About

About the Program

The Bear Creek High School Band and Choir Program is a multi-ensemble based organization that focuses on instrumental and choral studies. Under the direction of Elizabeth Unpingco, the program has three competitive ensembles, a pep band, piano labs, and beginning choir and band ensembles. 

As a participant in the program, students will be fully immersed in a collaborative and creative space with likeminded peers who enjoy exploring the world through the lens of music. The program's competitive ensembles: Bear Creek Chamber Singers (formally known as the Advanced Choir), Jazz Ensemble and Symphonic Band) participate in various festivals and concerts throughout the year. 

To date, our performers have performed in the following settings:

We have also been given the opportunity to perform with the following ensembles in the Stockton Area:

It is the program's goal to use our music to provide quality, college and career readiness opportunities for students to learn how to become better musicians and become more professional in their day to day activities. We pride ourselves in maintaining a high level of musical excellence within the classroom and on the road while continuing to represent the Bear Creek High School community through our work.

Meet the Director

Elizabeth Unpingco is a Downbeat Award-Winning jazz vocalist and an educator in the Sacramento and Stockton area. She is a Sacramento State School of Music graduate with a degree in jazz studies with a dual emphasis in education and performance. During her time at the university, she participated in award-winning vocal jazz ensembles under the direction of Gaw Vang Williams, and was also awarded several grants recognizing her achievements in music and higher education. Elizabeth is currently in her fourth year of teaching at Bear Creek High School, where she instructs band and choral studies. In 2023, Ms. Unpingco received the Teacher of the Year award, which she accepts as one of her greatest honors of her career.

 Ms. Unpingco in her eighth year as the music director at Atonement Lutheran Church in Rosemont, and previously taught private piano and voice lessons at Martucci Music for five years in Sacramento Midtown. She also had the pleasure of working Monterey Jazz Next Generation Summer Camp, and teaching the Vocal Jazz Lab Choir at Sac State. When Elizabeth is not teaching, she is pursuing a masters degree in music education at San Jose State University, and performing in various locations in the Sacramento area with her trios, duos, and big bands sharing her love for jazz with the people who come to see her. Her most recent performance venture is the Pacific Standard Jazz Orchestra, which is a new jazz ensemble that is co-directed by her and Levi Saelua.