Piedmont East Bay Children’s Choir
Robert Geary, Director
Candlelight Concert
The internationally-acclaimed Piedmont East Bay Children’s Choir (PEBCC) offers children in San Francisco’s East Bay an outstanding program of music education and performance. Started in 1982 by founding Executive Director Susan Rahl and Artistic Director Robert Geary, PEBCC has become one of the leading children’s music programs in the United States. In addition to hundreds of local performances, PEBCC has also performed with the Oakland East Bay Symphony, Berkeley Symphony, West Edge Opera, San Francisco Opera, San Francisco Symphony, San Francisco Choral Society, Volti, John Denver, The Mark Morris Dance Group, Barenaked Ladies, and for national and regional conventions of ACDA and OAKE. PEBCC has earned grand prizes, first prizes, and gold medals at prestigious competitions across Europe, Asia and the Americas. This past July, Ensemble, the flagship treble performing group of PEBCC competed at the highly regarded Eisteddfod in Llangollen, Wales, they earned second in both the divisions they entered: the Children’s Folk Competition and the Senior Children’s Choir. Recognizing that the creation of art is a forward-looking and forward-thinking endeavor, the Choir has commissioned and premiered dozens of new works from composers Kui Dong, Mark Winges, Pekka Kostiainen, Kirke Mechem, Sue Bohlin, Pablo Ortiz, Zae Munn, Olli Kortekangas, Stacy Garrop, Eric Tuan, Anne Hege, and many others. The forward-looking program of innovative new music projects, commissions, and premieres is a complement to PEBCC’s reputation as a leading force in international choral activities. Hallmarks of the international identity of the choirs include far-reaching collaborations with choirs around the world; high marks in competitions in Hong Kong, Canada, United States, Poland, Russia, Austria, Germany, Wales, and Italy; and the establishment of the triennial Golden Gate International Children’s and Youth Choral Festival. piedmontchoirs.org.