Founded in 1985 as a part of the Halifax Schools All-City Music program, the Halifax Boys Honour Choir (HBHC) is comprised of boys with unchanged voices, auditioned from elementary and junior high schools in Halifax. Directed by Pamela Burton and accompanied by Faith Daley, the HBHC is dedicated to providing an enriched educational choral experience for boys in Halifax Regional Municipality and is a proud member of the Nova Scotia Choral Federation.
Throughout the school year, the choir rehearses weekly on Wednesday in preparation for a busy concert schedule, ranging from commemorative ceremonies to television appearances to music festivals. They enjoy singing an eclectic mix of music, from classical to contemporary. They have won numerous awards both provincially and nationally, and were the 2013 recipients of the Margaret Wharton Memorial Provincial Choral Award; they also received a Gold Standing at the 2013 Rotary Music Festival in St. John’s, Newfoundland. The choir has been very fortunate to work with such renowned choral conductors as Kellie Walsh, Scott Leithead, Jonathan Willcocks, Stephen Hatfield, and Elise Bradley.
The choir has travelled to Alberta, Ontario, Quebec, and all the Atlantic provinces, sharing Nova Scotia’s unique culture and music with school children and adults alike. In recent years, they have performed with the Men of the Deeps, the Rankin Sisters, Nova Voce, David Foster and Friends, as well as for the Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia, the Premier of Nova Scotia and Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Other recent highlights have included a recording with the alternative rock artist Jenn Grant, and the Canadian premiere performance of Ràn nan Ron (Seal Songs) by native Haligonian composer Dr. Emily Doolittle.