Choral Arts New England Award Ceremony Honors Lifetime Achievement Award Winner Dr. Gwyneth Walker and Thirteen Recipients of Alfred Nash Patterson Grants

Choral Arts New England held its 34th annual awards ceremony and reception on Sunday, November 4, 2018, honoring our 2018 Alfred Nash Patterson grant recipients and our Lifetime Achievement Award winner, Dr. Gwyneth Walker. The ceremony was at Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Massachusetts.

Alfred Nash Patterson Grants have been awarded continuously since 1985. These grants support choral music in New England and can be awarded to New England choruses – both volunteer and professional, parent organizations of New England choruses, and New England organizations that provide support to choral music. Over 240 Alfred Nash Patterson grants, totaling over $300,000, have been awarded since 1985.

Thirteen recipients from across New England have been awarded grants for the 2018 season. These include:

  • Andover Choral Society, Andover, Massachusetts
    Florence Price: Abraham Lincoln Walks at Midnight
  • Cappella Clausura, Newtonville, Massachusetts
    Fanny Mendelssohn: 3 Cantatas
  • Collegium Ancora, Providence, Rhode Island
    Beneath the Armor: Songs of War & Peace
  • CONCORA (Connecticut Choral Artists), Hartford, Connecticut
    Craig Hella Johnson: Considering Matthew Shepard
  • Da Camera Singers, Amherst, Massachusetts
    Young Composers Commission Project
  • Hampshire Young People’s Chorus, Amherst, Massachusetts
    20th Anniversary Commissioning Project
  • Island Community Chorus, Vineyard Haven, Massachusetts
    Thomas LaVoy: Setting of Words by Nancy Luce
  • Labyrinth Choir, Southboro, Massachusetts
    World House: 7 Continents =1 World
  • Manchester Choral Society, Manchester, New Hampshire
    William Grant Still: For Those Who Wait
  • Metropolitan Chorale, Brookline, Massachusetts
    A Medieval Bestiary: Collaboration with Brookline Puppet Theater
  • Rhode Island Civic Chorale, Cranston, Rhode Island
    Beacon Charter School Music Program
  • Voce, Inc., Mystic, Connecticut
    Thomas LaVoy: 2018‐2019 Composer in Residence
  • Zamir Chorale of Boston, Newton, Massachusetts
    Jonathan Leshnoff: Hegyon Libi (50th Anniversary Concert)

Gwyneth WalkerThe Lifetime Achievement Award has been awarded annually since 1994 to individuals who have made exceptional contributions to choral singing and its culture within New England. Our 2018 recipient, Dr. Gwyneth Walker, is a revered American composer whose works have been widely performed throughout the country. Her career, spanning a lifetime of composing, has given the choral world many beloved pieces, ranging from long-form works for SATB chorus and orchestra to shorter pieces, many for women’s voices or children’s choirs. Walker is one of the most frequently performed modern composers of concerts listed in the Choral Arts New England calendar.


Choral Arts New England was formed in 1980 as a memorial to Alfred Nash “Bud” Patterson, the founder of Boston's Chorus pro Musica and an inspiring cultural leader, mentor and model for singers, conductors and composers. The Lifetime Achievement Award has been presented annually since 1994 to individuals who have made exceptional contributions to choral singing and its culture within New England. Alfred Nash Patterson grants have been awarded each year since 1985.

Effective date: 
Friday, October 5, 2018