Street Choir in demand across Sydney

With their beautiful voices and deep community connection, the Sydney Street Choir lights up events across the city.

And its infectious and uplifting footprint continued to grow in 2024 with more members and performances including the popular City Street Feasts in the Sydney CBD and Parramatta.

Choir members performing at this year’s Parramatta Street Feast in November.

A standout event was Woolworth’s 100-year anniversary celebration for staff at Sydney Olympic Park in October.

They wowed the crowd with a rendition of Neil Diamond’s classic Sweet Caroline, a new signature piece for the Choir.

The irresistible sing along chorus was a hit with the 5000 staff who attended, according to the Choir’s Welfare Coordinator Leonie Oaks.

“We rocked!” said Ms Oaks. “It’s a great song because everybody knows the chorus so it’s a real one to bring out the singer in everybody.”

The Choir offers friendship and an inclusive way to enjoy singing for marginalised Sydneysiders who are disadvantaged in the community.

Connection through music means they feel safe getting advice on food and accommodation, critical in this cost-of-living crunch where many are stretched.

“The choir is this amazing brain’s trust of information that shares and looks after people and they really support each other,” Ms Oaks said.

The Sydney Street Choir’s Welfare Coordinator Leonie Oaks.

The Choir also starred at the sixth annual Sydney Street Feast in front of St Mary’s Cathedral.

“One of the lovely things about this event is the sharing of meals,” Ms Oaks said. “I can see the Choir is sitting with new friends they’ve never sat with before.”

PAYCE Foundation is a long-term partner of the Choir. Director Dominic Sullivan said: “It’s wonderful to see the impact of their singing.

“We work with a lot of community groups around Sydney to help those that are suffering by giving support to programs that matter in the lives of ordinary Australians.”

Busking and weddings have also been on the agenda for the Choir amid a busy year. The Choir will sing under the Christmas Tree at Martin Place, perform for an Oz Harvest concert on December 3 and attend a fundraiser on December 13.

“We’re singing in front of the Cathedral again,” Ms Oaks said. “We’ve got so much coming up.”

“The choir just loves singing. They just love bringing joy – you can just see the energy.”