SINGER terms and conditions

We ask that you assess your health status prior to each rehearsal and stay home if you are not feeling well (excluding pre-existing conditions such as allergies, asthma, etc), especially:

• fever (100.4°F or greater)

• cough

• shortness of breath

As always, it is the discretion of the Conductor, in consultation with the Associate Conductor and Section Leaders, as to whether a chorister who has accumulated multiple rehearsal absences is performance ready, considering knowledge of the concert repertoire and experience.

Singers are asked to observe the following guidelines at rehearsals. Please:

Arrive to rehearsals or performance call times a few minutes early, so that we may begin on time. Regrets should be sent in advance if you are unable to attend. In case of unplanned absences or lateness, please send an email to chorus_manager@PanoramicVoices.org. If you miss a rehearsal, please get the Conductor’s notes from the Associate Conductor, your Section Leader or an experienced singer in your section before the next rehearsal. Please also check the Singer Resource Page for additional notes and updates.

• Pay attention to what is happening during the rehearsal, whether it’s the Conductor, Associate Conductor, Section Leaders, or a fellow chorister leading it. Although Panoramic Voices rehearsals are conducted in a relaxed and fun manner, respect for the music and each others’ time is of utmost importance; therefore, time for chatting with friends and fellow choristers, or using your cell phone for texting or making calls, should only be done during the break or before and after rehearsals, not during. 

• Come prepared and practiced. Practice lists and suggestions for home practice will be provided on the Singer Resource page.

• Bring your own water container and stay hydrated. 

• Bring a pencil to rehearsal so you can transcribe Conductor’s notes onto your music. Tablet users are free to use whatever will allow them to do this on their devices.

• Number the measures in your sheet music.

• Procure a plain black, standard-sized binder/folder for your music. If using a tablet for your music, please be sure it has a black case/cover.

We expect all singers to be helpful in maintaining our inclusive model by remaining open to alternative voicing based on the musical needs of the project. This is why we ask that you indicate your preferred (as opposed to your known) voice part. For instance: a singer who is used to singing Soprano 1 in another ensemble may be asked to sing Soprano 2, a number of Alto 2’s may be asked to help out a smaller Tenor 1 section, etc. Your openness to the Conductor’s request for alternative voicing is appreciated and will help balance voices across all sections.

Please observe the following guidelines at performances:

• Hold your black folder/tablet with black cover in your upstage hand (away from the audience) when entering and exiting the stage.

• Refrain from talking on stage, even if it’s to give “instructions” to a fellow chorister.

• Raise and lower your black folder/tablet when the Conductor steps onto or down from the podium.

• Turn the pages of your music as quietly as possible. 

• Refrain from wearing fragrances as some people have hypersensitivity to scents and this can trigger (sometimes life-threatening) respiratory issues.

Panoramic Voices is a singer-driven collective. In its first twenty years of existence, Panoramic Voices charged an annual participation fee ranging from $150 to $480 per singer/per season. In our desire to be as hyper-inclusive as possible, we’ve worked out a method by which singers can simply pay for their sheet music (with exceptions for those for whom this would pose a hardship) and for those who can to make a tax-deductible donation to help with the organization’s expenses such as hiring musicians; remunerating composers for new commissions; paying for top-notch musical staff; renting concert venues; advertising our concerts; supporting other non-profits via benefit concerts, and other expenses.

To help sustain all of Panoramic Voices’ good works in the community, we ask that each singer bear in mind the cost of our organization’s year-round work (an annual budget of roughly $125,000), and to be as generous in their support as is possible!

Panoramic Voices engages in as much professional marketing for concerts as allowed by its modest marketing budget. To ensure that we sing to full audiences and heighten awareness of our own events within the ever-active Austin arts community, we expect our singers to actively promote the organization through social media, email, direct invites to family/friends, etc. 

While there is no minimum ticket sale requirement for our members, we request that singers do their utmost to help sell tickets to help ensure their hard work is rewarded by singing to the fullest house possible.

As an ambassador of Panoramic Voices, recruitment of other positively-minded singers throughout the season is always encouraged!

Panoramic Voices aims to create a safe and positive environment for its people - leadership, staff, members alike. In order to do this, we must safeguard acceptable standards of behavior from those associated with our organization. 

• Be respectful of the leadership (Conductor, Associate Conductor, Section Leaders, Board Members, etc), staff, and other members of the organization. 

• For everyone’s safety, please avoid attending rehearsals and performances if you are intoxicated, severely ill or contagious, or under heavy medication.

• It is the goal of Panoramic Voices to be a hyper-inclusive organization. We welcome all people of good will, and expect our folks to be similarly welcoming of all others in our organization, regardless of race, color, religion, sex, age, disability, national origin, ancestry, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, parental status, veteran status, military discharge status, citizenship status or source of income or any other protected status.

  • Choose your words carefully. Pay special attention to the use of people's preferred names and pronouns. Make sure you are not using oppressive language (dis/ableist, racist, sexist, ageist, sizeist, etc.) 

  • Check yourself, especially when it comes to microaggressions and implicit bias. Be mindful of what you say and how you act. Impact is very different from and more important than intent. 

  • Respect the personal space of others, and be sensitive to verbal and nonverbal cues. 

• We maintain a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to negative, untoward, abusive, or unacceptable behavior towards anyone in Panoramic Voices or any of its guests and collaborators. Any act of misconduct will call for a review of an individual’s status with the organization.