Becoming a Chorister

Download the booklets below for updated information about the program and application:

• Boy Chorister Booklet 22-23
• Girl Chorister Booklet 22-23

We encourage students with a passion and aptitude for music to apply for the novice program at the beginning of their third grade years for boys and their sixth grade year for girls. Interested applicants should email Julie DeBoer.

The Novice Chorister Program offers a holistic framework for aspiring choristers to prepare for musical training within the Anglican choral tradition. Novice choristers engage with the fundamentals of music theory, sight-reading, healthy and sustainable singing practices, and time management of competing extracurricular engagements.

Application reviews commence in mid-October. Alongside their application to the Cathedral Novice Program, students must apply for enrollment at either St. Albans School or National Cathedral School. The preferred deadline for applications is November 1.

We invite prospective choristers with evidence of strong musical capabilities and their families to several events and opportunities throughout the fall, where they will meet the Music staff, ask questions, and better understand the overall commitments, expectations, and benefits of the chorister program. We will accommodate families who are unable to attend various engagement events through one-on-one sessions.

In late February, the Novice Program concludes alongside the schools’ admissions processes. Prospective choristers and their families receive simultaneous decision letters from Cathedral Music and St. Albans School or National Cathedral School at the beginning of March. Each year, approximately four to six places for boys and three to four places for girls are available.

Novice choristers who accept places at St. Albans School or National Cathedral School return after spring break to complete their chorister training. They assume a greater involvement with the Chorister Program and participate in selected services through the end of the academic year. We induct the Novices accepted into the Chorister Program during the Valediction Evensong, the last service of the year. Continued membership in the choirs is contingent upon continuous and satisfactory academic enrollment at the Cathedral schools.