By Daniella Goddard

The UCSB Chamber Choir, under the direction of Michel Marc Gervais, has begun a 15-day concert tour in Italy that will include stops in Siena, Florence, Rome, and cities throughout Tuscany. The ensemble, made up of 34 graduate and undergraduate students, will perform two different programs containing pieces rehearsed throughout the year in Santa Barbara.

To prepare for the tour, which began on June 15, the choir performed “Sanctus,” a program spanning five centuries of sacred choral music, at Trinity Episcopal Church in Santa Barbara and at Old Mission Santa Inés in Solvang last month.

Typically, the choir performs one show in Santa Barbara at the end of the fall, winter, and spring quarters. Due to its enormous success, however, the ensemble has expanded its performance schedule to include Old Mission Santa Inéz.

The choir was established in 1995 by Gervais, director of choral studies at UCSB. Since then, it has embarked on two tours of California, four tours of Europe, and has recorded seven CDs.