Choir
The Wellesley College Choir has been an important part of campus life since its founding in 1900. It numbers between 45 and 60 voices selected on the basis of auditions held at the beginning of each season. Choir members are drawn from a wide range of academic disciplines and cultural backgrounds and present numerous concerts on and off campus during the academic year. Lisa Graham, the Evelyn Barry Director of Choral Programs at Wellesley College, has directed the Choir since Fall 2001.
The Choir's on campus concert series normally includes three traditional programs: a fall concert, endowed annually since 1964 in memory of Betty Edwards Dober '40, a Christmas Vespers service, and a spring concert, endowed annually since 1974 in memory of Marjorie Copland Baum '27. The Choir performs a variety of music, ranging from the 13th to 21st centuries.
In addition to presenting works for women's voices, the Choir often collaborates with all-male groups such as the Harvard Glee Club, the Cornell Glee Club, and the Rutgers Glee Club to present works for mixed voices and orchestra. Recent performances include Randall Thompson's A Peacable Kingdom, Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, the Brahms and Durufle Requiems, Haydn's Lord Nelson Mass, Bach's Magnificat, and Carl Orff's Carmina Buranna.
Recent commissions by the Choir include works by William DeFotis, Zae Munn, Marjorie Merryman, Jonathan Holland, Brian Hulse, and Steven Sametz. The Choir has traveled on both domestic and international tours, including Italy in January 2009, and Washington DC and New York City in 2010.
Please follow us on Facebook, Twitter or by way of the Wellesley College Choir blog. Recordings of the Choir and other ensembles are available for purchase. Please send e-mail to Lisa Graham at lgraham1@wellesley.edu for more information.
