols and seasonal songs – and several you may have never heard before. We sing everything from Irving Berlin to Gordon Lightfotot, show tunes from Broadway to London’s West End.

We perform roughly twice a month at various care homes. We also sing for some community events and we have a year-end concert at the beginning of June. Check the right side of the page for upcoming performances, or look at our Calendar.

You need to be a member of the Wilson Centre, which is the seniors’ centre of the City of Port Coquitlam. Choir membership is an additional $20.00 annually, payable by the end of October.

You’ll be given one set of printed music for the current season’s repertoire. We ask that you take responsibility for it. We charge a small fee for replacing lost or forgotten music to cover printing costs.

You’ll also have access to the Music Collection on this website, where you can download printable copies of our music.

It would be nice if you could carry a tune and sing comfortably as part of a group. We’re not a professional choir. Our mandate is to have fun making music and sharing that enjoyment with others.

Good heavens, no! Drop in to a rehearsal and see if you like us!

Most of us don’t read music. If you can, that’s wonderful.

We do some simple harmony work but most of our songs are sung in unison.

Nobody sings solos. If you’re looking for a place to showcase your soloist skills, you might not find us a good fit!

Scary stuff? Hardly. We perform at various seniors’ care homes and do a couple of concerts at community events but if it’s stage fright you’re worried about, set your mind at ease. You’ll have 20 to 30 other choir members singing right along with you!

Your involvement in Silver Chord is always optional but always encouraged. The more people that participate in a performance, the more fun it is for the choir and the audience. Please join us at our performances whenever you can.

We’re a recreational choir and we get together once a week to make music and have fun doing it. Come as often as you can.

We’re also an entertaining choir, meaning we perform in various venues such as care homes and community events. To perform well, we need enough people who know their music.

We will ask that you come to practices regularly so you can learn your music (even if you can’t memorise it and get “off paper”).

When we go to performances, we have a formal (dressy) uniform. We also have a more casual look for some venues.

Our dressy look:

• gentlemen: black pants, white shirt, black shoes (we supply your bow tie);
• ladies: long black skirt or pants, black top, black shoes, pearl necklace (we may be able to lend you one)

Our casual look:

• a Silver Chord Choir golf shirt (supplied by the choir) and either black pants or respectable blue jeans

Our Christmas look:

• as Christmassy and festive as you like. Christmas sweaters,, antlers, Christmas hats – you get the idea!

Of course! The Gathering Place, where we practise, is well served by transit. When we go to performances, we arrange carpools from the Gathering Place for those who need them.