The San Francisco Symphony Chorus

Back on May 8, my good friend Harry and his wife, Jo, invited my wife and me to join them to take in a performance by the San Francisco Symphony of Mahler's Symphony No. 2 in C Minor.  I'm a little embarrassed to admit that I've never heard the SF Symphony before, nor even been in Davies Symphony Hall, their magnificent home.  It was a treat, just to see the venue.

I went into the experience with a little prejudice, thinking I didn't particularly like Mahler, but the concert changed all that.  Under the direction of Maestro Michael Tilson Thomas, the orchestra played brilliantly, with power, precision, sensitivity, and nuance that had to be appreciated by all.  I counted a little more than 100 instrumentalists in the program, but it seemed there were more.  In the end, their work earned a standing ovation and loud cheers from the full house.

There was also a chorus of more than 120, though their part didn't come until toward the end of the piece.  Scanning their names in the program, I thought I recognized one, and looking up, I thought I picked out a friend from the Mastersingers USA men's chorus that I have participated in since 1996.

I sent him an e-mail to confirm that it was he, and he responded by giving me some interesting insights into what it's like to be part of the San Francisco Symphony Chorus.  The program explained that the Chorus is made up of 30 professional and 112 volunteer singers.  Here's some elaboration that my friend provided:

"It was a remarkable performance, one where 'everything came together.' We only did the Mahler 2 twice this year .. it's a 'warm up' for the summer European tour, when the Symphony will be doing it (but not the chorus, they will pick up local choruses). We did it four times last year. It was good on Saturday, but Sunday was special. As we were about to sing for the first time, the previous 70 minutes of remarkable music was synthesized into a single focused message -- 'Up to this point, it's been magic ... don't blow it now!' The orchestra is so extraordinary. Hats off to them. We just try to be as good. I am in my seventh year with them. It's been a thrill, including our performances of the Mahler 8 a couple of seasons ago; the live recording of those performances won three Grammy awards last year.

"Re-auditions are this week and next. We will sing in quartets (SATB) for half an hour with Ragnar [the Chorus Director], with two prepared pieces (or parts of pieces) and a sight singing exercise to do. Then, three weeks hence, the letter arrives. They are all thin. Either you are back in or you are not. If you are back in (and most returning singers make it), the letter lists what your commitment is for the coming year. Next year the group is doing Mahler 3 (women only), Brahms Requiem, Verdi Requiem, Handel's Messiah, a Holiday set, something by Debussy (ballet?), 'American Mavericks' (including Bates' 'Mass Transmission'), Barbary Coast (music from the American West of the late 19th early 20th centuries -- who knew?), and Beethoven 9. The volunteer singers sign up for as many as they want to do, and if you get back in, they tell what you are doing, and then you sign a contract with them. There are about 120 volunteers and 30 paid singers, who are amazing! Different pieces require different numbers of singers, ranging from 60 (the paid singers plus 30 volunteers) to a full deck, like what you saw yesterday."

All I can say is, what a commitment, but what an experience for singers like my friend!