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Palo Alto is a good town for choral music. One reason is its churches, with generous acoustics and a long habit of hosting concerts. The other is a university with half a dozen choirs and a famously resonant chapel. On any December weekend you can hear Renaissance motets in a candlelit sanctuary, a big orchestra and chorus in Bing Concert Hall and a holiday sing-along aimed at children. The rest of the year is quieter, but rarely silent.
This guide covers the choirs that perform in and around Palo Alto, their 2026 to 2027 dates as published on their own sites and the places you can sing yourself. For orchestras and chamber music, see our classical music guide.
Palo Alto's community choirs
Peninsula Women's Chorus
The Peninsula Women's Chorus is a Palo Alto-based treble choir led by artistic director Anne K. Hege. Its 2025 to 2026 season was its 59th. That season opened with Voices that Guide Us on December 12, 2025 at First United Methodist Church in Palo Alto and the next afternoon at Mission Santa Clara. Its spring program, Transcendence Surrounds, played three intimate April 2026 performances at Meets the Eye Studios in San Carlos. The season ended with a May 5 to 10, 2026 tour to Seattle and Vancouver for an international choral festival hosted by Vancouver's Elektra choir. The chorus's site is already pointing toward its 60th anniversary.
The chorus had not posted its own 2026 to 2027 concerts on November 1, 2026. It does have one confirmed appearance: the Palo Alto Chamber Orchestra's Holiday Extravaganza on Sunday, December 6, 2026 at 3 p.m. at Smithwick Theatre on the Foothill College campus.
California Bach Society
The California Bach Society is a 30-voice chamber choir with a Palo Alto mailing address and more than 50 years on the Bay Area early music scene. It specializes in Renaissance and Baroque music, often with period instruments. Each program is performed in Palo Alto, Berkeley and San Francisco. Nate Widelitz became artistic director in fall 2025. Its Palo Alto dates for 2026 to 2027 are:
- Saturday, December 5, 2026, 7:30 p.m.: A Christmas Journey: From Poland to Puebla, with music by Jarzębski, Lassus, García de Zéspedes and Padilla, at First Congregational Church, 1985 Louis Road.
- Saturday, March 6, 2027, 7:30 p.m.: Baroque New World, built around Nunes Garcia's Missa Pastoril and Mexican Baroque music, at First Presbyterian Church, 1140 Cowper Street.
- Saturday, May 8, 2027, 7:30 p.m.: CalBach to the Future, neo-Renaissance and neo-Baroque works from Alessandro Scarlatti to Kevin Allen, at All Saints Episcopal Church, 555 Waverley Street.
Bay Choral Guild
Bay Choral Guild is a 40-voice auditioned chorus based in Palo Alto, now in its 48th season. It splits concerts between Palo Alto and Campbell. Its Palo Alto performances are Advent of Light on Friday, December 4, 2026 at 7:30 p.m. at St. Mark's Episcopal Church, 600 Colorado Avenue; Iberian Impressions on Sunday, March 14, 2027 at 4:30 p.m.; and Cathedral Classics on Sunday, June 6, 2027 at 4:30 p.m. The last two are at First Congregational Church on Louis Road. The June program pairs Duruflé's Requiem with Bernstein's Chichester Psalms and Bryan Kelly's Magnificat.
Stanford's choirs
Stanford's Department of Music runs several choirs that give public concerts each quarter. Fall 2026 listings include:
| Date | Choir | Venue | Listed price |
|---|---|---|---|
| November 14, 2026 | Stanford Chamber Chorale: Echoes | Memorial Church | $27 to $32 |
| November 18 | University Singers | Memorial Church | $27 to $32 |
| November 20 and 21, 7:30 p.m. | Stanford Symphonic Chorus with the Peninsula Symphony | Bing Concert Hall | $32 to $37 |
| December 2 | Early Music Singers: An Early Music Christmas | Memorial Church | See listing |
The November Bing concerts are an annual tradition. The Stanford Symphonic Chorus, about 180 students, faculty, staff and community members led by Stephen M. Sano, joins the Peninsula Symphony under Mitchell Sardou Klein for an all-British program: Walton's Crown Imperial, Anna Clyne's This Moment, Elgar's In London Town overture and two Vaughan Williams works, Serenade to Music and Toward the Unknown Region. The chorus usually sings one major work each academic quarter. Our guide to Stanford music department concerts covers tickets and parking.
Memorial Church
The Memorial Church Choir sings at the 11 a.m. Sunday service of University Public Worship, drawing on sacred choral music from the Western classical tradition. Its big annual event is the Christmas Service of Lessons and Carols. The church has also hosted visiting choirs from St. John's College, Cambridge, Westminster Abbey and St. Olaf. The building's summer maintenance closure to visitors was scheduled to end October 31, 2026. Our Memorial Church guide describes the building and its organs.
Stanford Live's choral nights
Stanford Live presents A Chanticleer Christmas in Memorial Church on December 10, 2026 with the San Francisco men's vocal ensemble. The Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra and Chorale brings Handel's The Power of Music to Bing on November 11, 2026 and Haydn's The Creation on April 11, 2027. Book through our Stanford Live guide.
Schola Cantorum and nearby choirs
Schola Cantorum, based in Los Altos, is in its 63rd season with the theme The Poet Sings. It travels for its big programs. The season includes El Mesías, Part 1 of Handel's Messiah sung in Spanish, at the Basilica in San Jose on November 15, 2026; A Storybook Holiday for families in Los Altos on December 6; and Mozart's Requiem with Brahms's Geistliches Lied in Palo Alto on Saturday, March 13, 2027. It joins Redwood Symphony for Stravinsky's Symphony of Psalms in Redwood City on April 17 and closes with The Poet Speaks in Los Altos on May 23, 2027. That concert premieres a new choral setting of a poem by a Santa Clara County high school student. Admission is free for minors and students under 25. A FLEXPass gives five entries at 30% off door prices.
Where you can sing
Open singings
The Bay Area Sacred Harp group holds open singings in Palo Alto on the second and fourth Sundays of each month from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Palo Alto, 505 East Charleston Road, usually in the Fireside Room. Sacred Harp is a loud American shape-note tradition sung by people seated in a hollow square. The group stresses that no experience is required. Loaner books are almost always on hand. Singers can also join by Zoom.
The World Harmony Chorus also meets at the same church. Its fall session rehearses on Mondays from 7 to 8:30 p.m. in the main sanctuary under director Daniel Steinberg. Check its site for the next session start before you go.
Auditioned choirs
Bay Choral Guild, the California Bach Society and Schola Cantorum all hold auditions for experienced singers. Stanford's Memorial Church Choir rehearses on Thursday evenings in the Braun Music Center and posts auditions on the Department of Music website. Families with young singers can look at Cantabile Youth Singers, which rehearses in Los Altos.
Good to know
- Church concerts often use unreserved seating. Arrive 20 to 30 minutes early for the best view.
- Memorial Church's acoustics are long and resonant, so sit in the front half if you want to hear words clearly.
- December weekends are crowded. Book the Chanticleer concert and the Bing chorus nights early.
A December choral weekend
The first weekend of December 2026 shows how deep the local calendar runs. On Friday, December 4, Bay Choral Guild sings at St. Mark's. On Saturday, December 5, the California Bach Society performs at First Congregational. On Sunday, December 6, you can choose between PACO's holiday concert with the Peninsula Women's Chorus at Foothill College and Schola Cantorum's family show in Los Altos. Add Chanticleer at Memorial Church on December 10 and you have a full season in a week. Our guide to the holiday season in Palo Alto adds tree lightings and markets. Visitors coming for a concert weekend can compare hotels near Stanford.
Frequently asked questions
What choirs perform in Palo Alto?
Regular choral groups include the Peninsula Women's Chorus, the California Bach Society and Bay Choral Guild, all with Palo Alto ties, plus Stanford's Chamber Chorale, University Singers, Symphonic Chorus and Memorial Church Choir. Schola Cantorum, based in Los Altos, sings one concert a season in Palo Alto.
Where can I hear a Christmas choral concert in Palo Alto?
December 2026 options include Bay Choral Guild's Advent of Light on December 4 at St. Mark's Episcopal Church and the California Bach Society's A Christmas Journey on December 5 at First Congregational Church. On campus, Stanford Live presents A Chanticleer Christmas at Memorial Church on December 10.
Can community members join a Stanford choir?
Some Stanford choirs accept people outside the student body. The Stanford Symphonic Chorus describes itself as about 180 students, faculty, staff and community members. Auditions for the Memorial Church Choir and other ensembles are posted on the Department of Music website.
Is there a choir I can sing with without auditioning?
Yes. The Bay Area Sacred Harp group holds open singings in Palo Alto on second and fourth Sundays from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Church, 505 East Charleston Road. No experience is needed and loaner books are almost always available.
How much do choral concerts cost in Palo Alto?
Prices vary by group. Stanford's ticketed choir concerts were listed at $27 to $32 in fall 2026, with free entry for Stanford students. Schola Cantorum lets minors and students under 25 in free. Many church concerts by community choirs cost less than a movie and a meal.