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Policies of the Fun Times Singers Regarding Chorus Size
The Fun Times Singers is a community chorus that welcomes new members
however we do not have the resources available to support unlimited
growth of the organization.
Therefore the following policies are in place to keep the
chorus at a manageable size.
General Statement of Policy
This membership policy gives preference to continuing members while providing a mechanism for
new members to join as positions become available.
New members and non-continuing members are admitted based on a wait-list that is maintained from session to session.
The wait-list is based on a first-come-first-served basis.
Definitions:
Current session:
This is the session that we are singing in and getting close to a performance for.
Next session:
This is the session that comes immediately after the current session.
Follow-on session:
This is the session that is after the Next session and is the subject of the
policy statements that deal with taking-a-break
Chorus Size Policies
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The target size for the chorus is 70.
The section targets are: Soprano 25, Alto 25, Tenor 10, Bass 10
(the director may decide to alter this slightly for musical reasons).
These sizes are targets but some variations due to member breaks can be tolerated.
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To hold a position in the chorus for the Next season,
a current member must pre-register (including payment) during the specified time period
(usually a two week period toward the end of the Current session).
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A current member may decide to skip one session (called "taking a break")
and still have a position in the chorus in the Follow-on session.
In the case where a member wants to take a break,
he/she must pre-register with everyone else during the Current session,
and this will be treated as a pre-pre-registration for the Follow-on session.
The Fun Times Singers will hold the payment in reserve to be applied to the Follow-on session
when the member returns.
Of course no music is distributed for the Next session (the one that is missed).
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Any member who is not pre-registered for the Next session (or not pre-pre registered in the case of a member who has taken a break), may register the first night of the Next session, but is subject to the same wait-list policy as a non-member.
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In any case, a member who has paid for a session but cannot sing in the session can get a return of fees and music costs according to our music return policy.
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The board may vote to allow a member who has lost a guaranteed seat in
the Fun Times Singers because of absence due to poor health,
family trauma, and the like to be allowed to rejoin
(similar to compassionate leave in the work place).
In other words, for compassionate reasons some ex-members may be allowed
to by-pass the waitlist and the membership limitations.
This provision is used sparingly.
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There is no provision for paying to hold on to a position in the chorus by a member who knows
that he/she is not going to substantially participate in the session.
It is unfair to tie up a seat and deny the opportunity for others to participate in the
Fun Times Singers when a current member plans to take more than a 4 month break.
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A prospective member may not register for an unnatural part (Tenor or Bass, presumably)
as a way to get into the chorus when the section that the person would naturally sing in is full.
A range check will be performed by the director for any new member.
If the director is not available, then a small group made up of section leaders can do the range
check before accepting the applicant as a member.
A range check is not an audition.
The range check is designed to determine the quality of sound at the high and
low end of the scale appropriate for the part range.
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Visitors are welcomed on a limited basis.
Prospective members may visit once to determine if the chorus is a fit,
but Fun Times Singers does not allow "auditing", i.e. regularly singing with the group by a non-member.
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There is a guest policy that is flexible enough to allow a current member to bring a visitor
for an evening so the member does not have to miss a rehearsal to stay home to entertain a visiting guest.
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