recordings & repertoire

The PALS Children’s chorus performs a diverse repertoire of classical, jazz, gospel, folk, musical theater, world, and new music. The children receive classical vocal training, and often sing in collaboration with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Boston Lyric Opera, and Boston Early Music Festival. With the BSO, PALS has performed works by Bach, Berlioz, Mahler, Carl Orff, Schoenberg, and John Adams. PALS children have performed in productions of professional operas including La bohème (Puccini), Hansel and Gretel (Humperdinck), Boris Goudenow (Mattheson), Psyché (Lully), Carmen (Bizet), and Turn of the Screw (Britten).

PALS specializes in the performance of new and rarely performed music. PALS has performed world premieres of works by composers Henri Dutilleux, Bret Silverman, Paul Jarman, Mehmet Sanlikol, Howard Frazin, Tony Schemmer, Christopher Eastburn, Andy Vores, George Emlen, Bruce Trinkey, William Cutter, Jeffrey Goldberg, and Eleanor Bragg. 

Please click below to hear PALS sing!

In 2008, PALS sang Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, under the baton of Raphael Frühbeck de Burgos:

Carmina Burana

The PALS singers enjoy performing upbeat music like Children, Go Where I Send Thee, an American Spiritual arranged by Donald Patriquin:

Children Go Where I Send Thee

Eleanor Bragg, a PALS chorister in the 7th grade, composed Will There Really Be A Morning? for PALS to perform at our 2009 VOICES concert:

Will There Really Be A Morning?

PALS chorister Keith Williams accompanies us on his cello as we sing Donald Patriquin’s arrangement of Deep River. Keith is currently in 9th grade, and recently won the New England Conservatory Youth Symphony Concerto Competition.

Deep River

This November, PALS was invited to perform Pozzi Escot’s Missa Triste at Jordan Hall. The final movement, Eleison, brings the piece to an ecstatic finish:

Eleison

PALS released the album PALS Naturally under the baton of Johanna Hill Simpson in 2002. Our next album, I Hate Music (but I love to sing!) will be released in the summer of 2010.