Harvard University Choir
Harvard UChoir Concert: The Music of Gustav Holst
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Music in the Memorial Church is provided by the Harvard University Choir (UChoir), whose members are undergraduate and graduate students in the University.
For over 180 years the Harvard University Choir has provided a unique opportunity for student singers to perform great choral literature at the highest level, both in concert and during the services of the Memorial Church. A demanding, yet rewarding experience, the choir is regarded by many as the premier program in college chapel music in the United States. Each year the choir performs America's oldest Christmas Carol Services to packed congregations.
The choir is also a place for students to broaden their musical horizons, many as composers and conductors as well as singers, and provides a wonderful opportunity to meet other gifted musicians. Additionally, choir members receive private vocal lessons from distinguished teachers right in The Memorial Church. Due to the high level of sight-reading and vocal technique in the ensemble, rapport quickly develops within the choir and rehearsals are efficient, focused, and fun. The rehearsals, which last for 90 minutes on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons, fit easily into most graduate and undergraduate academic schedules. The sense of community is also strengthened by pre-rehearsal coffee hours and post event parties, fostering friendships that last well beyond Harvard.
Harvard University Choir YouTube Playlist
The Ferris Choral Fellows
The Ferris Choral Fellows are a group of sixteen dedicated singers drawn from the Sunday Choir who additionally perform in the daily Morning Prayers services in Appleton Chapel, one of Harvard’s oldest traditions. This ensemble also represents the University Choir on tour and at special events and provides a demanding, yet exciting, musical experience for those involved. These singers are appointed for the full academic year after extensive auditions held the previous Spring and receive free voice lessons as well as a significant stipend.
Choral Fellows Quick Facts
- Sixteen members of the Sunday Choir
- Receive an additional annual stipend and free voice lessons in return for providing music at the Morning Prayers services in Appleton Chapel and for representing the Memorial Church on tour and at special events
- Appointed by audition in the spring for the duration of the following academic year.
The Sunday Choir
Approximately 40 singers form the Sunday Choir, a group that performs a wide range of choral literature for the Sunday services of The Memorial Church in Harvard Yard.
The choir attracts singers who like a challenge, singing a wide variety of music at a professional standard with a weekly performance deadline. The group performs in the annual Christmas Carol Services and Spring Concert, and collaborates with other musical groups, both on and off campus.
The Sunday Choir also undertakes both international and domestic tours. In recognition of their commitment, all members of this group are paid. Auditions for positions in the Sunday Choir are held early in the Fall Term.
Sunday Choir Quick Facts
- Over 180 years of singing on campus
- Harvard's only paid choral ensemble
- Provides the music for weekly Sunday services at the Memorial Church
- Performs several larger concerts throughout the academic year. Past works have included Bach's St John Passion, Britten's St. Nicolas, and Handel's Alexander's Feast.
- Sings a diverse and challenging repertoire spanning musical styles through the ages.
- Is comprised of singers from the College as well as Harvard's graduate programs, including a variety of academic interests, from music to physics to WGS.
- Welcomes people of any, or no, faith.
Questions?
Please feel free to contact the Choir Secretaries at with any questions about the audition process, singing with the choir, or music at Harvard!
Music Department
Edward E. Jones
edward_jones@harvard.edu
David von Behren
Carson P. Cooman
carson_cooman@harvard.edu
Frank Kelley
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