The Choral Society of Montgomery County, founded in 1982, has compiled an enviable record of artistic achievements and community service. With the help of its principal sponsor, Montgomery County Community College, the ensemble continues to meet its goal of enriching its community through concert performance and choral music education.
The Choral Society has presented concerts and workshop activities reaching every township and borough in Montgomery County, as well as greater Philadelphia and international audiences. The ensemble has taken a leadership role in choral music education by presenting workshops for the community featuring internationally known clinicians, composers and singers such as the Western Wind Vocal Ensemble, conductors Frauke Hasseman and Anton Armstrong, composers Alice Parker, David Fanshawe, Gwyneth Walker, Richard Wargo and singer Judith Nicosia. The Choral Society has also collaborated with international artists including Julianne Baird, Marietta Simpson, Eric Owens, Laura Heimes, Tamara Matthews and Kevin Deas. CSMC has been selected for inclusion in nationally syndicated radio broadcasts such as "The First Art," and has been broadcast as part of the radio program "Notes from Philadelphia," hosted by acclaimed pianist Leon Bates. These broadcasts, heard on Temple University's WRTI 90.1 FM, have featured excerpts from performances of Monteverdi's Vespers of 1610, Haydn's The Creation and the always-popular Holiday Concerts. The ensemble has also been broadcast live on the subscription series of the St. Petersburg Philharmonic (formerly Leningrad, Soviet Union) and the Australian Broadcast Corporation at the Sydney Opera House. CSMC has toured the former Soviet Union, Australia, the Czech Republic and Hungary.
During June and July 2001, the Choral Society traveled to Wales to tour and to compete as one of two invited choirs from the United States who participated in the Eisteddfod Competition in Llangollen. In 1998, CSMC was honored with one of the highest-regarded artistic awards in the greater Philadelphia region: the Philadelphia Music Project Awards, funded by The Pew Charitable Trusts. This grant funded performances of two rarely performed works, Der Tag des Gerichts by Georg Philip Telemann and African Sanctus by David Fanshawe. CSMC's CD featuring a variety of musical styles, entitled Here's to Song, is available.
In 2002, the Choral Society welcomed Louis Scaglione as its Artistic Director. Under his direction, performances have included Bach's monumental Mass in B Minor, Mendelssohn's Elijah, Beethoven's Mass in C Major and the "Choral" Symphony No. 9, Haydn's The Creation and Missa Sancti Nicolai, Brahms' Ein deutsches Requiem, Handel's Messiah and Coronation Anthems, as well as Verdi's Requiem, Schubert's Mass in A-flat Major, Bernstein's Chichester Psalms, Dvorak's Stabat Mater, Stravinsky's Symphony of Psalms, Saint-Saens' Oratorio de Noel, Durufle's Requiem, Poulenc's Gloria, Gounod's Messe Solennelle de Dominica and works by Mozart including his Requiem, Dixit et Magnificat, Regina coeli, Vesperae Solennes de Dominica, the "Coronation" Mass in C Major and the "Great" Mass in C Minor. The Choral Society has recently collaborated with the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra, the Philadelphia Young Artists Orchestra, the Eastern Pennsylvania Symphony Orchestra, the Mendelssohn Club of Philadelphia and the Germantown Oratorio Choir.
The Choral Society of Montgomery County invites you to join them for their 2010-2011 Season. For additional information, or to schedule an audition time, please call 215-652-3200.
2010-2011 Season
Saturday, December 4, 2010, 8 p.m.
Winter Program
Science Center Auditorium at MCCC Central Campus
Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach: Magnificat in D
Songs and Carols of the Season Including
O Magnum Mysterium
O Come, O Come Emmanual
Fum, Fum, Fum
Silent Night
O Come, O Come Emmanuel
Deck the Halls
‘Twas the Night before Christmas
Silver Bells
The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)
Behold the Star
Mary Had a Baby
Christmas Gift
with guest artists
Philadelphia Youth Orchestra
Jackie Dunlevy-Boyle, Soprano
Sandra Carney, Mezzo Soprano
Steven Brennfleck, Tenor
Brian Ming Chu, Baritone
Tuesday, December 21, 2010, 8 p.m.
Holiday Benefit concert for Reach out and Read at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
St. Mark's Church, 1625 Locust Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103
Choral Society of Montgomery County
Philadelphia Young Artists Orchestra
Upper Darby High School Encore Singers
Program to Include
Handel: Zadok the Priest
Handel: The King Shall Rejoice
Songs and Carols of the Season
Saturday, April 30, 2011, 7:30 p.m.
St. Martin in the Field, Chestnut Hill
8000 Saint Martins Lane, Philadelphia, PA 19118-4199
J.S. Bach: The St. John Passion, BWV 245
with guest artists
Philadelphia Youth Orchestra
Jackie Dunlevy-Boyle, Soprano
Sandra Carney, Mezzo Soprano
Steven Brennfelck, Evangelist
Brian Ming Chu, Jesus
CSMC Executive Board
Artistic Director
Louis Scaglione
Associate Artistic Director
Sheri Segal Melcher
Officers
Cynthia O’Neill, President
Deborah Field, Vice President
Joanne R. Jenkins, Secretary
Joseph Voicheck, Treasurer
Andrew Koniers, Immediate Past President
Section Representatives
Marcy Spielvogel, Soprano
Carol Voicheck, Alto
Thomas Lackman, Tenor
Mark Blume, Bass
Contact Information
Choral Society of Montgomery County
Cultural Affairs Office
Montgomery County Community College
Box 400, 340 Dekalb Pike, Blue Bell, PA 19422-0796
Phone: 215-641-6518 / Fax: 215-641-6645
Helen Haynes, Director of Cultural Affairs: 215-641-6439
