HarbourVOICES! 2027
Join us on North America’s easternmost edge for HarbourVOICES! International Festival of Collective Singing Traditions – an innovative six-day celebration of choir and group singing traditions. With workshops led by industry leaders and performances by a diverse roster of international, Canadian, and Newfoundland & Labrador singing groups, this will be a celebration of song unlike any other.
About HarbourVoices!
In addition to performing concerts and events, HarbourVOICES! will provide spaces for collaboration, reciprocal learning, and diversity through the sharing and authentic experiencing of varied musical traditions and cultures.
Our Festival is focused on celebrating diversity and inclusion through the encouragement of diverse voices and cultures. We are interested in prioritising collaboration and the reciprocal sharing of collective singing traditions. We hope to celebrate together the many and diverse traditions and powers of the human voice as shared through singing and song in the uniquely vibrant City of St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador.
The festival’s objectives are:
- To organize and operate a public festival featuring performances, workshops, cultural/musical exchanges, and educational events that celebrate collective singing and community music-making.
- To advance the arts by presenting choral singing performances and events, commissioning new works, and providing opportunities for artists and participants to share diverse musical traditions.
- To advance education by offering training, workshops, lectures, cultural exchanges, leadership/mentorship experiences in collective singing, musical heritage, and community arts.
- To facilitate travel for participating artists, culture bearers, and community groups when such travel is necessary for artistic collaboration, performance, cultural exchange, touring, and/or educational programming.
- To foster collaboration and reciprocal learning among communities and cultures, locally, nationally, and internationally.
- To provide mentorship and professional development in the choral arts and related disciplines for singers, conductors, educators, students, composers/arrangers, and culture bearers.
- To promote inclusion, diversity, and authentic artistic/musical exchange across musical traditions and cultural backgrounds.
- To operate exclusively as a non-profit organization whose resources and assets are used solely to further its purposes, with no personal gain to members.
Collective Singing
Collective Singing is the act of multiple individuals producing vocal sounds simultaneously. Collective Singing traditions are rooted in diverse musical – social – cultural practices, traditions, and/or rituals, may be performative and/or ceremonial, and are embedded in communities around the world. Collective Singing often serves as a means of expressing identity, disseminating social commentary, transmitting musical and cultural heritage, and celebrating shared values and experiences that may lead to individual and cultural transformation.
Festival Components
Our anchor events share one goal: to unite all attending choirs and singing groups together as one. Help us kick off the festival at our opening ceremonies, feel the energy at collective concerts (featuring special guests!), and join us on the harbourfront for scenic oceanside performances.
Register
At HarbourVOICES! participating choirs/groups chart their own course. We offer several Festival Pathways allowing ensembles and individuals to shape an experience that reflects their own curiosity, goals, intentions, and interests. All participation pathways include access to meaningful singing experiences (choir/group performances and/or shared collective singing), cultural and social connections, and a vibrant, inclusive, and celebratory HarbourVOICES! festival atmosphere and environment.
Solo Together
HarbourVOICES! welcomes individual participants to join the Festival and share in this incredible opportunity to participate in all festival events (workshops, presentations, cultural exchange sessions, collective singing projects, afternoon/evening concerts, opening ceremonies, HarbourSING! and Gala Concert).
24 Concerts
Celebrate the Festival with singing groups and choirs from all over the world! A core element of the festival, HarbourVOICES! offers a full and diverse range of concerts to experience – from intimate performances in non-traditional performance settings to large-scale events. You won’t want to miss these afternoon, evening, grand finale, and pop-up concerts featuring singing groups from Newfoundland and Labrador, across Canada, and around the world.
Presentations & Sessions
Come along and share your experiences, ideas, and insights. Presentations are led by invited clinicians, choral/singing leaders, and conductors. Collaborative Singing Projects provide unique spaces for groups/choirs to engage in experiences that celebrate and share singing traditions.
Gala Concert
Celebrate the magic of the festival with exciting performances, collective singing, and our headlining performer!
Harbour SING!
An open-air movable feast of sound taking place in downtown St. John’s led by playful sea creatures!
Plan your visit
St John’s is known as a unique tourist destination that’s unlike anywhere else in the world, bursting with character and charm. From the land to its people, there’s a real magic to this city – come see it for yourself.
St. John’s
Make the most out of your visit to North America’s eastern edge. Our province’s capital, St. John’s, is the perfect blend of big-city amenities and small-town charm.