The South Bay Children’s Choir is a well- trained ensemble of young singers, ages 6-17, in residence at El Camino College. The ensemble is known for their beautiful tone, expressive singing, and inspiring performances. Founded in 1996 to provide outstanding music education and to pursue excellence in the choral art within a nurturing environment, they perform annually in the Marsee Auditorium at El Camino College and have appeared at many other venues throughout the southland, including Royce Hall at UCLA, the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in the Los Angeles Music Center, the Wiltern Theater, Segerstrom Hall in Orange County, and the Armstrong Theater in Torrance. The choir tours both nationally and internationally, most memorably to England where they performed in the Canterbury Cathedral, so rich in history and beauty. They performed in Carnegie Hall with composer John Rutter conducting his “Mass of the Children.”

Julie Corallo, Artistic Director, a National Board-Certified Teacher, joined the South Bay Children’s Choir in 2006 as the musicianship teacher, became associate director, and now serves as the Artistic Director. As a Kodály-certified teacher, she believes that all children can learn to read music and sing beautifully. Earning her Bachelor of Arts in Music Education and her Master of Education at UCLA, she has been a music administrator with LAUSD, vocal director for several musical theater groups, and is currently an elementary music teacher for LAUSD and an adjunct lecturer at CSULB. Under her direction, the choir was invited to perform at the 2016 National Conference for the Organization of American Kodály Educators, and she was the guest conductor for the 2015 Kodály Association of Southern California Honor Festival, the Education Through Music Los Angeles Choral Festival, and the California Association of Independent Schools Choral Festival. In 2022 she was honored with the Outstanding Music Educator award from the Southwest Division of the California Music Educators Association. She has been a presenter for numerous music organizations, including Little Kids Rock (now MusicWill), California Choral Directors Association, and the Kodály Association of Southern California, and is an active member with OAKE, ACDA and SCVA.

Founded in 1988 by former director Mark Barville, and led since September 2003 by Eliza Rubenstein. The LBCCO is now in its 31^st season with Mr. Matthew Martinez as the Interim Artistic Director. An important fixture of the Long Beach arts scene, the Chorale has performed many of the great works of Western classical music and has appeared at the legendary Carnegie Hall; Aquarium of the Pacific; Long Beach Museum of Art, Rancho Los Alamitos; and Carpenter Performing Arts Center, as well as having performed with the Long Beach Opera. The Chorale’s musical repertoire is globally inspired – embodying the middle ages to contemporary influences.

The LBCCO is Long Beach’s only all-volunteer community masterworks chorus; all LBCCO members are volunteers motivated by their love of singing. Our motto “Great Music, Up Close” reflects our commitment to presenting masterworks in a welcoming setting and at an accessible price. We pride ourselves on working within the Long Beach community to offer all music lovers the opportunity to experience live classical music.

Performances in our 19-20 season include:

Candlelight Carols, with organ – December 14 and 15, at Grace First Presbyterian Church
Fauré Requiem, with chamber orchestra – March 28 and 29, at Grace First Presbyterian Church
LBC at the AOP – June 7, at Aquarium of the Pacific, Long Beach

Contacts: Dean Hanley, President, 310.377.6840, [email protected] or Matthew Martinez, Interim Artistic Director, at [email protected]

Long Beach Camerata Singers was founded in 1966 by Frank Allen as the Vocal Arts Ensemble and served as the resident chorus for the Long Beach Bach Festival, which he founded in 1975.  In 1983, Dr. David Wilson, a professor of choral music at USC, succeeded Frank Allen and led the choir for over twenty years, expanding the Camerata Singers’ repertoire and choosing its name.  Under his baton, the chorus toured Europe in 1999 and 2005.  CSULB choral director Dr. Jonathan Talberg was appointed artistic director in 2005.  He added a core of professional singers to the ranks and led a second European tour in 2006.  From 2009 to 2017 Dr. Robert Istad, director of choral studies at CSU Fullerton, led the choir as its artistic director, expanding the auditioned ensemble to 90 voices and raising the group to the professional-quality level for which it is known today.  Dr. James K. Bass joined the organization in 2017, bringing new partnerships with his position as director of choral studies at UCLA and associate conductor of the Miami-based professional chamber choir, Seraphic Fire.   

In 2015 the choir established an artistic partnership with the Long Beach Symphony Orchestra to serve as its official chorus.  Long Beach Camerata Singers also performs regularly with other arts organizations, including Musica Angelica Baroque Orchestra, the Pacific Symphony,  Long Beach Opera, Long Beach Youth Chorus, and the South Bay Children’s Chorale. 

Currently in its 57th season, the Long Beach Camerata Singers offers the Peace Project in the fall, performances of Handel’s Messiah in December, a masterwork concert in the spring for ChoralFest Long Beach, closing the season with June’s Evening of Song showcase event.  In the current season LBCS will perform twice with the Long Beach Symphony, both for Holiday Pops concert and a March performance of Carmina Burana. 

In November, 2022, Camerata’s new all-professional group, The Catalyst Chamber Ensemble, will present its inaugural concert with a performance of Considering Matthew Shepard.  Catalyst will present a spring recital featuring  an a cappella concert entitled “From Spain to the New World.”

LBCS offers three education programs.  The Camerata Children’s Music Academy provides fundamental music education for 2 to 5 year old children at Young Horizons Child Development Centers, a state sponsored child care facility for economically-challenged children with 5 locations.  Peace4Youth brings the Peace Project to LBUSD middle schools, where the choral students perform for their peers along with Camerata singers.  The Choral Scholars initiative offers paid internships to promising choral students enrolled at local colleges to sing with the chorus as members of the professional core. 

During the Covid Pandemic, LBCS presented quartets in free, outdoor, socially-distanced concerts at private homes throughout Long Beach, allowing patrons an opportunity to enjoy live music at a critical time of need.  These initial, casual concerts turned into a 30-concert series called the Front Porch Concerts in the 2020-2021 hiatus season.  The popularity of the program resulted in a new summer program that is presented annually in June and July.