Becoming a Kindred Member

Auditions

There is no audition process for Kindred. We trust you to know if you can carry a tune with confidence and keep your pitch. Ideally we also want your voice to be able to blend with others in the group for a cohesive sound. 

Reading Music

While it helps, you don’t need to be able to read music. We do work from sheet music but you will also receive multi-track recordings of all the parts. These audio references live in a shared Google Drive accessible to all (link forthcoming upon membership) and are a great resource for readers and non-readers when working outside of rehearsal.

Rehearsals

We rehearse every other Sunday (fortnightly!) at a local church (address to be provided upon membership) from 6:30 – 8:00pm during the months of September to May. I arrive early (at least by 6:15pm) each week to work with anyone who wants to go over a part, have a one-on-one, or just hang. Kindred has no religious affiliation but our rehearsal space welcomes anyone and everyone through their doors and they are a community rooted in social justice. 

Attendance

Regular attendance is important! It’s quite understandable to miss from time to time (life happens!) but the more everyone shows up, the better everything is! With such limited time in our busy lives, it's important to honor the rare opportunity to sing together. 

Performances

We have not performed yet, but we already have a few invitations! We’ll discuss these more in-person as they get closer. (The ultimate goal is to have a season finale in which all proceeds go to a non-profit/charity of our collective choosing). We’d love to schedule some smaller community engagement events throughout the year as well (e.g., karaoke, community singalongs). Please note that ALL performances are optional (though we're still hoping for critical mass!). The joy of simply singing together on a regular basis may be enough for some.

Communication

We currently use WhatsApp for rehearsal reminders and email for longer information. At some point we may need to move to a different platform to schedule and disseminate information. Slack, a free group messaging app available on all devices and platforms, may be a good option.

Member Dues

Fees are a sliding scale, and should not be cost prohibitive. We are requesting a minimum membership of $10 a month, but anywhere between $5-$20 works perfectly. This goes towards printing sheet music, purchasing arrangements/vocal tracks, and rent/insurance for our rehearsal space. An easy and convenient way to collect dues (so we don’t have to hound you) is through a monthly subscription to Kindred through our Patreon site (see https://www.patreon.com/c/KindredChorus/membership). Patreon is a free platform for artists and digital creators that automatically charges subscribers monthly (in exchange for “rewards”). We will, of course, take other forms of payment (cash, Zelle, Venmo) but then we both have to remember your payment plan. (Note that fees may change if/when we increase our rehearsal frequency to a weekly schedule/pay more rent, and/or we need to formally become a non-profit LLC with tax filings, etc).

Merchandise

As another fundraiser, we encourage members to support us through our swag site! Check out our shirts, stickers, and other merch here: https://www.wamiswag.com/shops/kindredchorus. For new members, I will collect size information for a basic softstyle t-shirt (in black) for performances (suggested contribution $10 each) so that is forthcoming upon membership. Otherwise, feel free to purchase for yourself or your family and spread the word!