Although not universally or easily defined, choral culture is a concept that has arisen regularly throughout my career - particularly in job interviews where a school seeks to employ a teacher to establish or build a choral culture. However, the literature does not address what constitutes a choral culture and its potential impact on the learning of those within it. This paper asks: 1) what do choral leaders understand by the idea of a choral culture, 2) how can a choral culture be understood in context as my suggested term of a ‘choral microclimate’, and 3) what are the influencing factors in the conscious construction of ‘choral microclimates’ which ensure sustainability. Using auto and duo ethnography, and a self-devised reflective framework applied to case studies, this paper examines examples of choral culture in schools and independent choral organisations in the three countries in which I have worked: England, Switzerland, and Australia. Through discussions with choral conductors, teachers, and arts leaders, a mutual understanding of choral culture has been defined and I have developed the term ‘choral microclimate’ to describe an environment that is uniquely moulded towards a deliberate goal of building and sustaining a thriving group singing culture that sits within the broader culture of a school. Using Reflective Thematic Analysis (RTA), this paper identifies the factors that help or hinder the construction, development and sustaining of these ‘choral microclimates’ in schools, focusing particularly on collaboration with professional arts organisations, repertoire selection to form identity, and the organisational and structural influences at play in school environments. Using literature that discusses leadership and organisational change, as well as school singing programmes, and arts partnership programmes, this paper positions the ‘choral microclimate’ as a pedagogical tool. Moreover, there is a social-justice potential within the ‘choral microclimate’ in its provision of a ‘counter-cultural’ space through which singers can find a sense of community and transferable identity. While there is a practical understanding of the existence of choral culture within a school, and a nebulous knowledge that having one is a good thing, this area has not been theorised or investigated for its pedagogical potential. This paper begins to theorise this area and present the ‘choral microclimate’ as a pedagogical strategy that through educational leadership, can offer a new contribution to our understanding of music education in schools for all children.