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Choral Arts New England Award Ceremony Honors Lifetime Achievement Award Winner Marguerite Brooks and Fifteen Recipients of Alfred Nash Patterson Grants

Choral Arts New England will hold its 35th annual awards ceremony and reception on Sunday, November 3, 2019, honoring our 2019 Alfred Nash Patterson grant recipients and our Lifetime Achievement Award winner, Marguerite Brooks. The ceremony will take place at 3:00 pm at Old South Church, in Copley Square, Boston, with a reception to follow. The event is free and open to the public. All are welcome.

Summer 2019 Choral Programs in (and near) New England

Summer is a perfect time for getting out of old routines and devoting time to music. New England holds some special retreats that offer programs where choral singers can get away for a week or more to focus and learn; elsewhere, singers take advantage of summer freedom to rehearse and perform a special choral work. Many choruses open their doors to the public to host “summer sings,” where participants sing a masterwork in a single session under expert direction, and often with professional soloists— a perfect way to participate in great music with a minimum commitment.

2019 Alfred Nash Patterson Grant Recipients Named

Choral Arts New England has announced the funding of 15 grants, for a total $13,650, in the 2019 season. The funded projects were selected from the 52 proposals received. This year's awards are the largest number of grants in the history of the organization, reflecting growing activity and innovation in the New England choral community. Both the number of applications and the amount requested have steadily risen over the past several years; last year, 51 applications were received and $14,150 was given in grants. Awards will be presented at the annual awards ceremony on November 3, 2019. The grant recipients are Burlington Choral Society (Burlington, Vt.), Cantilena (Arlington, Mass.), ChoralArt (Portland, Maine), Chorus Angelicus c/o Joyful Noise Inc. (Torrington, Conn.), Commonwealth Chorale (Newtonville, Mass.), Coro Allegro (Boston, Mass.), Fairfield County Children's Choir (Trumbull, Conn.), Greater Boston Choral Consortium (Boston, Mass.), Lorelei Ensemble (Cambridge, Mass.), Montpelier Community Gospel Choir (Montpelier, Vt.), New Hampshire Master Chorale (Plymouth, N.H.), Outer Cape Chorale (So. Wellfleet, Mass.), Somerville Community Chorus (Somerville, Mass.), South Shore Children's Chorus (Quincy, Mass.), and St Mary Schola (Falmouth, Maine)

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.

Highlights of the 2018–2019 Season in New England

The New England choral community is as vigorous as ever, and many great performances are scheduled throughout the coming year. Listed below are just a few highlights for the season that starts in September 2018. Currently, about 450 performances are listed on the Choral Arts New England events calendar through June 2019; that number will probably double by the end of the year. See the online calendar for complete, up-to-date listings.

2018 Alfred Nash Patterson Grant Recipients Named

Choral Arts New England has announced the funding of 13 grants, for a total $14,150, in the 2018 season. The funded projects were selected from 51 proposals that were received. Both the number of applications and the amount requested have steadily risen over the past several years. Awards will be presented at the annual awards ceremony in the autumn of 2018. The recipients are Andover Choral Society (Andover, Mass.); Cappella Clausura (Newtonville, Mass.); Collegium Ancora (Providence, R.I.); CONCORA (Hartford, Ct.); Da Camera Singers (Amherst, Mass.); Hampshire Young People’s Chorus (Amherst, Mass.); Island Community Chorus (Vineyard Haven, Mass.); Labyrinth Choir (Southboro, Mass.); Manchester Choral Society (Manchester, N.H.); Metropolitan Chorale (Brookline, Mass.); Rhode Island Civic Chorale (Cranston, R.I.); Voce (Mystic, Ct.); and Zamir Chorale of Boston (Newton, Mass.).

Johanna Hill Simpson named 2017 recipient of the Choral Arts New England Lifetime Achievement Award

Johanna "Jody" Hill Simpson founded and, for 16 years, directed the PALS Children’s Chorus (now known as VOICES Boston), and more recently founded and is Artistic Director of Music on Norway Pond, in Hancock, NH.  Her thirty-five years of dedication to the choral arts in New England have created an extraordinary legacy of choral excellence for singers of all ages and continue to produce some of New England’s most compelling and memorable musical experiences for participants and audiences alike.

The Lifetime Achievement Award was presented at a ceremony and reception on Sunday, October 22, 2017, where Choral Arts New England also presented the Alfred Nash Paterson Grant Award to eleven choruses from the six New England states.  The ceremony was held at First Parish in Brookline.

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