The Pasadena Chorale has announced a new partnership with The Collegiate Choral Composition Community (The CCCC), as part of the Chorale’s 10th annual “Listening to the Future” program.

Since the first year of the program, “Listening to the Future” has offered local high school composers the chance to work with professional composer mentors, write original choral works, and hear them performed and recorded by the award-winning Pasadena Chorale. To mark the program’s 10th anniversary, the Chorale is expanding its reach by collaborating with The CCCC, the nation’s most extensive catalog of choral music by student composers.

As part of the partnership, the CCCC will issue a call for scores to college composers across the country. Together, Pasadena Chorale and The CCCC will select the works that will be featured in this year’s expanded “Listening to the Future” concert, which will take place on June 20, 2026.

For the first time, the concert will be presented in two acts; the first act will showcase original works by local high school composers, while the second act will highlight original works by college composers selected from around the nation, along with “greatest hits” from past years of “Listening to the Future.” Pasadena Chorale will also invite the selected college composers to Pasadena to hear their music performed live, and each will receive a professional recording of their piece.

In a press release, Jeffrey Bernstein, Pasadena Chorale’s Founding Artistic and Executive Director, said, “I am amazed at how far ‘Listening to the Future’ has come over the past decade. It has been inspiring to watch the students of our program grow into confident, creative composers. Many of them have gone on to pursue music at top universities and are already finding success as composers in their own right. This new partnership with The CCCC is a natural progression for the program, as it allows us to continue championing emerging voices by now bringing the work of collegiate composers to the stage.”

Sammy Strent, founder and CEO of The CCCC, added, “The CCCC is thrilled to be collaborating with the Pasadena Chorale on Listening to the Future. We are excited to be able to provide collegiate composers with this opportunity to work with such a high-caliber ensemble that is passionate about bringing new music to life.”

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