Music Program

Saint Marys' Vocal Music program has recently joined the community of Estill Educational Affiliates, becoming the only institution of higher education west of the Mississippi River to earn this status. As part of a non-genre biased model, our voice program incorporates Estill Voice Training and its cutting-edge vocal science pedagogy into our ensemble and private lessons curriculum. Students learn isolated control of individual anatomical structures in the voice production system and apply these elements to their musical endeavors, creating breathtaking performances across a wide variety of genres and styles. For more information on Estill Voice Training and our new affiliation, please visit estillvoice.com

At the 13th World Choir Games in Auckland, New Zealand, the Saint Mary’s College of California Chamber Singers brought their distinctive voices to a global stage. Now, they’ve returned stateside with a gold medal—and a trove of unforgettable experiences.

Established by Interkultur in 2000, the World Choir Games is the largest choral competition on earth. It was certainly the biggest such event New Zealand has ever hosted: The 2024 Games—which had 250 choirs performing in both championship and open competitions from July 10 to 20—brought 11,000 participants of all ages from over 40 countries and regions to the island nation.

This year, Saint Mary’s Chamber Singers was placed in the Championship Mixed Chamber Group category following a pre-qualification process, going head-to-head against groups from Australia, China, India, the Philippines, and Switzerland. 

On July 19, the Gaels gave a rousing performance of expressive range, opening with “Hear My Prayer” by Moses Hogan, followed by Z. Randall Stroope’s thunderous “Conversion of Saul,” then Hugo Alfven’s serene soundscape “Aftonen” (“Evening”), sung in Swedish, and concluding with “Riuh!” (“Chaotic Joy”) by Malaysian composer Tracey Wong, which featured three beat-boxers. 

Read more here.

To watch their gold medal performances, click here.

Our students take part in numerous shows throughout the academic year. Check out SMC Glee Club’s rendition of “Rather Be,” rehearsed and recorded remotely in May of 2020!