A presenter stands in front of an audience of note-taking attendees at Symposium 2026.

GALA Leadership Symposium

Our annual Leadership Symposium provides a weekend of education, networking and incredible performances for LGBTQIA+ choral leaders that will inspire and enrich their work with their own choruses.

Learn about Symposium 2027

Symposium 2027 is just months away!

The 2027 GALA Leadership Symposium will be held February 25–28 in Austin, Texas. Registration will open August 2026. Join our mailing list to get all the latest news about Symposium!

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About the event
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What is Symposium?

GALA Choruses’ Leadership Symposium is a weekend-long conference specifically designed for LGBTQIA+ and allied choral leaders, hosted every year (except GALA Festival years) in a different city. We’ll make new connections, share our success stories, learn from our collective mistakes, and have a great time in a beautiful location! Whether you’re an artistic director, executive director, board member, volunteer, or anyone that your peers look to for guidance, you’ll leave Symposium inspired and energized to bring new ideas to your chorus.

Share Your Expertise with Your Peers

At Symposium, you’re invited to share your skills and talents with others in the LGBTQIA+ choral movement by submitting a workshop proposal for a 60 or 90 minute session. Starting in 2027, accepted presenters will receive a small financial incentive for their work (all presenters are expected to officially register for the conference at the posted rates). Submissions typically open in June the year prior. We encourage people of all identities, skills, and types of experience to share your ideas and influence the next Symposium’s programming! Proposals are due August 30, 2026.

Recent Symposium Workshops

Submit a Workshop Proposal

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GALA Symposium
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Event Features

In addition to a full schedule of workshops, presentations, roundtables, and rep sessions by experts inside and outside of the GALA Choruses’ network, each Symposium provides other special learning, networking, and musical programming based on participant feedback and unique local opportunities.

  • Social gatherings like welcome dinners, affinity group meetups and discussions, karaoke parties, and more
  • Expert guest clinicians such as Dr. Hilary Apfelstadt (choral conducting masterclass & workshop), Dr. Ethan Sperry (ensemble bootcamp), Dr. Elizabeth Schauer (choral conducting masterclass and workshop), and Aubrey Bergauer (Run It Like a Business)
  • Evening performances by local and visiting member choruses and special guests
  • A Shark Tank-style fundraising proposal contest for small and mid-size choruses to win a prize grant
  • 1:1 meeting opportunities with GALA’s artistic and board development advisors, as well as GALA’s membership manager
  • Special workshops for new artistic directors, board members, and chorus managers
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Leadership Symposium Testimonials
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“Most impactful on me was realizing my chorus and I are not isolated but part of a very large vibrant, joyful community, and the problems we face are shared and there is support.”

—2026 Leadership Symposium Delegate

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Leadership Symposium Testimonials
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“I felt so welcomed and appreciated as a new artistic director within GALA choruses, and it was such an impactful experience to network and see the work of other GALA choruses.”

—2026 Leadership Symposium Delegate

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Leadership Symposium Testimonials
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“The Symposium reinforced how much I have grown professionally. I now attend these gatherings primarily to contribute, present, and build national relationships rather than to receive baseline professional development. That shift is meaningful and affirming.”

—2026 Leadership Symposium Delegate

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Leadership Symposium Testimonials
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“The Shark Tank competition was a wonderful experience, particularly because after we did not win we had many people approach us who were interested in helping us get the funding we needed anyway. This showed me a clear and true representation of what the GALA Choruses community truly can be, and I felt like the networking aspect of this weekend was the most profound part.”

—2026 Leadership Symposium Delegate