A choir is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which spans from the medieval era to the present, or popular music repertoire. Most choirs are led by a conductor, who leads the performances with arm and face gestures.
Helmuth Rilling is a German choral conductor and an academic teacher. He is the founder of the Gächinger Kantorei (1954), the Bach-Collegium Stuttgart (1965), the Oregon Bach Festival (1970), the Internationale Bachakademie Stuttgart (1981) and other Bach Academies worldwide, as well as the "Festival Ensemble Stuttgart" (2001) and the "Junges Stuttgarter Bach Ensemble" (2011). He taught choral conducting at the Frankfurt Musikhochschule from 1965 to 1989 and led the Frankfurter Kantorei from 1969 to 1982.
The Gay and Lesbian Association of Choruses is an international association of LGBT choruses founded in 1982. In its inaugural performance 14 choruses performed together in September 1982 in San Francisco as part of the first Gay Games. It aims to foster artistic and organizational development within its member choruses. The association includes almost 10,000 vocalists in over 100 associated choruses singing as male, female and mixed ensembles in a wide variety of styles. GALA Choruses produces a large festival every four years, in addition to a number of smaller annual workshops and conferences.
The Colorado Children's Chorale is a nationally recognized singing group in Colorado established in 1974, a result of the successful assembly by founder Duain Wolfe of a youth ensemble to perform in Central City Opera's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream. Mr. Wolfe recognized the opportunity to fulfill an ongoing need for a professionally trained children's choral resource and as such, the primary mission of the Chorale as a performing ensemble remains to this day.
Brady Allred is an American conductor of choral and orchestral music who currently serves as the artistic director and conductor of the Salt Lake Choral Artists, a regional choir organization with five choirs with a total of approximately 350 singers. He is the father of Loren Allred of The Greatest Showman fame.
San Diego Men's Chorus (SDMC) provided entertainment for San Diego, California, during the period of 1985 to 2009. A former member of the Gay & Lesbian Association of Choruses, SDMC performed some of the finest choral literature from a variety of genres. The Chorus offered numerous 'outreach performances' each season, and supported local LGBT organizations and HIV/AIDS organizations in the San Diego area.
Pacific Chorale, founded in 1968, is a professional chorus performing in Costa Mesa, California at the Renée and Henry Segerstom Concert Hall at Segerstrom Center for the Arts.
The Ars Nova Singers is a choral ensemble based in Boulder, Colorado, USA. Founded in 1986, Ars Nova Singers is composed of about 40 selectively auditioned singers from the Boulder / Denver metropolitan area. Ars Nova has achieved significant national recognition, recording ten critically acclaimed solo recordings as well as performing on seven recordings with Boulder composer and instrumentalist Bill Douglas (musician).
The Atlanta Gay Men's Chorus (AGMC) is a nonprofit performing arts organization based in Atlanta, Georgia (USA). The AGMC, along with the Atlanta Women's Chorus, are managed under their parent organization, Voices of Note.
The Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington, D.C. (GMCW), is one of the oldest LGBT choral organizations in the United States. With more than 300 singing members, it is also one of the largest. The chorus's stated mission is that it "delights audiences and champions gay equality with robust artistry, fun, and surprise." In addition to singing members, GMCW has nearly 100 support volunteers, 400 subscribers, 500 donors and an annual audience of nearly 10,000. The parent organization is the Federal City Performing Arts Association, Inc., and GMCW is a member of GALA Choruses.
The Boulder Philharmonic Orchestra, founded in 1958, is a professional symphony orchestra based in Boulder, Colorado. It is led by Music Director Michael Butterman. The Boulder Philharmonic’s season at Macky Auditorium on the University of Colorado at Boulder campus and other venues includes classical music, pops, school and family concerts, as well as an annual production of The Nutcracker with Boulder Ballet.
Axel Theimer is a conductor, composer, singer, author and professor at the College of Saint Benedict/Saint John's University (CSB/SJU) in Minnesota. He conducts the professional a cappella choir Kantorei, the National Catholic Youth Choir and the Amadeus Chamber Symphony, and as of 2020 is in his 52nd year as a music faculty member at CSB/SJU, where he conducts CSB/SJU Chamber Choir and the SJU Men's Chorus. He is on the faculty and is executive director of the VoiceCare Network. He is an acknowledged expert on healthy vocal production for solo and choral singing, and the effect of conducting gesture on vocalists and instrumentalists. His choirs are known and praised for their particularly warm, natural, expressive and efficient sound.
Coro Allegro is a classical music choral group based in Boston, Massachusetts, drawing its members from the LGBT community. It was founded in 1990.
The Arvada Chorale is a community chorus from Arvada, Colorado. The Chorale performs a wide variety of classical, holiday, contemporary, and jazz music. The Chorale was founded in 1977 as a project of the Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities, and became an independent 501c3 non-profit corporation in 2009. The Arvada Chorale has performed with several prominent musical ensembles from the Denver area, including the Lakewood Symphony, the Rocky Mountain Ringers, and Colcannon. The Chorale is composed of about 70 singers in the SATB arrangement. The role of Music Director for the Fall 2015 season has been taken over by Marla Wasson.
Golden Gate Men's Chorus (GGMC) is a gay men's chorus founded in 1982 and located in San Francisco. The GGMC is a group of 50 ethnically and socially diverse gay and gay-supportive men, and is dedicated to giving voice to the gay community through song. The GGMC presents spring, summer, and winter programs annually, in addition to numerous guest and community benefit performances throughout the year.
A. Duain Wolfe is an American choral conductor, conductor of the Colorado Symphony Chorus and the Colorado Children's Chorale. He is the current chorus director and conductor of the Chicago Symphony Chorus and a past president of Chorus America.
In 1983, Marguerite McCormick founded the Children’s Chorus of San Antonio to develop the artistic and personal potential of young people across the city. Today, more than 450 young musicians ages 5–18 gather every week to learn choral music and singing in a healthy, diverse, and inclusive environment. The organization runs eight core ensembles, one of which is in special collaboration with the Boys and Girls Clubs, as well as an extensive early-childhood music and movement program for babies and toddlers called Music Together. Through their specially crafted programming, CCSA continues to cultivate the arts and culture in San Antonio, while transforming the lives of young people through the power of music and friendship.
Jake Runestad is an American composer and conductor of classical music based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He has composed music for a wide variety of musical genres and ensembles, but has achieved greatest acclaim for his work in the genres of opera, orchestral music, choral music, and wind ensemble. One of his principal collaborators for musical texts has been the poet Todd Boss.
Washington, D.C. and its environs are home to an unusually large and vibrant choral music scene, including choirs and choruses of many sizes and types.
Berks Youth Chorus (BYC), originally named the Berks Classical Children’s Chorus, is a children’s and youth chorus based in Reading, Pennsylvania that performs classical, contemporary, and popular music. Singers are in grades three through twelve, and come from Berks and neighboring counties. The group was founded in 1992 by Donald Hinkle, and has been led by Executive Director Dail Richie since 1997. The organization has received various accolades, including, in April 2001, top scores, all superior, during the three-day Heritage Children’s Choir Festival in New York City.
