Today’s choral leaders wear many hats: fundraising director, development associate, communications manager, marketing designer, volunteer coordinator—the list goes well beyond beautiful choral performances. In many ways, leading a choir is much like running a business.

Written by two authors with extensive experience building choral programs from the ground up, The Business of Choir offers new insights, best practices, and practical action items for choral leaders looking to master the organizational and administrative elements of running a successful choral program. Features include:

• A behind-the-scenes look at elements of running a choir that are seldom the focus of college music education courses.
• An actionable toolkit to bring a greater focus to accessibility, diversity, equity, and inclusion in choral spaces.
• Strategies to demystify fundraising and finance.
• Practical approaches to recruitment, retention, marketing, volunteer management, and board interactions.

Whether you’re looking to expand your fundraising efforts, hire your first administrative professional, or fine-tune your organizational policies and practices, this resource will provide the direction and clarity you need as you take the next big step in your organization’s journey.

Dr. Emily Williams Burch is the Coordinator of Music Education and Visiting Professor at the University of South Carolina Aiken. She is the Founder and Artistic Director of RISE Chorales, a community choir organization with youth through adult choirs.

Alex Gartner is the Artistic and Executive Director of the Pensacola Children’s Chorus in Pensacola, Florida. Under his leadership, the organization has reached nearly 25,000 individuals, including over 5,000 youth, through innovative programs, performances, and organizational practices.