This weekend, Victoria is the Choral City

More than 1,400 choir directors, choristers, and administrators are in town for a conference and festival—and to sing for you.

Podium, Canada’s national bilingual choral conference and festival, has landed in the Garden City for the first time in 20 years. Hundreds of singers, conductors, composers, educators, students, and music lovers are here from across Canada, but Podium spokesperson Andy Rice says the biennial event isn’t just for insiders.

“Many of the concerts and events are designed for the public, offering Victorians a rare chance to experience world-class choirs, exciting new Canadian music, and unforgettable collaborative performances right in their own city.”

Rice says you can hear extraordinary harmony—from professional ensembles to youth and community choirs. Some will be premiering their new Canadian works and music, “reflecting diverse cultures, languages, and traditions.”

Music lovers will be able to experience traditional choral scores and pieces representing various cultures, as well as arrangements of pop and folk songs.

“We have every kind of choir you can imagine under one roof all weekend—Podium is the place to hear anything and everything,” he says.

There will be eight unique concerts featuring world-class ensembles from coast to coast to coast. The National Youth Choir of Canada will also perform.

Those performances will be at UVic’s Farquhar Auditorium, Phillip T. Young Recital Hall, and Christ Church Cathedral downtown.

Ticket prices range from $15 for students to $35 for adults. Those 60+ can buy tickets for $25, and there are festival passes priced from $96 to $224.

You can also catch free pop-up concerts on the steps of the legislature and on the lower causeway of the Inner Harbour. There are six today (Friday, May 15), including Victoria’s The Village Chamber Choir at 11:30am, The Village Choir at 1pm, and Oak Bay High’s choir at 2:30pm.

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Two more pop-up performances are on tap Saturday, May 16, including Victoria’s Pacific Edge Chorus at 12:30pm. There’s one more on Sunday at UVic, featuring UVic Vocal Jazz, slated to sing at 12:30pm.

When not performing—or exploring Victoria’s beauty—Podium conferencegoers will spend much of their next few days in various work sessions.

So, what do choir groups talk about when they want to get down to brass tacks? Rice says they talk about things such as the following:

• Conducting and rehearsal techniques
• Vocal health and ensemble sound
• New Canadian choral music and composition
• Indigenous collaboration and reconciliation in the arts
• Equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility in choral spaces
• Youth engagement and music education
• Community-building through singing
• Mental health and well-being through collective music-making
• Touring, recording, and arts administration
• Fundraising, governance, and sustaining arts organizations
• Cross-cultural collaboration and multilingual repertoire

Podium has been held every two years since 1982, and it usually has a theme. This year's is Sing Strong. Stand Together. Shape Tomorrow.

“At a time when connection and collective expression matter more than ever, PODIUM 2026 invites us to raise our voices, not only in harmony but in hope,” its official website says. “In song, we find strength. In community, we find courage. And together, we shape what’s next.”

The event is presented by Choral Canada—the national voice and connective hub for choirs across the country—and the British Columbia Choral Federation, which promotes and encourages choral activity throughout the province.

As the Times Colonist points out, choirs are back in vogue after some tough times.

“Don’t forget that when we were coming out of COVID, choirs were banned across the country because they were seen as a super-spreader,” Adam Con, the conference co-chair, told the TC.

“Even when we came back after COVID, singing was seen as an issue. Now, several years out of [the pandemic], people feel with a passion that they have missed the relationship-building and the community, being part of something that is bigger than themselves.”

In addition to the National Youth Choir of Canada, who perform today (Friday, May 15) at Christ Church Cathedral, and The Braille Tones (also performing today at UVic’s Phillip T. Young Recital Hall), featuring choristers with disabilities, there’s plenty of local talent on the stages, including The Choirs YYJ, the French choir Les Decibels, the Students of SD61, and the Victoria Childrens’ Choir.

There’s also a free choral marathon tonight (Friday, May 15) and tomorrow (Saturday, May 16) from 10am to 6pm. Over the two days, 35 choirs will perform at  St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church and The Royal BC Museum. They tried this out at the last Podium conference, in 2024 in Montreal, and it was a big success. Local and visiting choirs and singing groups sing for 20 minutes each.

See the performance schedule here.\ \ ‍\ \ ‍ ‍ List of choir performances

( CONCERT #1 was held on Thursday, May 14.)

‍ Friday, May 15 at 10:30am and 1:30pm—Phillip T. Young Recital Hall

CONCERT #2:

The Braille Tones (Susan Farrell) from Edmonton (AB), Esprit Singers (Valdine Anderson) from Winnipeg, and the UBC University Singers (Graeme Langager) from Vancouver will share the stage for this concert.

Please note: Both performances are identical. This concert is being presented twice due to the size of the hall and to ensure there is adequate space to accommodate conference delegates and members of the public.

‍ Friday, May 15 at 4pm and Saturday, May 16 at 10:30am—Phillip T. Young Recital Hall

CONCERT #3:

The Capital Chamber Choir (Jamie Loback) from Ottawa, Chorale Saint-Jean (Laurier Fagnan) from Edmonton, and the Intertidal Choral Ensemble (Jaime Yoon) from Vancouver will share the stage for this concert.

Please note: Both performances are identical. This concert is being presented twice due to the size of the hall and to ensure there is adequate space to accommodate conference delegates and members of the public.

‍ Friday, May 15 at 8pm—Christ Church Cathedral

CONCERT #4:

The 2026 National Youth Choir of Canada (NYCC), a project of Choral Canada, brings together 40 of the finest young choristers aged 19 to 26 from across Canada and will conclude its BC tour at PODIUM 2026 with “Sharing Our Voices," under the musical and artistic direction of Guest Conductor Dr.

Julia Davids.

‍ There will be an opportunity to hear the premiere of a new work by BC composer Katerina Gimon as well as one of the winning pieces from Choral Canada’s biennial Competition for Choral Writing.

‍ Saturday, May 16 at 1:30pm and 4pm—Farquhar Auditorium

CONCERT #5:

Coastal Sound Youth Choir (Will de Sousa) from Coquitlam, Fern Hill

Chorus (Amanda Nelli) from Oakville and Ventus Women’s Choir (Regan Brooks) from Lethbridge will share the stage for this concert.

‍ Please note: Both performances are identical. This concert is being presented twice to ensure there is adequate space to accommodate conference delegates and members of the public.

‍ Saturday, May 16 at 8pm—Christ Church Cathedral

CONCERT #6:

Chronos Vocal Ensemble (Jordan Van Biert) from Edmonton and the

Vancouver Chamber Choir (Kari Turunen) will share the stage for this concert.

‍ Sunday, May 17 at 10:30am and 1:30pm—Phillip T. Young Recital Hall

CONCERT #7:

The Bach Children’s Chorus (Meredith Wanstall) from Scarborough, the

Victoria Children’s Choir (David Stratkauskas), Konektis (Michelle Chyzyk, Marla Fontaine, and Clint McLachlan) from Brandon and Wascana Voices from Regina will share the stage for this concert.

‍ Please note: Both performances are identical. This concert is being presented twice due to the size of the hall and to ensure there is adequate space to accommodate conference delegates and members of the public.

‍ Sunday, May 17 at 4pm—Farquhar Auditorium

CONCERT #8:

The closing concert features Calgary's Luminous Voices (Timothy Shantz) and the Vancouver Youth Choir (Carrie Tennant).

‍ This concert also includes the world premiere of a new work by Christine Donkin, commissioned by a consortium of 17 choirs as part of Podium’s first-ever national commission initiative.