The SUNY New Paltz Choral Ensembles offer opportunities for singers of a wide range of experience to perform music of a great variety of styles and periods. The ensembles are open to all SUNY students regardless of major.
College-Community Chorale draws its members from both the student body and the larger New Paltz community. No audition is required for membership. The chorus meets on Wednesday evenings. Its repertoire consists of folk songs, spirituals, classics of the choral repertoire, and major works with orchestra, often in collaboration with the College/Youth Symphony. Recent performances have included Brahms's German Requiem, Beethoven's Mass in C (with the Greater Newburgh Symphony), Vaughan Williams's Dona Nobis Pacem, folk songs from Japan, Thailand, and Mongolia, and an evening of opera choruses.
Concert Choir, the major performing choral ensemble of the College, is dedicated to the performance of sacred and secular music of the highest caliber. Concert Choir meets two afternoons per week. Its membership consists of 35 to 40 student singers chosen by audition. The group's repertoire reaches from the 18th century to the present, with an emphasis on 20th century American works. Recent performances include William Schuman's Carols of Death, Peter Schickele's After Spring Sunset, Mozart's Solemn Vespers, and the Brahms Liebeslieder Waltzes.
For information about choral ensembles, College-Community Chorale, and Concert Choir, contact Lee Degnan, administrative assistant, at degnanl@newpaltz.edu.
