Dear choir members – the Song Festival is quickly approaching and there are questions about your attire. We'd like to take this opportunity to familiarize you with the attire that you will be wearing during the Song Festival. We'll do it by group – children and their chaperones, women & young women, men & young men.
The articles of attire that are being provided by the Festival will be distributed to you through your choir's management. Your clothing sizes were submitted when you were registered as a participant in the Song Festival.
During the Song Festival, you will be wearing dark colored shoes (not running shoes) with dark socks, clean black pants (not shorts or jeans), and we will provide you with a gray t-shirt with a orange or yellow bird on the front (the design on the front will be randomly distributed with the idea that birds are not regimented – that also means that a boy or a girl can wear either bird – they are not gender specific).
Also, to be absolutely clear, the t-shirts that are for sale in the Song Festival's online Store are NOT the one's that will be worn by choir members during the Song Festival.
Here's an illustration to give you a sense of what the children and their chaperone's will look like:
During the rehearsal, your choir's management will determine what you will be wearing. It would be great if your whole group wore something that would identify your choir and NOT the t-shirt that you will be wearing during the Festival.
We ask that during the Song Festival that you wear black pants (not shorts, jeans, skirt or dress), comfortable black shoes (make sure it's easy to climb stairs and stand for extended periods of time during the Song Festival), and a black short-sleeve shirt. We will provide you with a linen shawl (it will be sewn together with a hole for your head to pass through). We ask that you wear an amber brooch (from your own jewelry collection) in the middle (no necklaces or other jewelry). It'll look something like this:
What's the right way to wear the linen shawl? Here's an example:
Put the shawl over your head with the seam going down your back, situate it snuggly around your shoulders and then give it a light tug downwards near the center (the point at which you tug will roughly be the attachment point for the brooch) under your chin so that it folds around the neck as shown in the photo. Please note that the amber brooch should not hang (it should not be looking down at the floor). One solution is to pin it through the shawl and onto your t-shirt.
For rehearsal attire, please consult with your choir's management to determine how to dress – all we ask is that you NOT show up at the rehearsal wearing the next day's attire.
You will also be wearing black pants (no shorts or jeans) and black shoes with dark socks (no white socks). A long sleeve white dress shirt (your own) along with a woven Lithuanian orange or yellow "juosta" neck tie that we will be providing you with (the colors will be distributed randomly as we are aiming for a non-regimented look). It should end up looking something like this:
We've noticed that the woven ties in the regular size are a bit shorter than we expected. Please make an effort to ensure that once tied it is as long as possible without showing the "rough area" that is intended to go around the neck. Also, please be aware that there are a number of knots that can be employed, such as the single or half Windsor knot (as opposed to the double Windsor which is widely used but not recommended with these particular ties). You'll find instructional videos on YouTube.
As with other groups, for rehearsal wear – please consult with your choir's management – all we ask is that you NOT show up at the rehearsal wearing the next day's attire.
In summary, here are all of the choir member groups in their respective attire:
We can't wait to see you all decked out in Chicago at the Song Festival!
Have questions? Please click on CONTACT US at the bottom of this page.