Chicago Bar Association Chorus



Rehearsals: Wednesdays at 6:00-8:00 p.m. at the CBA
Openings in many sections for new members.
The CBA Chorus is in need of sopranos, tenors, and basses. Contact Allyn Rawling for details.


The CBA Chorus seeks to:

  • Promote and enhance the public's understanding and image of The Chicago Bar Association by sharing the musical excellence of its members
  • Perform 3-4 concerts a year and provide choral music for CBA-sponsored events
  • Attract new members to the CBA by offering opportunities for civic involvement and artistic expression
  • Complement The Chicago Bar Association Symphony Orchestra
  • Promote civic service among CBA members
  • Provide an opportunity for CBA members to exchange ideas and information through interaction in a social setting
  • Offer a valuable service to CBA members in response to a known demand


Join the Chorus:

Join the CBA Chorus for a season of masterpieces rehearsed and performed under outstanding professional conductors. The chorus generally has openings in all sections, but it sometimes is necessary to move singers into other sections to obtain the proper balance.  Rehearsals are held from 6:00-8:00 p.m. on Wednesdays at the CBA Building, 321 S. Plymouth Court, and occasionally at the Daley Center.  To join, contact Sean Hoffman.

No auditions are required. All our members have had previous choral experience and all new members should have vocal experience, preferably choral experience. Annual fees to help defray costs are $50 student, $100 member and $150 supporting member (minimum). Please make your checks payable to The Chicago Bar Association and remit to the CBA Chorus co-chairs. We accept all individuals working in the legal profession, so do not hesitate to contact us about joining the chorus if you are a paralegal, legal assistant or secretary. Annual fees to help defray costs are $50 student, $100 member and $150 supporting member (minimum).

Leadership:

Allyn Rawling
William H. Nichols
Sean Hoffman
Mark E. Burkland

Support the Chorus:
The Chorus is grateful for any and all support from firms and individuals! If you would like to make a financial or in-kind contribution to the CBA Chorus, please email Bill Nichols at wnichols@lanermuchin.com. If you would like to purchase an ad or patron listing in next season's program, please email Suzanne Poulos at suzanne@pouloslaw.com.

Special thanks to our concert location sponsor, St. James Cathedral. Click here for information on the St. James Cathedral Music Program.



Chamber Music Recital

Members and friends of the Chicago Bar Association Symphony Orchestra and Chorus perform a chamber music concert. Solos, duets, trios, quartets, quintets, pieces with voice (or voices) up to a small chamber orchestra are welcome. Selections are limited to one movement. Venues have been at St. James Episcopal Cathedral and PianoForte Chicago. Details for the next concert will be announced here. For more information please contact Emily Chen at eachen@sbcglobal.net.

Law Day

In conjunction with the YLS Law Week Program either the Barristers Big Band, the Chorus, or Symphony Orchestra will perform at the annual noon-time celebration at Daley Plaza the first week of May. This year's theme is “Cornerstones of Democracy” to be held May 3, 2023 with the CBA Symphony Orchestra. The event features a keynote address (often by a jurist of Cook County, the Illinois Appellate Court, or Illinois Supreme Court) and presentation of the annual Liberty Bell Award honoring a non-lawyer who has rendered service that strengthens the effectiveness of the American system of freedom under law. Music by the American composer, Leroy Anderson, will be conducted by Michael Poulos, a member of the orchestra:
1.         Blue Tango, ranked by Billboard as the number 1 song in 1952.
2.         To honor the first and perhaps greatest leap in law office technology, The Typewriter.
3.         Because lawyers live their lives in six minute increments, The Syncopated Clock.
4.         To make sure the audience is awake, Bugler’s Holiday.
5.         And for the big finish, Belle of the Ball.  


We are on YouTube! Click here to check us out!

From CARMINA BURANA. David Katz conducting the CBASO, CBA Chorus, Guest Choirs and Soloists


From "SOMETHING WONDERFUL," with the CBASO, CBA Chorus, Guest Choirs and Soloists


From "SOMETHING WONDERFUL," with the CBASO, CBA Chorus, Guest Choirs and Soloists


The HALLELUJAH CHORUS (from "ODE to JOY"): new arrangement by Jamie Whitmarsh with the CBASO, CBA Chorus, Guest Choirs and Soloists
Stay tuned for our Fall 2023 schedule.