A letter from the founder

On the face of it, PICCFEST may seem like another nice music workshop type experience: scores of young musicians spending a week on a college campus making music. But the magnitude of what happens here is quite amazing. In a world in which young people are saturated with a competitive approach to every aspect of life, be it academics, social status, Nielson ratings, material acquisitions, the near worship of collegiate athletics, and even the arts, this festival runs against the current.

Everything about PICCFEST is a conscious effort to promote generosity, gratitude, mutual respect and enjoyment, while working at the highest level of artistry to make music on par with any youth music festival in the world. This intentional non-competitive underpinning frees these young artists to be the best they can be, rather than worrying about being better than someone else. No one gets voted off the show here.

Some of the choirs have had many experiences performing with major symphony orchestras, while others will be performing with an orchestra for the first time. But there is one thing they all have in common: their experience at PICCFEST and the Oregon Bach Festival rates as one of their life’s highest moments. In fact, for many it is life-changing.

While building community and working together to create a once-in-a-lifetime chorus, the PICCFEST participants will be a living lab of collaboration rather than competition as a means to reach new personal bests in their artistry.

Peter Robb, Founder and Artistic Director
Pacific International Children’s Choir Festival