GRAMMY Winners Chanticleer Celebrate First Official Artistic Collaboration with SFCM

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The group performed with the SFCM Chorus in November.

November 22, 2024 by Alex Heigl
Chanticleer rehearses with the SFCM Chorus.

Chanticleer rehearses with the SFCM Chorus.

The San Francisco Conservatory of Music welcomed some of The City's best voices to help celebrate its own in November: GRAMMY-winning longtime SF-based choir Chanticleer.

Chanticleer was founded in San Francisco in 1978 by singer and musicologist Louis Botto, and quickly ascended to the peak level of performing vocal ensembles, with thousands of live shows across the world and over one million records sold. 

The group originally visited SFCM in 2023 in a more informal capacity for coaching sessions with the school's choir, led by Eric Choate. Calling "one of the great treasures of the choral world" and "a fixture in the fine arts of San Francisco since their founding," Choate said, "I met with their Artistic Director, Tim Keeler, last spring to discuss our shared desire to forge a stronger connection between the students at SFCM and Chanticleer, and we both agreed that we must get our choirs in the same room together."

A year later, the concert showcased works by that showcased diverse material from a range of composers from Bach to Fauré to more modern composers like Ralph Vaughan Williams and Julius Eastman. Chanticleer are Opus 3 artists, the management company that makes up SFCM's alliance of arts management firms and record labels that includes Askonas Holt and PENTATONE Records. 

Chanticleer Music Director Tim Keeler works with the SFCM Chorus.

Chanticleer Music Director Tim Keeler works with the SFCM Chorus.

SFCM students rehearse in the Conservatory Chorus.

SFCM students rehearse in the Conservatory Chorus.

Chanticleer with the SFCM Chorus.

Chanticleer with the SFCM Chorus.

The SFCM Chorus sings with Chanticleer under the direction of Music Director Tim Keeler.

The SFCM Chorus sings with Chanticleer under the direction of Music Director Tim Keeler.

Chanticleer's Tim Keeler works with students.

Chanticleer's Tim Keeler works with students.

Members of the SFCM Chorus.jpg

"One of the unique aspects about an education at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music is that all undergraduate students, regardless of their area of study, participate in the Conservatory Chorus," Choate said, adding, "Through choral singing, students develop a command of musicianship and intonation, sharpen their intuition for phrasing, heighten their sensitivity in ensemble performance, and expand their ability to internalize multiple contrapuntal lines."

Chanticleer's music director Tim Keeler told SFCM, "Chanticleer was honored to share the city with one of the nation's premiere music conservatories. We are passionate about music education and love sharing our vocal art with like-minded, talented musicians, particularly the students at SFCM, who are well on their way to becoming the next generation of music leaders. In addition to each group presenting its own set, we also collaborated on three pieces, working and singing together, and sharing our knowledge as well as our voices." 

"It was a time to learn," he continued, "but also a time to build community through song."

Learn more about the Conservatory Chorus.