60 Seasons With a Singular Focus of Uniting People Through Music

60 Seasons With a Singular Focus of Uniting People Through Music

Philadelphia's own Singing City Choir Celebrates its 60th Birthday

PHILADELPHIA, April 28 /PRNewswire/ -- In 1948, Dr. Elaine Brown has a novel idea. The idea that differences between races, religions and cultures could be bridged by ordinary people coming together in shared activities. She founded Singing City on this premise as an integrated choir which traveled together extensively into volatile areas sharing their ideas and opening minds. Today, from its humble and tenacious beginnings -- Singing City is poised to celebrate their 60th Anniversary.

Playing in front of integrated audiences and only staying in places open to all, they traveled to the South in the 1950's and 1960's assisting in the struggle for Civil Rights. As a result of critical acclaim through performances with The Philadelphia Orchestra, the choir was invited to perform in Israel, with Zubin Mehta and also in Jordan and Egypt while on tour in the 1970's and 1980's. Singing City was the first western choir to perform with the Leningrad Philharmonic in Leningrad in 1990. In May 2000, Singing City was the lead choir at the First International Choral Festival de Cuba. More recently the choir carried its mission of cultural and religious harmony to Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland and a similar tour to Brazil is planned for the summer of 2008.

After sixty years, the choir is still defined by its early experiences during the Civil Rights movement and bringing its message of music as a force for change to cities and neighborhoods in and around Philadelphia. Throughout these years Singing City has maintained this singular focus of uniting people through music. The choir has continued to renew itself attracting new and younger members through its website and high performance visibility, but mostly because of its distinctive musical programming which is traditionally a broad and diverse repertoire of choral music attracting broad audiences. Many aspiring singers have honed their skills due to the demanding performances.

Founding conductor, Elaine Brown often said the single-minded purpose of Singing City was the "use of music to rally human resources to summon the best in man and make a difference in the direction of higher purpose". Singing City's upcoming 60th season will celebrate this grand experiment in human relations. Turning 60 is an opportunity. In the case of Singing City, it is an opportunity to honor our roots in the Civil Rights movement and for the choir to stretch artistically in a major way working with outstanding musicians and soloists.

In addition to the extraordinary series of concerts that have taken place throughout the 2007-08 season; Singing City will make history with their 60th Anniversary Concert on Sunday, May 4, 2008 at the Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church (625 Montgomery Ave. Bryn Mawr, PA) at 4 p.m.

"Our 60th Anniversary Concert is a performance of Beethoven's Missa Solemnis, performed with a 29-piece orchestra," explains Singing City's Executive Director, Angela Scully. "Missa Solemnis has been compared in magnitude and splendor to the Bach B-Minor Mass and Wagner's Parsifal. The Missa Solemnis in D Major, Op. 123 was composed by Ludwig van Beethoven from 1819-1823 and represents Beethoven at the height of his powers," she adds. A performance of Beethoven's Missa Solemnis will feature soloists: Tamara Matthews, Byran Hymel, Stephen Powell and Marietta Simpson.

In accordance with their mission, there will also be a season of Singing City in the schools as well as a day of outreach into area shelters, retirement communities and assisted care facilities as well as a vibrant program of community concerts. Capped off by the presentation of the "Singing City Fellowship Award" to Temple University and The Boyer College of Music & Dance at a special awards ceremony & reception gala, on Saturday, May 10, 2008 from 6-8 pm at the Park Hyatt at the Bellevue (Broad & Walnut Streets, Philadelphia).

The Singing City Fellowship Award was created to honor a person or an organization whose extraordinary contributions toward bridging diverse communities in the Philadelphia region best exemplify the mission and spirit of the Singing City Choir and its founding conductor, Dr. Elaine Brown.

Singing City is dependent upon corporate and private contributions in addition to the fundraising it does on its own. For more information, contact Singing City at 215-569-9067 or at www.singingcity.org.

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Source: Singing City

CONTACT: Alexis Small, +1-610-202-3030, alexis@j2online.com

Web site:

http://www.singingcity.org/

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