The Baroque rehearses on Sunday evenings between 6 and 9 pm, and we occasionally hold extra rehearsals on Thursday evenings.
Membership of the choir is by audition. We ask you to prepare a short piece (which may be accompanies or unaccompanied) so that we can get an idea of your voice quality. We will then ask you to sightread a phrase of music unaccompanied and perform some simple ear tests.
If you are accepted, we will ask you to pay annual dues of RMB300 per year and a deposit of RMB100 for music (refundable if you leave the choir).
If you would like to come along one Sunday to audit a rehearsal, please contact us at nicholas.smith@aial.com and arrange a time.
Directions for the Beijing Youth Palace are below:
The Baroque Chamber Chorus rehearses in the Beijing Youth Palace (Beijing Shi Shaoniangong) at 11 Jingshan Houjie (this is the North gate of Jingshan Park). It may help to show the characters to your driver: 景山后街 11 号 , 北京市少年宫 .
There will be a guard on the gate, and if he asks you, tell him you have come to "pailian".
Go through the gate and follow the road round to the left. Go all the way to the end of the road (you will pass some toilets on your right at the bottom of the road). At the T junction you will see the traditional red wall of the inner courtyard. Turn right, and you will see an open door in the wall. Enter the courtyard. One of the structures just inside the door is under renovation. Thread your way past this building to the other side of the courtyard (you will cross Beijing's central axis), but stay on the same side. You will see the choir room (it probably will have lights on) up some steps in the left hand corner of the courtyard.