By Joshua Herring

BYC’s Training Chorus backstage at the Schaeffer Auditorium.
Photo courtesy of the BYC Facebook page

Berks County’s own premier choral ensemble, Berks Youth Chorus, is scheduled to perform at KU’s Schaeffer Auditorium on Sunday, Feb. 8. These singing kids will be performing their second pops concert, “Up and Down the Radio Dial,” supported by Pennsylvania Council of the Arts and the Reading Musical Foundation.

KU will be hosting the event at 4 p.m. All attendees will experience popular music performed by over 100 young vocalists. BYC has arranged and choreographed “Up and Down the Radio Dial” by utilizing talent from all four of their ensembles: Chorale, Choristers, MasterSingers and Training Chorus.

As a pops concert typically blends popular show tunes and works regarded as “classic,” the chorus has assembled noteworthy Broadway traditions and revered radio jazz hits.

Executive Director Dail Richie said, “This fun concert will feature our singers performing a variety of popular music from their own generation to that of their parents and grandparents.”

A few of these classics include Disney’s “Spoonful of Sugar” by the Sherman Brothers, Motown’s “Get Dancing in the Street” by Smokey Robinson and Dolly Parton’s “Light of a Clear Blue Morning.”

BYC singers ages 7 through 18 are given superior vocal training along with the opportunity to share their voices. The non-profit organization, located at GoggleWorks in Reading, is prided on accepting children from all walks of life and institutes a rigid non-discrimination policy.

According to the Berks Youth Chorus website, its motto states, “Where singers discover a world of joy, commitment, discipline and pride of accomplishment.”

All tickets for “Up and Down the Radio Dial,” ($10 for students and $15 for general admission), can be purchased at the door or in advance by calling 610-898-7664.