Welcome
Welcome to the official home of the University of California Men's Chorale! Here on our website you can find more information about our group. See pictures, listen to audio, find out performance dates, meet the members, and even learn how to join! So feel free to explore around.
About
The University of California Men's Chorale (UCMC) is an all male
student-run choral group at UC Berkeley.
It is the second largest student-run chorale group on campus, second only to the lovely ladies of the UC Women's Chorale. They sing a capella and with accompaniment, in small groups or large. They also sing a wide range of styles such as classical, folk, contemporary, musical, doo-wop, and of course, Cal songs. UCMC perform many times a semester, so there are plenty of chances to check them out.
UCMC is also a proud member of the UC Choral Ensembles (UCCE). UCCE is a group of student-ran choral and theater groups. So they could always use your help! To learn more about donating to UCCE (and hence UCMC), click here.
History
UCMC started back in 1885 as the University of California Glee Club, making it the oldest choral group in the Western United States. Back then, the Glee Club composed of around 100 male singers and in 1911 became the first collegiate choral group to tour Europe. In 1920, the Glee Club toured Asia, where they were billed as the "World Famous Glee Club and Jazz Band, America's Greatest College Company of Singers and Entertainers." In 1957, the group was invited to Tokyo to sing Beethoven's 9th symphony with a Japanese symphony orchestra and a chorus of women. (*)
The Glee Club would often collaborate with the Treble Clef society (a group of female singers at Cal). In 1972, the two groups combined to form the Concert Chorale. Recently they have split again to form the UC Women's Chorale, and the UC Men's Chorale.
*Thanks to the UC History Digital Archives