Frequently Asked Questions

Admission to St. Paul’s Choir School is by audition and application. We accept academically able boys with a promising musical ear. Whether your boy has a talent for singing in the car or on stage, he is capable of being trained for choral mastery. For more information or to schedule an audition, please contact the Admissions Office at admissions@saintpaulschoirschool.us or call (617) 868-8658. Our musical faculty is eager to spot potential musicians, not just those already experienced in performance.

Boys at Saint Paul's Choir School run the gamut from those with no training to those with substantial vocal coaching. Entry into the school is based upon a simple audition of interest and the ability to match pitch. If your son has ever sung in the car and you thought he did so well, then he is welcome to audition. We want to hear him! The number of opportunities for boys at this age to truly master something on a national and international level are limited, but this school's vocal training has elevated boys who had not sung formally into performances with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, onto two professional records, and on television and radio programs hosted by WGBH, Sirius, Fox, Good Morning America, and Catholic TV.

Financial Aid is need-based and available to all families. We seek to make the cost of attending St. Paul's Choir School affordable so that every boy that is qualified and desires to come will be able to attend. Learn more about our tuition and financial aid at the following link: Tuition & Financial Aid. Apply for financial aid at the following link: Apply for Financial Aid.

St. Paul’s Choir School choir is modeled on the European tradition of choir schools which support parish choirs, consisting of both men and boys. Professional singers from Boston’s rich music field sing with the boys on Sundays, and as they perform a daily schedule of liturgical singing, performing in concerts, and engaging in tours and recordings.

Saint Paul's Choir School also borrows the best aspects of a number of pedagogic models:
- Like Montessori education, Saint Paul's has mixed-age groups. This allows for leadership opportunities in the classroom that mimic those seen within the choir.
- The school also uses a religious education model that is common to parochial schools, including opportunities for sacrament preparation.
- The school borrows heavily from Classical models of education, teaching Latin, music theory, rhetoric, and French.
- Lastly, Saint Paul's Choir School uses the renowned Institute for Excellence in Writing program, in addition to social studies, language arts, science, and math, to shape boys into learners that are ready for an accomplished high school career and beyond.

The Choir performs during the academic year, from mid-September to mid-June, and sings at Mass daily, Tuesday-Sunday. Additionally, the Choir performs a number of concerts throughout the year at nearby parishes, at weddings and funerals, and in conjunction with other choirs who travel to the Boston area. In recent years, the Choir has performed with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Lyric Opera, the Vienna Boys Choir, and the Harvard Glee Club, and for audiences in New York, Washington, DC, and at the Vatican.

The boys are divided into several groups: The Junior Choir (who are in training) in grades three through four, the Choristers, who make up the main Choir and who act as the public face of the Choir School, and the Choral Scholars, which includes former Choristers whose voices are changing and must rest their developing adult voices engage in an extended musical and academic curriculum, as well as students who have always been part of the Chorus.

The Choral Scholars Program is a less intensive musical program but with many extra academic enrichment offerings. Choral Scholars sing regularly throughout the week in leading responses and hymnody at the Masses. Choral Scholars are also eligible to become Altar Servers, Readers at Mass and undertake many additional leadership opportunities. The Choral Scholars are not required to take part in extra rehearsals and events during the school week, so they can focus more on other activities. Participation in competitive sports outside of SPCS is also more possible for the Choral Scholars. There are many benefits to this program, and once the choristers’ voices change they enjoy those benefits as well. Members of the Choral Scholars will also receive academic enrichment that will develop key skills for boys’ high school applications and their possible careers. Assignments and projects from these courses will serve as useful portfolio builders for these students when entering area high schools. Just as the Chorister program develops a robust musical skill set, the Choral Scholars program’s academic enrichment offerings are designed to provide students with alternative skill sets. Each year, two enrichment programs will be offered (Fall and Spring), and may include public speaking and media production.